Two people in difficulty, trapped on a boat that ran aground on the rocks in San Foca (Le), in Salento, were rescued on the night of Tuesday 27 August 2024 by a HH-139A helicopter of the 84th SAR Center (Search and Rescue) of the 15th Wing of theAir Forcebased in Gioia del Colle (Ba).
The two castaways, a German couple, a 75-year-old husband and a 63-year-old wife, were stranded on the boat that ran aground due to bad weather near the port of the Salento town.
Sea state 3, with high waves and strong gusts of wind, together with poor light conditions and the presence of rocks, prevented rescue vehicles from approaching, so the 6th MRSC (Maritime Rescue Sub Center) of Bari requested the intervention of the helicopter rescue.
The “Rima” mission, coordinated by the COA (Aerospace Operations Command) of Poggio Renatico (Fe) took off from the Gioia del Colle (Ba) airport at 01:40 (local time), reaching the target in about half an hour. At 2:33 the castaways were recovered by an air rescuer using a winch and taken aboard the helicopter that returned to base at 3:06; in total the rescue mission lasted 1 hour and 26 minutes.
Waiting for the helicopter in Gioia del Colle were a medical car and two 118 ambulances, whose crews provided first aid to the two castaways, who were in good health, then transported them to the ‘F. Miulli’ Regional General Hospital in Acquaviva delle Fonti (Ba) for further checks.
The HH-139A crew then resumed their normal operational readiness shift to respond to any further emergency calls.
Il 15th Wing guarantees, 24 hours a day, every day of the yearthe search and rescue of flight crews in difficulty, also contributing to public utility activities such as the search for missing persons at sea or in the mountains, the emergency medical transport of patients in imminent danger of life and the rescue of seriously injured people, also operating in complex weather conditions, day and night.
Since its establishment until today, the crews of the 15th Wing have saved the lives of thousands of people, while in the summer they also carry out Forest Firefighting (AIB) activities as part of the assets provided by the Defense for this campaign. From the 15th Wing of Cervia, in addition to the82nd SAR Center of Trapanidepend on, located throughout the national territory, also the80th SAR Center of Decimomannu (Cagliari)l’85th SAR Center of Pratica di Mare (Rome)l’84th SAR Center of Gioia del Colle (Bari) and the83° SAR Group, located right on Cervia (Ravenna).
