Scottish Navy station breaks rescue record

Published on Friday 29 February 2008 21:45

LIFESAVERS at Britain's busiest search and rescue station were yesterday thanked by Des Browne, the Defence Secretary, as he visited their base.

Crew members at HMS Gannet at Prestwick answered 359 call-outs last year and rescued 349 people, 286 of them injured.

With almost one call-out a day, the crews of HMS Gannet smashed the previous UK record for a search and rescue station of 269 call-outs in a year.

The Sea King helicopters stationed at the Ayrshire base play a leading role in many Scottish mountain rescues, and are called to rescue stranded fishermen up to 200 miles out into the Atlantic Ocean.

Mr Browne said: "The staff of our search and rescue stations around Britain, whether Royal Navy, RAF or HM Coastguard, put their lives at risk on a regular basis to save others. For the men and women at HMS Gannet in 2007, this equated to a call out for almost every day of the year – an astonishing statistic.

"They are to be commended for the excellent work which they do above the land and sea of Scotland's west coast and the north of England, and I am delighted to have been able to talk to these highly skilled rescuers in person and to personally thank them for their efforts."

The commanding officer of HMS Gannet, Lieutenant-Commander Brian Nicholas, added: "These are just amazing figures. We are very proud of the service we provide.

"Our area is a huge and complex one, stretching from Coll and Ben Nevis in the north to the Lake District in the south, Northern Ireland in the west to the Trossachs in the east. I am lucky to have amazing teams of people working here, both Royal Navy and civilian.

"I suppose it's always nice to be able to hold a record, but for all of us here it's not about that – it's about responding whenever we are needed to provide emergency support. No more, no less. That's our job and it's one we all love and are wholly committed to."

Lt-Cmdr Martin Lanni, the base's second in command, said: "We are always one of the busiest – but this was a very, very busy year – a bit of a landmark.

"We don't go out there to try to break records or get any rewards. But the guys are going to extraordinary lengths day in, day out, and it's hard not to be proud of that."

How the arithmetic of helicopter heroism adds up

24 hours

Crews at HMS Gannet in Ayrshire are constantly on call, ready to fly search and rescue missions 365 days a year.

359

missions flown in 2007 by crews from HMS Gannet – making it the busiest search and rescue operation in the UK, with almost one rescue a day.

349

people flown to safety by HMS Gannet last year.

286

injured people picked up last year.

30

more callouts in 2007 than in the previous year.

293

call-outs registered in 2006 by HMS Chivenor in Devon, the previous UK record.

5 minutes

between receiving a distress call and taking off. At night it takes up to 20 minutes.

10 hours

to rescue a climber stranded on Ben Nevis, the longest rescue mission ever undertaken by HMS Gannet.

98,000

square miles are covered by HMS Gannet, from Ben Nevis to the Lake District, and 200 miles out into the Atlantic. Crews are ready to go wherever they are needed. They have been called to Shetland, London and the Isle of Man.

12

search and rescue stations around the UK. Because of the challenges of the terrain it covers, HMS Gannet is always one of the busiest.

3

Sea King helicopters based at HMS Gannet.

10 tons

is the weight of each Sea King helicopter.

700 kilos

is the weight of the stranded bull lifted to safety by HMS Gannet crews after it fell down a valley near Oban.

1 ton

of fuel is used by a Sea King helicopter every hour.

107 people

work at the base – 15 officers, 15 ratings 45 engineers 20 security staff and 12 civil servants.

8

ships previously carried the name HMS Gannet, starting with a sloop, built in 1800, that was part of Lord Nelson's fleet.

49

call-outs to HMS Gannet so far this year.

50

people rescued so far this year by HMS Gannet crews.

3

callouts received on Hogmanay. A Sea King helicopter was over Glasgow for the bells and the crew said they had the best view of the fireworks

12

call-outs carried out by rescue crews in a single week, between 11 February and 17 February.

10

alerts to rescue climbers stranded on Ben Nevis between 11 February and 17 February.

1971

the year HMS Gannet was set up at Prestwick Airport

4

crew members on each helicopter for every search and rescue mission, all trained in emergency medical care.

3271

callouts answered by HMS Gannet since 1994

2921

people rescued by crews from HMS Gannet since 1994

819

Naval Air Squadron was decommissioned in 2001 after 30 years at HMS Gannet Its helicopters were first at Lockerbie and Piper Alpha.