A CHINOOK helicopter from RAF Odiham will fly above armed forces as they march up Winchester High Street on Tuesday as part of a welcome to celebrate their homecoming. The march will comprise representatives of the thousands of Hampshire-based servicemen and women recently back from duty in Afghanistan and Iraq. It will be the first time any county has welcomed home its armed forces in this way. Three hundred service personnel will set off at 11.45am on January 29 from King Alfred's statue in the Broadway, Winchester. Led by the Band of the Welsh Guards, the troops will march three-abreast in their desert combat uniform, up the High Street and past the historic Westgate to the sound of the pealing Cathedral bells. A Chinook will fly up the High Street as the clock strikes noon, just as the parade passes the saluting dais outside the main Hampshire County Council building at Elizabeth II Court (by the hog statue). The parade will fall out in Castle Avenue before a reception in the Great Hall. Catering at the reception will be by the Territorial Army 457 (Hampshire Yeomanry) Battery, Royal Artillery (Volunteers), some of whom have also recently returned from active service. Scrolls will be presented to units, and all service personnel will receive a bottle of beer from the Itchen Valley Brewery and Fullers, and an engraved glass tankard in recognition of their service and sacrifice. The reception is being co-hosted by HCC leader Ken Thornber and the Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire, Mrs Mary Fagan. To watch the parade use public transport or the Winchester Park and Ride, as city centre car parking is limited and there may be interruptions to traffic as roads close.
