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57-571: RAAF Williams ( ICAO : YMPC ) is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base set across two locations, at Point Cook and Laverton , located approximately 20 km (12 mi) south-west of the Melbourne central business district in Victoria , Australia. Both establishments previously existed as separate RAAF Bases ( RAAF Base Point Cook and RAAF Base Laverton ) until 1989 when they were amalgamated to form RAAF Williams. The name

114-617: A number of smaller sub-units. It also hosts an element of 8th/7th Battalion of the Royal Victoria Regiment , Australian Army Reserve , as well as elements of the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO). In 1946 Laverton played host to the first flight of the newly formed Trans Australia Airlines , its Douglas DC-3 VH-AES Hawdon forced to use the base as operations at Essendon had become adversely affected by recent heavy rains. The base hosted

171-651: A one-vote margin. The first sign of trouble was the revelation that Australian equine quarantine would prevent the country from hosting the equestrian events. Stockholm was selected as the alternative site, so equestrian competition began on 10 June, five and a half months before the rest of the Olympic Games were to open. The above problems of the Melbourne Games were compounded by bickering over financing among Australian politicians. Eventually, in March 1953,

228-591: A remarkable javelin throw of 85.71 metres (281.2 ft). Throughout the Olympics, Hungarian athletes were cheered by fans from Australia and other countries. Many of them gathered in the boxing arena when thirty-year-old Laszlo Papp of Hungary won a record third gold medal by beating José Torres for the light-middleweight championship. A few days later, the crowd was with the Hungarian water polo team in its hotly contested and emotionally charged match against

285-630: A week before the opening ceremony. The three Sydney stations, TCN9 , ATN7 and ABN2 , syndicated the Melbourne coverage. television in Australia was new having its beginnings in September 1956, so for many Australians, their first glimpse of television was Olympic broadcasts. Around five thousand television sets were in Australia by the time of the Games, so the domestic audience largely watched

342-480: Is a pseudo-code, used in flight plans for aerodromes with no ICAO code assigned. ICAO codes are sometimes updated. Johannesburg Airport in Johannesburg , South Africa, for instance, was formerly known as Jan Smuts International Airport, with code FAJS. When the airport was renamed O. R. Tambo International Airport, its ICAO code was updated to FAOR. Some airports have two ICAO codes, usually when an airport

399-414: Is a single mess service (Officers Mess Annexe) which provides a meal service to all personnel, and a bar service to Gap Year students only. The RAAF Museum is located at Point Cook and has a large collection of ex-RAAF aircraft and military memorabilia from the prewar years until recent decades. The museum is open every day except Monday. Laverton is the third oldest RAAF base, being built in 1925 at

456-587: Is due for completion by 2025. In 2016 it was speculated that the Department of Defence would completely shut down Laverton and its land sold under plans by the RAAF to consolidate its facilities towards northern Australia. The following units are located at RAAF Williams: The 1948 Australian Grand Prix was held on a racetrack mapped out on the runways and support roads of the Point Cook airfield. The race

513-751: Is shared by civilian and military users. Frankfurt Airport in Frankfurt , Germany, for instance, has been assigned ICAO code EDDF while Rhein-Main Air Base was assigned ICAO code EDAF until its closure. Sion Airport in Switzerland has code LSGS while its military facilities have the ICAO code LSMS. Brussels Airport in Brussels , Belgium, has the ICAO code EBBR for its civilian facilities, and Melsbroek Air Base has been assigned ICAO code EBMB, even though

570-659: Is the most southerly city ever to host the Olympics. Due to the Southern Hemisphere's seasons being different from those in the Northern Hemisphere, the 1956 Games did not take place at the usual time of year, because of the need to hold the events during the warmer weather of the host's spring/summer (which corresponds to the Northern Hemisphere's autumn/winter), resulting in the only summer games ever to be held in November and December. Australia hosted

627-771: The Australian Flying Corps . Due to the success of the AFC in the First World War , the AFC became a separate service, now known as the Royal Australian Air Force. Point Cook remained the RAAF's only base until 1925 when RAAF Base Richmond and RAAF Base Laverton were also built. Point Cook is considered the birthplace and the spiritual home of the RAAF. It is also the airport at which the Royal Victorian Aero Club

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684-752: The Games of the XVI Olympiad and officially branded as Melbourne 1956 , were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne , Victoria , Australia , from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events , which were held in Stockholm , Sweden, in June 1956. These Games were the first to be staged in the Southern Hemisphere and Oceania , as well as the first to be held outside Europe and North America. Melbourne

