21 January, 2008

SHETLAND Coastguard’s new search and rescue helicopter had its first mission at the weekend when it flew a sick crewman to hospital in Lerwick on Saturday afternoon.

Oscar Charlie, the new Sikorsky S92 chopper, became operational 10 days ago. On Saturday she was called out to the Tiffany oil field 90 miles south east of Shetland where the crewman was suffering severe chest pains.

He was flown to Tingwall airstrip from where he was transported to Gilbert Bain Hospital.

The chopper’s crew had a rougher trip yesterday morning (Sunday) when called out to airlift a fisherman with abdominal bleeding off the vivier crabber Edward Henry 40 miles west of Sumburgh Head.

However when Oscar Charlie reached the vessel it was “pitching and rolling” in a Force 6 gale and a 16 foot swell, making it impossible for the coastguard to land their winchman on board the vessel.

A coastguard spokesman added that vivier boats had a lot of equipment on deck making it hard to land a winchman in the best of conditions.

Yesterday afternoon the boat was heading for Scrabster where the crewman lives. His condition was said to be stable.