The meteorological conditions off the coast of Iceland were particularly bad on the evening of December 19, 2006: the sea was rough with waves as high as eight meters, temperatures were very low, and visibility was extremely poor.
A small Cypriot vessel, the Wilson Muuga, hit the rocks by Keflavik off the Icelandic coast, leaving its 12 crew members floundering.
An eightman crew from the Danish Coast Guard which set off immediately to the rescue failed to beat the elements, and its boat was capsized by two enormous waves.
Without delay, an AS332 L1 Super Puma from the Icelandic Coast Guard took off for the scene of the drama to rescue both the Danish coast guards and the Cypriots.

Pilot’s Testimony
“We had to descend to just 13 meters above the sea to locate the individual lifebuoys and check each one to see whether anyone was inside,” recalls Snorre Hagen, the Airlift pilot hired on special contract with the ICG.
“In the end, visibility was so poor that we had to lower a rescuer into the sea to check whether there was anybody inside each of the lifebuoys.
It was as if the survivors and rescuer were trapped inside a washing machine, the sea was so rough.
However, we managed to rescue seven of the eight persons from danger. The ICG then proceeded to rescue the 12 crew members from the Cypriot boat in distress.
Once again, the Super Puma showed its extraordinary capabilities during this perilous rescue, using NVG to cope with extreme conditions and darkness.”
With 20 years’ experience as a pilot, Snorre Hagen has been performing rescue missions with Airlift in Svalbard for 11 years.
“I’ve already saved lots of lives, but this mission was one of the most difficult of my career,” he admits, “because, this time, the circumstances were extremely difficult.
I am especially proud to receive this Medal of Honor from the Danish people for my involvement - but let’s not forget the rest of the very professional Icelandic crew, including Pilot Bjorn Brekkan who performed a fantastic job in extreme conditions!”