741-606: The Jezero Crater on Mars is assigned the special ICAO code JZRO. Codes beginning with I (Ixx and Ixxx) are often used for navigational aids such as radio beacons, while the Q code is reserved for international radiocommunications and non-geographical special use. In Russia , Latin letter X, or its Morse / Baudot Cyrillic equivalent Ь , are used to designate government, military, and experimental aviation airfields in internal airfield codes similar in structure and purpose to ICAO codes but not used internationally. ZZZZ

798-793: The Soviet invasion of Hungary , and the People's Republic of China 's boycott was in response to a dispute with the Republic of China over the right to represent China. The Soviet Union won the most gold and overall medals at these Games. One of the most notable events of the games was a controversial water polo match between the Soviet Union and the defending champions, Hungary . The Soviet Union had recently suppressed an anti-authoritarian revolution in Hungary and violence broke out between

855-746: The State Government accepted a £2 million loan from the Commonwealth Government to build the Olympic Village , which would accommodate up to 6,000 people, in Heidelberg West . After the Olympics, the houses in the village were handed back to the Housing Commission for general public housing. At one point, IOC President Avery Brundage suggested that Rome, which was to host the 1960 Games,

912-543: The equestrian events in Stockholm), Ethiopia , Fiji , Kenya , Liberia , Federation of Malaya , North Borneo (modern-day Sabah of Malaysia ), and Uganda . Athletes from East Germany and West Germany competed together as the United Team of Germany , an arrangement that would last until 1968. For the first time, the team of Republic of China effectively represented only Taiwan . Five nations competed in

969-695: The equestrian events in Stockholm, but did not attend the Games in Melbourne. Cambodia , Egypt and Lebanon did not compete in Melbourne due to a boycott regarding the Suez Crisis , whilst the Netherlands , Spain and Switzerland all boycotted the Melbourne Olympics in protest at the Soviet invasion of Hungary . Nations that returned to the games in this edition included Afghanistan and Colombia . Nations that participated in

1026-601: The shotgun portion of the shooting events for the 1956 Summer Olympics . Laverton's runway was decommissioned September 1996. In early 2007 the Victorian Government gave approval for the land that was formerly the Laverton airfield and runway to be developed into the new suburb of Williams Landing . Three areas totalling 55 ha (136 acres) were set aside for conservation. More than 100 ha (247 acres) of nationally significant native grassland outside

1083-463: The "Golden Girl". The veteran Shirley Strickland repeated her 1952 win in the 80 metre hurdles and was also part of the winning 4 x 100 metre relay team, bringing her career Olympic medal total to seven: three golds, a silver, and three bronze medals. Australia also triumphed in swimming. They won all of the freestyle races, men's and women's, and collected a total of eight gold, four silver and two bronze medals. Murray Rose became

1140-433: The 158 athletes from 29 countries who took part in the Stockholm equestrian competition.) Once underway, the Games progressed smoothly, and came to be known as the "Friendly Games". Betty Cuthbert , an 18-year-old from Sydney, won the 100 and 200 metre sprint races and ran an exceptional final leg in the 4 x 100 metre relay to overcome Great Britain's lead and claim her third gold medal, becoming known as

1197-504: The 43rd IOC Session in Rome, Italy on 28 April 1949. Mexico City, Montreal and Los Angeles would eventually be selected to host the 1968 , 1976 and 1984 Summer Olympics respectively. Many members of the IOC were skeptical about Melbourne as an appropriate site. Its location in the Southern Hemisphere was a major concern since the reversal of seasons would mean the Games must be held during

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1254-806: The Games for a second time in 2000 in Sydney , New South Wales , and will host them again in 2032 in Brisbane , Queensland . The Olympic equestrian events could not be held in Melbourne due to Australia's strict quarantine regulations , so they were held in Stockholm five months earlier. This was the second time the Olympics were not held entirely in one country, the first being the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp , Belgium, with some events taking place in Ostend, Belgium , and Amsterdam, Netherlands . Despite uncertainties and various complications encountered during

1311-546: The ICAO code indicate the country; the remaining letters identify the airport. ICAO codes are used partly for geographical context. For example, the ICAO code for Heathrow International Airport in London, is EGLL, with its first letters reflecting that it is based in the United Kingdom . On the other hand, IATA codes do not provide geographic reference. For example, LHR, representing Heathrow, does not enable one to deduce

