A pair of Otago Southland Rescue Helicopter Trust crew were swinging from a winch during a high alpine rescue training exercise in Aoraki/Mt Cook yesterday.
Managing director Graeme Gale said the two-day training course, which started yesterday, was "a first for New Zealand" and had taken more than six months of planning.
Being winched are Aoraki Mountain Rescue personnel Forest Madden (left) and Dave Lewis. Photo: Stephen Jaquiery
In the past few months, the trust had launched three rescue missions off Aoraki which had all been at altitudes of more than 11,000ft.
It could be a "very intimidating" environment for those unfamiliar with it, and only by experiencing it firsthand could you understand what you were up against, he said.
