The summer period not only drew many crowds to Cornwall, but brought about several interesting jobs for the Search and Rescue crews of 771 Naval Air Squadron, based at RNAS Culdrose. In August alone, a total of 34 rescues were conducted – the busiest month of the year.

On call 24 hours a day, every day of the year, 771 Squadron provides Search and Rescue cover across the South West. Regularly in the news and currently featured in TV programmes including Seaside, Sea Patrol and Trawler Wars, their red and grey helicopters are often seen flying across the Cornish Coastline on daring rescue missions. Every year they save many lives in some of the most hazardous conditions imaginable, often putting their own lives at risk.

At 15 minutes notice by day and 45 minutes by night (although they usually get airborne in less), the Squadron is capable of operating within a 200 nautical mile radius of Culdrose. They carry out over 200 rescues a year. These vary from long-range rescues of sailors plucked to safety from their storm tossed vessels to rescuing swimmers, surfers and cliff walkers in difficulties around the regions coastline. The squadron is also often called upon to airlift casualties of road traffic collisions to hospital, assisting the police in carrying out aerial searches for missing people and to transfer patients to regional hospitals for specialist treatment.

A 771 crew will usually consist of two Pilots, an Observer and an Aircrewman, who are all trained ambulance technicians. The duty crew are on call for 24 hours and are backed up by a standby crew, at 45 minutes notice, should additional helicopter support be necessary.

A great deal of skill is needed from all onboard; the pilot must keep the aircraft steady often in terrifying winds and over high waves, the observer navigates and keeps an eye on fuel and safety and the Aircrewman takes charge of the winch and recovering the casualty.

Here are some of the occasions from the summer where the public needed help from a fast moving helicopter that can winch up casualties from the sea or access coastal areas inaccessible by other vehicles.

1st August 2010: Diver with the Bends
Rescue 193 was called out to airlift a diver from his boat and then transport him to Plymouth airport to be collected by ambulance. The man had been diving with a group at a site ten miles east of Eddystone lighthouse. He had made a fast ascent to the surface from about 60m and was suffering from decompression sickness.

9th August 2010: Septic Shock

A woman suffered septic shock on the Isles of Scilly and required urgent medical attention. The crew of Rescue 193 were called in to take her by helicopter to the mainland. The poor weather meant that a landing at Treliske Hospital was not possible, so a low-lying landing site was used where they were met by an ambulance.

10th August 2010: Another Busy Day for Rescue 193

The day began with a trip to the Isles of Scilly to collect a woman with severe head pain and take her to Treliske hospital in Truro. They were then called to the Minack Theatre to take a very ill woman to hospital, and once this was achieved, they were tasked again to help in the search for a missing person near St Agnes Head. On completion of the search they were tasked yet again to a passenger ferry 25 miles out from Lands End to winch a seriously ill passenger into the helicopter and take him to hospital.

24th August 2010: An Unhappy Fisherman

A Spanish fisherman had a nasty accident onboard his vessel about 150 miles to the south west of Culdrose. He had been hit by a swinging beam and Rescue 193 was tasked to collect him. Due to a strong headwind, it took an hour and a half to reach the vessel and on arrival they found the casualty concussed and slipping in and out of consciousness. He was winched aboard on a stretcher and closely monitored all the way to hospital.

The Autumn has already proved busy with rescues of injured fisherman from fishing vessels, walkers cut off by the tide and injured people in poorly accessible areas who need taking to hospital. In addition, 771 has a demanding training task, carrying out flying training for Royal Navy Sea King helicopter pilots likely to serve in Afghanistan and conducting winching, load lifting and confined area operations training for Royal Navy and Royal Marines aircrew prior to them being posted to their Front Line operational squadrons.