The operation, requested by the 6th Maritime Rescue Sub Center of Bari, was carried out by the crew of an HH-139A from the 84th SAR Centre in Gioia del Colle (Ba)
Two people in difficulty, trapped on a boat that had run aground on the rocks in San Foca (Lecce), in Salento, were rescued on the night of Tuesday 27 August 2024 by a HH-139A helicopter of the 84th SAR Centre (Search and Rescue) of the 15th Wing of the’Italian Air Force, stationed at Gioia del Colle (BA).
The two shipwreck survivors, a married couple of German nationality—a 75-year-old husband and his 63-year-old wife—had been stranded on their boat, which had run aground due to bad weather near the harbour of the Salento resort.
A sea state 3, with high waves and strong gusts of wind, combined with poor lighting conditions and the presence of rocks, prevented the rescue vessels from getting close, which is why the 6th MRSC (Maritime Rescue Sub Center) in Bari requested the intervention of the air-sea rescue helicopter.
The “Rima” mission, coordinated by the COA (Aerospace Operations Command) of Poggio Renatico (Ferrara), took off from Gioia del Colle air base (Bari) at 01:40 (local time), reaching the target in about half an hour. At 02:33, the shipwrecked people were rescued by an air rescuer using the winch and brought on board the helicopter, which returned to base at 03:06; overall, the rescue mission lasted 1 hour and 26 minutes.
Waiting for the helicopter at Gioia del Colle were a rapid response vehicle and two 118 ambulances, whose crews provided initial treatment to the two shipwreck survivors, who were in good health, before transporting them to the ‘F. Miulli’ Regional General Hospital in Acquaviva delle Fonti (Bari) for further checks.
The HH-139A crew then resumed their normal operational readiness shift to respond to any further emergency calls.
It 15th Wing guarantees, 24 hours a day, every day of the year, the search and rescue of distressed flight crews, while also contributing to public utility activities such as the search for missing persons at sea or in the mountains, emergency medical transport of patients in imminent danger of life and the rescue of severely traumatised individuals, operating even in complex weather conditions, by day and by night.
Since its establishment to the present day, the crews of the 15th Wing have saved the lives of thousands of people, whilst in the summer they also carry out Forest Firefighting (AIB) activities as part of the assets provided by Defence for this campaign. From the 15th Wing in Cervia, beyond the’82° Trapani SAR Centre, dependent, located throughout the national territory, also the’80th SAR Centre of Decimomannu (Cagliari), the’85th SAR Centre of Pratica di Mare (Rome), the’84th SAR Centre of Gioia del Colle (Bari) and the’83° Gruppo SAR, located right at Cervia (Ravenna).
