New Milton Advertiser 8th Jan 2021

6 · Friday 8th January 2021

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Jet suit firm storms castle with 60mph flight tests

Rocketman Richard soars over historic Forest monument

Three weeks of traffic lights set for A35 bridge

from Tim and Adam Draper, who were early investors in Tes- la and Skype. Since then it has been devel- oping the jet suit technology towards an international race series. The Gravity Industries team previously made headlines in the A&T when Richard flew across the Solent from Hurst Castle to the Isle of Wight to deliver a letter – inspired by an early 20th century idea to use rocket power to deliver mail to the Island. The idea by German entre- preneur Gerhard Zucker was to launch a rocket delivery of about 600 items to Yarmouth from Pennington in 1934. Fortunately for Islanders, the package was blown back- ward and crash-landed into the marshes instead. Mr Zucker’s idea was to sell stamps – but the likelihood of his post-rockets landing safe- ly sparked concerns at the time about whether he was a genuine businessman or a “scallywag” aiming to get rich quick. To watch footage of Richard’s latest flight over Hurst Castle visit bit.ly/38Su2zo health emergency”. As part of the government’s three-year programme to add 20,000 officers nationally, the force is on track to recruit 64 new officers by the end of March – above its target for this financial year. Dorset Police said constabu- laries have faced “considerable budgetary pressures” in recent years, with the need to manage more demand, real-terms cuts to funding and a number of na- tionally imposed costs. Mr Underhill continued: “I am fully aware that many peo- ple across Dorset are worried about their livelihoods at the moment, and it’s with a heavy heart that I have to go out once again and ask cash-strapped families to contribute more.” He added: “Although I have already said I will not be stand- ing in next year’s PCC elections, I will use my remaining months in office to continue demanding a fairer settlement for Dorset Police, which remains one of the lowest funded forces in the country.” To comment on the proposed precept rise, go to www.survey monkey.co.uk/r/6NQY6Y8

By ROZ WATERS

MOTORISTS will have to con- tend with temporary traffic lights on one of the main routes through the New Forest as preparations begin for a £5.5m bridge replacement scheme The signals will be installed for nearly three weeks on the A35 at Holmsley Bridge, near Burley, from Monday, as Hamp- shire County Council starts pre- liminary work. There will be a lane closure during off-peak hours, 9.30am- 4pm, and temporary two-way traffic lights will be in place. Weather conditions permit- ting, the work should be com- pleted by 5th February, said HCC.. The entire operation will re- place the crumbling old bridge, which is under a 40mph tem- porary speed limit, with a new

concrete crossing where it spans the C10 Station Road. The project includes a realign - ment of 380 metres of the A35. Cllr Rob Humby, HCC cabi- net member for economy, trans- port and environment, said: “We need to prepare the site before we replace the bridge, so this work will include clearance of trees and vegetation, followed by the installation of temporary timber fencing at the bounda- ry between the works area and New Forest land. “To minimise future disrup- tion to those travelling in the area, Openreach BT will under- take their timber pole reloca- tion at the same time.” HCC said the engineers will take appropriate coronavirus precautions and adhere to so- cial distancing on site.

HURST Castle and the nearby shingle spit has become a test site for a ground-breaking rock- et propelled flying suit. Chosen for its proximity to sheltered water, which makes it perfect for trialling newwing de- velopments, the area has been used around six times for flight testing by Salisbury-based Gravity Industries Ltd. Footage of a test flight in December 2019 was recently released on the company’s so- cial media pages showing chief test pilot and company founder Richard Browning soaring over Hurst Castle and Keyhaven River in the rocket propelled suit. Supported by land and wa- ter safety teams, Richard can DOG owners have been urged to keep their pets under con- trol after an alpaca was fatally wounded in an attack in the New Forest. The incident took place on property in Furze Hill, Fording - bridge, on 19th December, but details were only released by police on Wednesday. Officers had responded to reports a dog had set upon the alpaca while off its lead. As a result of its injuries, the animal had to be put down by a vet.

Gravity Industries founder Richard Browning takes flight near Hurst Castle

be seen reaching speeds of up to 60mph as he circles the 450-year-old monument.

Richard told the A&T: “It all started when the BBC organ- ised a shoot to fly to the Isle of Wight as part of a documentary about sending mail by rocket! “We got to know Jason, who runs the castle, and ever since have used the sheltered side of the spit to do speed and wing

flight testing.” The company designs, builds and flies jet suits, with hopes of pioneering a new era of human flight. Founded by chief test pilot and designer Richard in March 2017, the business quickly re- ceived a $650,000 investment

Alpaca in fatal dog attack

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The incident prompted a lo- cal officer to post on Facebook, pleading with dog owners to be- have responsibly. The post said: “I know that most dog owners who live lo- cally behave responsibly and keep their dogs on leads and fit muzzles. Clearly others do not and this is the distressing con- sequence of not having control of your dog. “Please be a responsible own- er and keep your dog under control.”

Police force hikes share of council tax over Covid costs

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DORSET Police is planning to raise its share of the council tax to help balance the books in the face of the pandemic and re- cruit new officers. Residents of Band D homes in Christchurch would pay an ad- ditional £15 per year, meaning a 6% rise to £255 for the force’s share of the overall council tax in 2021/22. The current combined av- erage band D bill for 2020/21 is £1,900, comprising charges from the town and BCP councils, plus the fire and police services. The extra cash would help the force meet additional and “unavoidable” costs brought about by the coronavirus out- break. Dorset police and crime com- missioner (PCC) Martyn Un- derhill said: “Considering that we are in the midst of an ongo- ing crisis, and the government is faced with arguably one of the biggest challenges since the Second World War, I have to be realistic about the state of the country’s finances. “The recent government spending review prioritised Covid-19, and so PCCs have been asked to raise their pre-

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Dorset PCC Martyn Underhill

cept levels to help forces bal- ance their budgets.” Mr Underhill said extra fund- ing would allow Dorset to re- cruit more officers over the next year and provide an “enhanced” service in the face of a “global

Union calls for action over railway catering service axe

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UNION chiefs demanded the government step in after South Western Railway announced it intends to axe its on-board ca- tering service, putting 130 jobs at risk. SWR blamed falling demand due to the pandemic for its plans to terminate the con- tract with Elior which, if it goes ahead, would make redundan- cies on 17th January. That comes more than two months before the govern- ment’s job retention scheme ends, and the RMT has accused SWR of showing “complete dis- dain” for affected workers. RMT general secretary Mick Cash has written to transport

secretary Grant Shapps, and said in a statement: “South Western Railway’s decision to axe its on-board catering pro- vision is short-sighted and will undoubtedly worsen the pas- senger experience. “Axing this vital service is completely at odds with the need to restore passenger con- fidence in the railway. “SWR’s operations are being fully funded by the DfT with public money, and the govern- ment cannot sit by and allow it to treat catering workers and passengers with contempt. “RMT is demanding that this decision is reversed and all jobs are protected.”

In response, a spokesperson for  South Western  Railway did not confirm the number of po - tential job losses but said com - mercial catering was not sus- tainable in the current climate. He said: “It is with regret that, following feedback from our passengers and the Depart- ment for Transport, we have had to terminate our contract with commercial catering com- pany, Elior, as Covid-19 has made on-train catering services unsustainable due to falling passenger numbers. “We will work with the com- pany to ensure our vacancy lists are made available to any Elior employees affected.”

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