1368-491: The Mayor of Cairns, Alderman W.J. Fulton, lit the first torch with the torch design was identical to the one used for the 1948 London Games (except for the engraved city name and year). The first runner was Con Verevis, a local man of Greek parentage. The flame was relayed down the east coast of Australia using die cast aluminium torches weighing about 3 pounds (1.8 kg). The flame arrived in Melbourne on 22 November 1956,

1425-605: The Olympics. Egypt, Iraq, Cambodia and Lebanon announced that they would not participate in the Olympics in response to the Suez Crisis when Egypt was invaded by Israel, the United Kingdom, and France. The Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland and Liechtenstein boycotted the event in protest of the Soviet Union 's crushing of the Hungarian Revolution . The People's Republic of China chose to boycott

1482-593: The Soviet Union which took place against the background of the Soviet invasion of Hungary . The game became rough and, when a Hungarian was forced to leave the pool with a bleeding wound above his eye, a riot almost broke out. The police restored order and the game was called early, with Hungary leading 4–0 , and the Hungarians went on to win the gold medal. In a much publicized Olympic romance, American hammer throw champion Hal Connolly would marry Czechoslovak discus throw champion , Olga Fikotová . After moving to

1539-472: The United Kingdom, but nearby civilian Port Stanley Airport is assigned SFAL, consistent with South America . Saint Pierre and Miquelon is controlled by France, and airports there are assigned LFxx as though they were in Europe. Kosovo is assigned the code BKxx grouping it with Greenland and Iceland rather than its geographical neighbors which have Lxxx (described below). Jerusalem International Airport

1596-558: The United States, Olga wanted to continue representing Czechoslovakia, but the Czechoslovak Olympic Committee would not allow her to do so. Thereafter, as Olga Connolly, she took part in every Olympics until 1972 competing for the U.S. She was the flag bearer for the U.S. team at the 1972 Summer Olympics. The India men's national field hockey team won its sixth consecutive Olympic gold. Despite

1653-655: The day of the opening ceremony and The flame was lit at the Olympic stadium by Ron Clarke , who accidentally burned his arm in the process. While the Olympic flame was being carried to Sydney, an Australian veterinary student named Barry Larkin carried a fake Olympic Flame and fooled the mayor of Sydney. The Olympics were first televised during the 1936 games to a domestic audience in Berlin. The 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo were broadcast internationally with

1710-460: The decision was reversed and Brasher became the first Briton to win a gold medal in track and field since 1936. Soviet runner Vladimir Kuts won two golds by winning both the 5,000-metre and 10,000-metre events. Only two world records were set in track and field. Mildred McDaniel , the first American woman to win gold in the sport, set a high jump record of 1.76 metres (5.8 ft), and Egil Danielsen of Norway overcame blustery conditions with

1767-447: The event because the Republic of China had been allowed to compete. Athletes from both East and West Germany competed together as a combined team (a remarkable display of unity that was repeated in 1960 and 1964 , but was then discontinued). Although the number of countries participating (67) was almost the same as in 1952 (69), the number of athletes competing dropped sharply, from 4,925 to 3,342. (This figure does not include

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1824-459: The first male swimmer to win two freestyle events(and a total three events) since Johnny Weissmuller in 1924, while Dawn Fraser won gold medals in the 100 metre freestyle and as the leadoff swimmer in the 4 x 100 metre relay team. The men's track and field events were dominated by the United States. They not only won 15 of the 24 events, they swept four of them and took first and second place in five others. Bobby Morrow led

1881-460: The games at community halls and at Ampol petrol stations. The 1956 Summer Olympics featured 17 different sports encompassing 23 disciplines, and medals were awarded in 151 events (145 events in Melbourne and 6 equestrian events in Stockholm). In the list below, the number of events in each discipline is noted in parentheses. A total of 67 nations competed in the 1956 Olympics. Eight countries made their Olympic debuts: Cambodia (only competed in

1938-432: The international tensions of 1956—or perhaps because of them—a young Melburnian, John Ian Wing , came up with a new idea for the closing ceremony. Instead of marching as separate teams, behind their national flags, the athletes mingled together as they paraded into and around the arena for a final appearance before the spectators. It was the start of an Olympic tradition that has been followed ever since. The Olympic flame

1995-605: The location of the airport LHV with any greater certainty; it is William T. Piper Memorial Airport in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania in the United States . There are a few exceptions to the regional structure of the ICAO code that have been historically for political or administrative reasons. RAF Mount Pleasant air base in the Falkland Islands , for instance, is assigned the ICAO code EGYP as though it were in

