Daring ice floe rescue plucks missing pilot from icy Arctic
Digital Reporter
Monday, July 27, 2015, 11:12 AM - A Russian helicopter pilot attempting a solo round-the-world-trip has been rescued after going missing in the Canadian Arctic.
Sergey Ananov was reported missing Saturday during a flight from Iqaluit, Nunavut, to the Greenlandic capital Nuuk, prompting searchers to head toward the Davis Strait in an effort to find him.
Unfortunately, aircraft and ships had to contend with poor weather as they worked to find the man.
Update 1: #JRCCHalifax confirms that the weather onscene is challenging and deteriorating with heavy fog. @cbcnorth @NunatsiaqNews @rcaf_arc
— JTF Atlantic (@JTFAtlantic) July 26, 2015
However, the search seems to have paid off, with the coast guard's Joint Task Force Atlantic tweeting Monday morning that Ananov had been found.
Spokeswoman Louise Matheson told the CBC Ananov had been taken aboard CCGS Pierre Radisson.
The Canadian coast guard ship Pierre Radisson found Ananov, said Louise Matheson, a spokeswoman for the Joint Task Force Atlantic
"A red flare was spotted, and upon investigation it was determined to be the search subject alive and well on the floe," she said. "He's doing well and no medical attention is required."
Posted by Helicopter Solo Around the World on Monday, June 22, 2015
A Facebook page that tracks Ananov's progress says the 49-year-old private helicopter pilot set off on his journey on June 13 from an airport near Moscow. His intention was to be the first to fly solo around the world in a Robinson R22, a lightweight helicopter weighing around 1,370 lbs (622 kg), less than a metric tonne.
"Thanks everyone for your prayers and well wishes," the Facebook page read Monday morning. "And indescribable gratitude to all the men and women of the Canadian Search and Rescue."
SOURCE: CBC News | Thumbnail image source
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