'Abandoned' airman retrieved from dinghy Cullercoats East Division Lifeboats and helicopters are frequent partners in rescue missions, so there was nothing unusual in Cullercoat's C class inflatable working with a helicopter crew man from RAF Boulmer.

What was unusual though is that the lifeboat had been called out to rescue the RAF man, Flying Officer Mark Parsons, from his small dinghy one and a half miles from the station.

A helicopter had lowered the airman into the dinghy during an air-sea rescue exercise, and had then developed a problem which prevented it from picking him up. A puzzled Mark could only watch helplessly as the helicopter flew off, leaving him alone in the North Sea. With no radio in the dinghy he could only sit and await developments.

Merriment The helicopter crew had immediately informed the Coastguard of their colleague's predicament and the Cullercoats lifeboat was immediately launched to bring him to safety.

Conditions were good, with only a light wind and slight sea, and so only five minutes after launching at 1228 the abandoned airman was safely aboard and on his way back ashore. The Coastguard's mobile unit took him back to the MRC at Ty nemouth for a cup of tea before his wife collected him! A spokesman for RAF Boulmer said that the Flying Officer had not been in danger and that on his return there had been a 'fair amount of merriment over what had happened'.

'The poor guy had no idea what was going on,' he added, 'but he was very trusting. He'd guessed they had some sort of problem and hadn't just left him...'.