A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew hoists three people from a disabled fishing vessel in Bristol Bay near Togiak, Alaska, Sept. 13, 2015.
The helicopter crew safely transported the mariners to Dillingham, Alaska.
U.S. Coast Guard video by Air Station Kodiak.
JUNEAU, Alaska — A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew rescued three people from a disabled vessel in Bristol Bay, Sunday.
The Jayhawk crew, with an Air Station Kodiak HC-130 Hercules airplane crew flying to support them, safely hoisted the crew from the disabled fishing vessel and transported them to Dillingham.
Coast Guard Sector Anchorage command center watchstanders received a distress call from the 32-foot fishing vessel’s operator reporting engine failure and a fear that the vessel would drift onto the nearby rocky shore.
Coast Guard 17th District watchstanders directed the launch of the Jayhawk and Hercules aircrews, who travelled more than 250 miles to perform the rescue.
“We use our air assets to complement each other during long range cases,” said Chief Petty Officer Michael Haselden, a watchstander at the 17th District command center. “A second set of eyes during a search and rescue case gives our responders an extra layer of safety while they perform their duties.”
The vessel ran aground shortly after the completion of the hoist.
Weather on scene was reported as 35-mph winds and 5-foot seas.