Sea state was as bad as it gets for yachties

Pilot Roger Williams looked in awe from an Air Force Orion yesterday as the crew of a dismasted yacht battled 14 metre waves to stay afloat and stay alive.

The Lyttelton-based steel yacht Janette Gay was being tossed around in huge 14m seas nearly 800km north of the Chatham Islands yesterday. It has no mast, part of its cabin is missing and crew Bruce Cox and Heloise Koretekaas are both hurt and exhausted.

"It was horrendous. It was just huge and the ship (the 5000-tonne merchant ship Maunakea) was making such rough going.

"As he was cutting through the swell, his bow was completely coming out of the water and when he went downhill his propellers were coming out of the water.

"This was horrendous, the yacht must be built very well," Flight Lieutenant Williams told NZPA today.

Because of the heavy seas the Maunakea, which was sent to the area by the Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Wellington after the yacht sent out a mayday, could not lift them off safely. One attempt nearly ended in disaster and the ship left the yacht and continued its voyage to New Zealand.

However, the arrival of the Orion yesterday, with Flight Lieutenant Williams in the co-pilot's seat, gave the couple a huge and critical boost, he said today.

The Orion arrived as the weather cleared slightly and through a few gaps in the cloud it watched the yacht battle the waves.

"The sea state was just huge," he said.

The Orion swooped low over the stricken yacht, making two drops of liferafts and survival packs. The yacht failed to pick up the first drop as it drifted past -- 20 tantalising metres from the yacht -- but the second liferaft and two survival packs attached to it were recovered.

In the heavy seas the liferaft was washed overboard but both survival packs were taken below.

With the survival packs aboard, the exhausted crew spoke to the Orion as it circled overhead.

"They were pretty much exhausted and Bruce told us of his injuries. He seems like a pretty resilient person."

He said dropping a liferaft and survival kits in 50-knot winds needed precise flying.

"We assess what kind of vessel it is and what is going to drift faster. Then we will drop the liferaft upwind or downwind accordingly.

"The first drop was reasonably good but it was unfortunately about 20 metres away from him as it drifted past and the line didn't quite wrap around his boat."

The two survival packs are attached to a 10-person liferaft with several hundred metres of rope which should drift down on to the stricken vessel.

The liferaft and survival kits are not cheap. They are put together at the air force's Ohakea base by a team of specialists and each were estimated to cost $250,000.

The second drop was spot on, said Mr Williams.

"The rope drifted onto them and they pulled it on. His wife came up and said 'We have got the liferaft'," he said.

The survival kits include a rescue beacon which also includes a VHF radio, water, first aid kits, barley sugars, a water desalination kit, and playing cards.

Mr Williams said it was a special and rewarding feeling to know they had done something to help yachties in such dire and life-threatening conditions.

The Orion stayed overhead for about seven and a half hours before heading back to Whenuapai. The 13 hours the Orion spent in the area was nearly the maximum endurance for an Orion.

A large container ship, the 45,000-tonne Encounter, was due in the area about 6pm today and rescue authorities hoped that with the sea state dropping from 14 metres to about 3.5 metres and the wind dropping to about 15 knots, there may be a chance of lifting them off the yacht today.

- NZPA