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Prince William pilots a Sea King helicopter during a training exercise
Prince William pilots a Sea King helicopter during a training exercise. Photograph: John Stillwell/AFP/Getty Images
Prince William pilots a Sea King helicopter during a training exercise. Photograph: John Stillwell/AFP/Getty Images

Prince William pilots helicopter to sea rescue

This article is more than 11 years old
Crew of prince's RAF Sea King saves two teenage girls who were dragged out to sea off Anglesey coast

Two teenage girls are recovering after being rescued from the sea by a helicopter piloted by Prince William.

A rip current dragged the girls out to sea off the coast of Anglesey while they were body boarding.

Prince William's Sea King, Rescue 137, was landing when it received the emergency call. He took off again and was hovering the aircraft over the girls within 38 seconds, the Royal Air Force said.

The girls, aged 13 and 16, from Herefordshire, had been on Cymyran beach, Rhosneigr. The 13-year-old was understood to be body boarding when her sister swam out to help her.

One of the girls, who did not have a body board, was exhausted and dipping below the surface as the helicopter prepared to lower the winch.

The winchman, Master Aircrew Harry Harrison, told the BBC: "When I got to her, the elder girl was clearly exhausted and was going under the water for what was the very last time."

The girls were taken to Gwynedd hospital in Bangor for treatment.

Harrison said: "We never know what we'll face when we're called out. Sometimes its just a twisted ankle or a broken bone, but this was one rescue where we truly did arrive in the nick of time and managed to save two young lives."

The crew had been called to a similar incident at Rhosneigr minutes earlier when a child and three adults were carried out by a rip tide but managed to get safely on to rocks.

The co-pilot, Flight Lieutenant 'Schmoo' Smith, said: "This was a remarkably swift rescue, taking around 38 seconds from take-off until we arrived on scene."

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