Humberside Coastguard's helicopter SAR base, operated by Bristow Helicopters, has completed its 500th mission. The service became a civilian operation in April 2015 and was one of the first purpose-built sites created after Bristow was awarded the contract for UK SAR as part of a £7 million investment.

Humberside is one of 10 coastguard bases located around the UK and provides life-saving support to fishing and other marine industries as well as the offshore energy sector, missing persons and other medical emergencies.

Says chief technical crewman Chris Gibbins: “Reaching 500 missions is a major milestone for our team. On average we are scrambled to assist in a search and rescue call every day-and-half. Our focus is always on bringing people home safely from an operation, dedicating ourselves to year-round training, and living up to the incredibly high standard that the UK SAR service has been renowned for delivering for more than 70 years. “Many people will be unaware of just how regularly we are called out because, compared to the sound of an ambulance or fire engine passing by, our missions are often undertaken in remote, sparsely populated and challenging areas where our work goes unseen.”

The base has a team of 30 staff and is located at Humberside airport close to Grimsby in Lincolnshire. Bristow began operating the UK's SAR helicopter service on behalf of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency in 2015, after winning the tender in 2013.