More than 300 helicopter airlifts are transferring stone on site

The helicopters have taken part in a mammoth operation to place a 250 tonnes of stone on the upland area of the Brecon Beacons National Park.

More than 300 helicopter airlifts were needed to carry the stone to the 2,000 foot high site.

The �90,000 scheme will go some way towards repairing the worst affected areas.

Thousands of hill walkers on particular paths have resulted in serious erosion problems, especially in the most popular mountain areas Chris Gledhill

The erosion has been caused by the large number of walkers who ramble over the area each year.

Three million visitors a year descend on the mid Wales park and hundreds of thousands of these walk the central Beacons, seen as one of the park's 'honeypot' areas.

'Breathtaking'

The project is being jointly funded by Brecon Beacons National Park Authority (BBNPA), the National Trust and a grant scheme.

Richard Ball, BBNPAs access officer, said that using a chartered helicopter was the only way the project could be achieved.

"There was no way we could have taken so much stone up to the uplands area by trucks so we decided to use a helicopter," said Mr ball.

The flights involved carrying gravel as well as stone to repair about 1,500 metres of path which has been seriously eroded over the years.

As long as people come to walk the hills in the national park this problem will be ongoing. Joe Daggett, National Trust

Chris Gledhill, BBNPAs chief executive, described the upland environment of the park as "breathtaking but fragile".

"Thousands of hill walkers on particular paths have resulted in serious erosion problems, especially in the most popular mountain areas.

"In some parts of the park this poses a threat to the landscape and ecological balance."

National Trust head warden Joe Daggett said upland erosion was one of the most pressing landscape issues in the central Beacons.

"Unfortunately, it is very expensive to put right.

"As long as people come to walk the hills in the national park this problem will be ongoing."