Sailor hurt on ship 800 miles off California requires helicopter rescue, officials say

Two California Air Guard helicopters flew an 800-mile mission to rescue a badly injured sailor from a cargo ship off the San Francisco coastline, military officials reported.

The Liberian-flagged cargo vessel contacted the U.S. Coast Guard to request help for the injured sailor, but was outside the range of the organization’s helicopters, the state National Guard said in an Oct. 16 news release.

The Coast Guard requested help from the 129th Rescue Wing, stationed at Moffett Air National Guard Base, to retrieve the injured sailor, officials said.

Two HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters flew the mission Oct. 9 with two HC-130J Combat King II planes for in-flight refueling, officials said.

The helicopters refueled four times over the course of the rescue, officials said.

“We were fortunate to have someone who spoke Russian and Ukrainian,” Lt. Col. Christopher Nance said. “This significantly helped communication with the ship’s captain.”

One of the helicopters hoisted the injured sailor aboard and returned to the airbase, where an ambulance took the patient to a hospital, officials said.

The release did not describe the sailor’s injuries or current medical condition.

An active-duty U.S. Air Force unit at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona also took part in the rescue, officials said.

This story was originally published October 16, 2024 at 3:57 PM with the headline "Sailor hurt on ship 800 miles off California requires helicopter rescue, officials say."