Honour sprung on helicopter pilot

PHILIP GIBBS

MCPHAIL TURRETS: Helicopter pilot Rob McPhail, above, has been honoured for his work in Antarctica, with the wind-eroded rock formations at the entrance to Wright Valley, right, named after him

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A helicopter pilot who believed he was in Christchurch for "a boring meeting" was shocked to find that one of his favourite Antarctic rock formations has been named in his honour.

Rob McPhail was surprised by the announcement at the annual Antarctica New Zealand conference at the University of Canterbury on Monday night.

The spectacular ridge of granite towers at the entrance to Antarctica's Wright Valley will be known as McPhail Turrets.

McPhail, an Antarctic pilot with Nelson-based Helicopters New Zealand, said the decision was "a total surprise".

"I thought I was here for a boring meeting."

McPhail said the outcrops that now bore his name were an "incredible" example of ventifacts, or wind-scoured rocks.

When scientists and visitors, including the late Sir Edmund Hillary and former prime minister Helen Clark, travelled to the valley, McPhail always flew past the rocks.

"People are pretty amazed by them," he said.

"They're a stunning piece of natural art."

The New Zealand Geographic Board approved the name in March.

Board secretary Wendy Shaw said Picton-based McPhail was "well-deserving" because of his huge contribution to scientific research on the Ice.

"It's a fantastic honour ... It's not something we do casually for personal names," she said.

The director of the university's Centre for Antarctic Studies and Research, Bryan Storey, said McPhail was "one of the pillars of the Antarctic community" and had been crucial to scientists' research.

He recalled that McPhail had landed a helicopter on a difficult ledge on the Darwin Glacier.

"Some would have had a look at it and said 'no way', but he was prepared to give it a go and, of course, brought us in safely," Storey said.

The name McPhail Turrets was proposed by Victoria University scientist Nancy Bertler. She said she spoke for all Antarctic scientists who trusted McPhail with not just their research, but often their lives.

Bertler said getting to research sites could be dangerous. It could be difficult to see the horizon in Antarctica and the wind could go from zero to 60 knots in seconds.

"For Rob, this is a huge challenge in keeping the machine balanced," she said.

"It's really dangerous work, but Rob's someone I feel safe with, because I know he will make good decisions."

McPhail, who has spent four months of the past 19 years in Antarctica, believed he had clocked up about 4000 flying hours in the region.

Last season, he had flown a team of scientists near to the summit of Mt Erebus, the first time a helicopter had been up that high.

- © Fairfax NZ News