The fate of Nowra's much-loved "helicopter on a stick" remains up in the air.
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The Iroquois helicopter was recently removed from its home of more than 20 years - atop a pole on the corner of the Princes Highway and Pleasant Way - outside the former tourist information centre.
It was taken away on September 8, 2023, for refurbishing by Navy personnel at the Fleet Air Arm Museum.
However Shoalhaven Mayor Amanda Findley said it was uncertain what would happen with the helicopter that "needs a lot of maintenance".
"No-one would say that the helicopter was a good-looking piece of infrastructure that we could all be proud of," Cr Findley said.
Navy personnel were carrying out "structural assessments", she said.
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"At this point it's unknown if the chopper on a stick will return, but what we absolutely have had the discussion with Navy about is to get a suitable memorial, which also reflects what's been going on at Albatross and at Creswell," Cr Findley said.
The Iroquois helicopter was delivered to Australia in 1965 and served with the Navy's 723 Squadron, based at HMAS Albatross.
It was withdrawn from service on October 21, 1988, and in December 1995 in was placed on a pole in the car park at the Heathcote Inn Hotel, in Heathcote, just south of Sydney.
It was returned to the Fleet Air Arm Museum when the hotel changed hands, and in September 1998 it was put on a pole at the south side of the Nowra Bridge, outside the tourist information centre.
The Navy took the helicopter away in 2002 for refurbishment, returning it to a new and higher pole in 2003.
It was taken down for another refurbishment in July 2013, returning to the pole two months later where it was remounted and realigned to face north.
