When Eight Bells Toll Westland Widgeon Helicopter Scenes

Описание: This is a stitch together of all the scenes showing the Westland Widgeon WS51-2 helicopter in the 1971 film 'When Eight Bells Toll'. Included is the famous crash scene. At the end of is a photo of Widgeon G-APTW (currently being restored at the North East Land Air and Sea Museum) shown in its temporary Royal Navy film livery. Widgeons were never used by the Royal Navy. Also a photo of a Widgeon cockpit in the same livery at Elstree, believed to be used in the back projected flying scenes from inside the cockpit and the underwater scenes.
The 'crashed' airframe is a mock up using a Widgeon cockpit and Dragonfly rear fuselage (the rotor head and nacelle are Dragonfly). It may be that this is the same Widgeon cockpit used in the other scenes (possibly G-APKW which was also used in the filming of 'Eye of the Needle' in a fake camouflage livery).
Note the internal cockpit scenes looking up from below Anthony Hopkins with the rotors turning. These will have been filmed through the open clam shell door in the nose.
Film Flight Ltd are credited for aviation facilities. This company is likely to be linked to John Crewdson who featured in many other films. The air to air shots were possibly taken using Widgeon G-ANLW (also operated by Crewdson) which has a logbook entry for being on the set (The Aeroplane Magazine: Q&A Jan 2022).
My interest comes from volunteering at the North East Land Air and Sea Museum and restoring G-APTW to display condition.

See my other Westland Widgeon stitch of Caravan to Vaccare -    • Caravan to Vaccares Westland Widgeon Helic...