2052-441: The name of the airport or the city it serves, while ICAO codes are distributed by region and country. Far more aerodromes (in the broad sense) have ICAO codes than IATA codes, which are sometimes assigned to railway stations as well. The selection of ICAO codes is partly delegated to authorities in each country, while IATA codes, which have no geographic structure, must be decided centrally by IATA. The first one or two letters of

2109-482: The northern winter. The November–December schedule was thought likely to inconvenience athletes from the Northern Hemisphere , who were accustomed to resting during their winter. Notwithstanding these concerns, the field of candidates eventually narrowed to two Southern Hemisphere cities, these being Melbourne and Buenos Aires , Argentina . Melbourne was selected, in 1949, to host the 1956 Olympics by

2166-402: The organising committee giving the television rights gratis. While there was much interest in the games overseas, no international television or newsreel rights were awarded, as the Melbourne organising committee requested licensing payments for the broadcasting rights. However, domestic rights to the games were hastily agreed by the then three Melbourne stations, GTV9 , HSV7 and ABV2 , only

2223-563: The preparations, the 1956 Games went ahead in Melbourne as planned and turned out to be a success. Started during the 1956 Games was the "Parade of Athletes" at the closing ceremonies. Nine teams boycotted the Games for various reasons. Four teams (Egypt, Iraq, Cambodia and Lebanon) boycotted in response to the Suez Crisis , in which Egypt was invaded by Israel , France and the United Kingdom . Four teams (the Netherlands, Spain, Liechtenstein and Switzerland) boycotted in response to

2280-518: The previous games in Helsinki 1952 but was absent in Melbourne 1956 included the People's Republic of China , Liechtenstein , Netherlands Antilles , Saar . Saar was annexed by West Germany. Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory and commonwealth of the United States . Bahamas , Bermuda , Fiji , Gold Coast , Hong Kong , Jamaica , Kenya , Nigeria , Malaya , North Borneo , Singapore , Trinidad and Tobago , Uganda and British Guyana

2337-415: The reserves was permitted to be cleared by the state- and federal governments. Williams Landing is being developed into a transit-oriented development , major activity centre and employment node. As well as being a major activity centre and employment node, there will also be four residential neighbourhoods each with their own distinctive character. Construction of Williams Landing commenced in late 2007 and

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2394-571: The same time as RAAF Base Richmond, which was opened slightly before Laverton. Located approximately 7 km (4.3 mi) from Point Cook, Laverton is the home of Headquarters Air Force Training Group (formerly Training Command). It also contains all the administrative functions of RAAF Williams. Other units at Laverton are the ADF School of Languages, Defence International Training Centre (DITC), Director General Technical Airworthiness, No. 21 (City of Melbourne) Squadron (RAAF Active Reserve) and

2451-510: The same year. ICAO codes are separate and different from IATA codes , the latter of which have three letters and are generally used for airline timetables , reservations, and baggage tags. For example, the IATA code for London 's Heathrow Airport is LHR and its ICAO code is EGLL. IATA codes are commonly seen by passengers and the general public on flight-tracking services such as FlightAware . In general IATA codes are usually derived from

2508-565: The style LFddnn , where dd indicates the department while nn is a sequential counter. The French Federation of Ultralight Motorized Gliders was formally named the keeper of these codes. Aerodrome de Torreilles in France, for instance, has code LF6651. In Antarctica many aerodromes have pseudo ICAO-codes with AT and two digits, while others have proper codes from countries performing air control such as NZ for New Zealand . 1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics , officially

2565-619: The teams during the match, resulting in numerous injuries. When Hungary's Ervin Zádor suffered bleeding after being punched by Soviet Union's Valentin Prokopov , spectators attempted to join the violence, but they were blocked by police. The match was cancelled, with Hungary being declared the winner because they were in the lead. Melbourne was selected as the host city over bids from Buenos Aires , Mexico City, Montreal, Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, and San Francisco at

2622-464: The two airports share runways and ground and air control facilities. In small countries like Belgium or the Netherlands, almost all aerodromes have an ICAO code. For larger countries like the UK or Germany this is not feasible, given the limited number of letter codes. Some countries have addressed this issue by introducing a scheme of sub-ICAO aerodrome codes; France, for example, assigns pseudo ICAO codes in

