TWO soldiers who served in Afghanistan have flown over Test Valley for charity – in paramotors.
Paul Goodwin and Charlie Hutchinson undertook the journey to promote Paul's new charity – Resurgence Air Sports – which helps veterans readjust to civilian life through aviation.
The trip took them over 80 kilometres, from the source of the Test at Ashe to the south coast.
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Paul and Charlie share a love of paramotors, which are essentially paragliders with a motorised propeller attached.
As the pair approached Stockbridge, they sighted Chinook and Apache helicopters flying in and out of Middle Wallop, and wondered if the RAF had been sent out for some easy target practice.
Danger averted, the next stop was Romsey, where the airspace over Southampton Airport required them to fly a little further west.
Charlie said: "We wanted to showcase paramotors in a positive light. Paramotors are paragliders with a small motor and propeller attached to the back of the pilot. The thrust generated by the propeller allows the pilot to gain altitude and to take off from flat ground, rather than requiring a hill. This also allows the pilot to fly long distances cross-country. It this case we flew over 80km, but with the right wind and more fuel, longer distances are achievable."
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From there the views were spectacular. Paul said: "Being in the air really makes you realise how 2D life is on the ground, and how much closer together everything is than you realise."
The two aviators are fairly sure they are the first people to fly the entire length of the river test, a feat Charlie is particularly proud of as a Hampshire local.
Resurgence is already putting its first two veterans through paramotor training, and Paul and Charlie hope their River Test odyssey will be the first of many.
Paul serves in the Rifles and is an instructor at the Army Foundation in Harrogate.
Charlie, who served in the Parachute Regiment Reserve, said: "We’re already planning some more adventures to raise the profile of Resurgence Air Sports. We are hoping that on the next trip, we’ll already be taking with us veterans who have learnt to fly through the charity!"
For more on the charity, go to facebook.com/skyrascals or to donate go to bit.ly/4b9unvB.
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