27 May, 2026

Personal twist as duo join war commemorations

Family connection… Carl and Hugo Smith at Korea’s National War Memorial and Museum in Seoul last month. INSET: The photograph taken by Carl’s father Glen during the Korean War, later given to Carl after he trained in the exact same model of aircraft.

A Devonport father and son were part of commemorations of the 75th Anniversary of the Korean War in South Korea last month, taking the chance to mark a close family involvement in the conflict.
Squadron leader Carl Smith and Takapuna Grammar School student Hugo Smith were chosen to represent New Zealand on a Korean government programme, joining a Commonwealth delegation which included six war veterans aged over 95.
Carl’s father (Hugo’s grandfather) Glen Smith was a signalman in the New Zealand component of the first Commonwealth Division during the war.
Hugo Smith proudly wore his Takapuna Grammar School uniform or his New Zealand Air Training Corps uniform to commemorative services and formal gala dinners attended by international dignitaries, veterans and military leaders.

Commemorations attended by Carl and Hugo included a flower-laying tribute to Commonwealth Service Veterans at the Korean War Memorial and Halls of Remembrance in Seoul; a ceremony marking the actions of Commonwealth troops in the Battle of Gapyeong; and an Anzac Day dawn service. They also visited the Demilitarized Zone, standing across from the North Korean border.
After the official ceremonies, Carl and Hugo visited locations where Glen Smith served between 1951 and 1953, supporting artillery units.
They were able to retrace the moment he photographed a Bell 47G Sioux helicopter lifting off from Fort George, the headquarters of the 1st Commonwealth Division.
His photograph became a treasured family heirloom, and decades later, when Carl graduated from his RNZAF Wings Course in 1997, his father presented the photo to him as a gift. 
Carl had earned his wings flying exactly that model of helicopter. 
Seventy-four years after Glen pressed the shutter, Carl found himself on the same spot:
To be there with his son was “incredibly special”, he says.