Munster Express Online

Captain Martyn Rayner (pictured) recorded his 500th rescue mission on Sunday last, July 11th at the beginning of his 24-hour duty at the Waterford Coast Guard Helicopter Search And Rescue (SAR) Base.

He and his crew responded to a call from the Dublin Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC) to a local headland 10 nautical miles (nm) east of Waterford Airport, where multiple casualties were in difficulty in the water.

Flight R117 transferred one injured male to Waterford Regional Hospital.

Capt Rayner has joins an elite group of SAR crewmembers who have achieved an impressive 500 rescue missions in their career to date, having also amassed 8,400 flying hours of which 7,200 have been in Sikorsky aircraft.

Martyn has been an integral part of civilian SAR in Ireland since its foundation in 1991.

Prior to his time in Ireland he began his career in the British Navy operating in various roles, spending several years in Aberdeen flying offshore to North Sea oil rigs.

He joined Irish Helicopters in 1991 to set up the first Irish Coast Guard SAR base in Shannon Airport.

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