OzOne wrote in message ...
On Fri, 29 Sep 2006 03:06:43 GMT, "Maxprop"
scribbled thusly:


Considering the beating that Sayonara took, the rest of the fleet must
have
thought they'd died and gone to hell.

Max

It was one of the most intense storme ever recorded on the coast...it
was much worse at sea.

A mate of mine is a Sea King chopper pilot. he was touched by a wave
when hovering just under 100' off the wet deck.
He had a man on the string at the time and thought he'd lost him.
The chopper landed after a couple of hours duty with the engine
intakes so clogged with salt that they needed to divert to another
closer landing site because power had dropped well below critical
levels.

I have a lot of respect for the blokes that fly those rescue choppers. That
must be one sphincter-clinching experience.

Max