NOW the mines have been cleared away, the foundations are being laid for a state of the art coastguard search and rescue facility at the former HMS Daedalus Royal Naval Air Base at Lee-on-the-Solent.

The first turf has been cut for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency's new Coastguard Search and Rescue helicopter hangar.

The multi-million pound development project will provide a modern hangar for up to three aircraft together with accommodation for its 24-hour operational personnel.

It will take 50 weeks to build and the work is being carried out by Raymond Brown Construction Ltd of Ringwood.

The first aircraft to use the hangar will be the new generation Augusta Bell AB139 which will be replacing the existing Sikorsky S61N helicopters in early 2008.

Chief Coastguard Peter Dymond said: "I am extremely pleased to see ground being broken for this building project. This will provide the Maritime and Coastguard Agency with another modern helicopter base on the south coast with state of the art facilities."

Spread over five weeks the delicate procedure to remove 20 Second World War pipe mines was the one of the biggest mine clearance operations ever seen in Hampshire. Up to 3,000 residents were evacuated and roads became a no-go area around the former naval base as Army bomb disposal experts went about their work.