2679-491: The way with gold medals in the 100 and 200 metre sprints and the 4 x 100 metre relay. Tom Courtney barely overtook Great Britain's Derek Johnson in the 800 metre run, then collapsed from the exertion and needed medical attention. Ireland's Ronnie Delany ran an outstanding 53.8 over the last 400 metres to win the 1,500 metre run(also Ireland's last gold medal in track events), in which favourite John Landy of Australia finished third. There

2736-714: The world. Radio communication frequencies include CTAF on 126.2 MHz. The airfield NDB is inactive. RAAF Williams, Point Cook, is the former home of the RAAF College including Officer Training School (OTS) and the RAAF Academy from 1961 to 1985, and is currently used for the Air Force element of the Australian Defence Force Gap Year Program. All administrative functions are located at RAAF Williams, Laverton, and there

2793-427: Was a major upset, marred briefly by controversy, in the 3,000 metre steeplechase. Little-known Chris Brasher of Great Britain finished well ahead of the field, but the judges disqualified him for interfering with Norway's Ernst Larsen , and they announced Sándor Rozsnyói of Hungary as the winner. Brasher's appeal was supported by Larsen, Rozsnyói, and fourth-place finisher Heinz Laufer of Germany. Subsequently,

2850-691: Was assigned both LLJR (its Israeli persona) as well as OJJR (its Jordanian persona), but the airport itself fell into disuse. In the contiguous United States and Canada, many airports have ICAO codes that are simply copies of their three-letter IATA codes, with the geographical prefix added on (e.g., YEG and CYEG both refer to Edmonton International Airport , while IAD and KIAD both refer to Washington Dulles International Airport ). This similarity does not extend to Alaska (PAxx), Hawaii (PHxx), or U.S. territories. Kahului Airport on Maui , for instance, has an IATA code of OGG and an ICAO code of PHOG. ICAO airport codes do not begin with I or J or X or Q, though

2907-501: Was chosen in honour of Air Marshal Sir Richard Williams , the 'father' of the RAAF. RAAF Williams, Point Cook is the birthplace of the Royal Australian Air Force and is the oldest continually operating military airfield in the world. Since 1994 RAAF Williams (Point Cook) has been the home of RMIT Flight Training. The land area at Point Cook was purchased by the Australian Government the vision to form what would become

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2964-448: Was established. It contains a memorial parade ground which was built in the 1920s, a site which was previously used by the AFC for drill training. Point Cook still has an operating airfield, but military operations are generally restricted to the museum based there. The airfield is used by a number of general aviation users, although it is still classified as a military aerodrome. It is the oldest continuously operating military aerodrome in

3021-577: Was part of what is now the Western Treatment Plant . Two hangars remain on the land. The northernmost hangar on Geelong Road near Farm Road now houses a former RAAF Consolidated B-24 Liberator under restoration by the B-24 Liberator Memorial Restoration Fund . ICAO airport code The recommendations for ICAO airport codes were adopted on 24 March 1959, and came into force on 1 October

3078-420: Was presiding over the Olympics for the first time, was still doubtful about Melbourne and was not satisfied by an inspection trip to the city. Construction was well under way by then, thanks to a $ 4.5 million federal loan to Victoria, but it was behind schedule. He still held out the possibility that Rome might have to step in. By the beginning of 1956, though, it was obvious that Melbourne would be ready for

3135-445: Was relayed to Melbourne after being lit at Olympia on 2 November 1956. Greek runners took the flame from Olympia to Athens . The flame was then transferred to a miner's lamp , flown by a Qantas Super Constellation aircraft, "Southern Horizon" to Darwin, Northern Territory . A Royal Australian Air Force English Electric Canberra jet bomber transported the flame to Cairns, Queensland , where it arrived on 9 November 1956 and

3192-416: Was so far ahead of Melbourne in preparations that it might be ready as a replacement site in 1956. Constructing of the sporting venues was given priority over the athlete's village. The village was designed as a whole new suburb with semi-detached houses and flats, the first village that both sexes could cohabitate the same buildings instead of gender designated sections. As late as April 1955, Brundage, who

3249-611: Was won by Frank Pratt driving a BMW 328 . Also, since 1994 RAAF Williams (Point Cook) has been the home of RMIT Flight Training. Land was set aside by the Australian Government west of the Williams bases from 1940 to 1952 for a spare grass airfield and aircraft storage. Several hangars and accommodation buildings were built in 1942 by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) in the style of US hangars. The USAAF units assigned to Werribee left in 1945. The land

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