Eight British military personnel, including two medics, parachuted onto the remote island of Tristan da Cunha last weekend to assist a suspected hantavirus patient. The squad, from the Army's 16 Air Assault Brigade, jumped from an RAF A400M transport at 2,500 metres above the South Atlantic, navigating through cloud cover to reach the most remote British overseas territory.
Captain George Lacey, one of the six Pathfinders, described the descent as challenging, requiring the parachutists to fly backwards into the wind. The team had to strap a doctor and an intensive care nurse to two of the jumpers, adding complexity to the operation. The nurse had tandem experience, but for the doctor it was a first-time jump.
The mission was prompted by a suspected hantavirus case on the island, which has a population of 221 and is normally accessible only by a six-day boat journey from Cape Town or the Falklands. The patient, who had disembarked from the MV Hondius cruise ship, required urgent oxygen and treatment. The airdrop was deemed the fastest way to deliver supplies and medical personnel.
After a four-and-a-half-hour flight from Ascension Island, the team jumped about 5km off the north-east side of the island. The descent took between five and ten minutes, including two thousand feet through clouds. Upon landing, the medical team attended to the patient, while the soldiers coordinated drops of oxygen canisters and protective gear.
The government of St Helena, which administers Tristan da Cunha, reported that the patient remains in a stable condition. Captain Lacey noted that while military airdrops are rare, the skill remains vital for humanitarian emergencies. The team is now awaiting extraction from the island.
