Peter Davidson reached the boundaries of physical and mental exhaustion while heroically rescuing eight yachtsmen in one of the worst maritime disasters in Australian ocean racing history.
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Flying into a hurricane he and the crew of an Air Ambulance Victoria Helimed One rescue helicopter found themselves confronted with waves 24 metres high and 160km/h winds.
They were trying to rescue 12 sailors on board the stricken yacht Stand Aside in the ill-fated 1989-99 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.
Mr Davidson shared his story at City Diggers on Friday to help launch Legacy Appeal Week in the Illawarra.
He told the 241 people present how the waves looked big from the air. But when he was winched down to attempt the first rescue a 14 metre wall of water was unlike anything he had ever seen before.
"It was the biggest moving mass of any substance I had seen in my life. When it hit I didn't know what was up or what was down".
The winch eventually pulled him to safety but the early attempts failed. He and the helicopter crew knew if they didn't come up with a new strategy quickly none of the yacht's 12 crew were going to make it home to their families. So they decided to put two of the crew at a time into a life-raft tethered to the crippled yacht. Mr Davidson was winched into the water near the life-raft to rescue one at a time. During the first attempt he thought he was going to drown without rescuing anyone. And he could feel the energy quickly being drained from his body.
Mr Davidson said the waves being whipped up by the hurricane conditions were so big that at one point the pilot was hovering the helicopter 25 metres above the water when a massive wave lifted the yacht so high it appeared in his front windscreen. He was forced to dramatically climb to avoid being hit by the vessel.
During the rescue there were two times Mr Davidson thought his time was up. One was when the cable wrapped around his legs. But he kept saying to himself "maybe I can just get one more". "Most of my energy was going on keeping myself afloat".
Mr Davidson said when he reached the point of physical exhaustion it became a psychological battle. His brain was saying he couldn't go down again but his heart kept telling him to rescue one more. "I remember feeling absolute elation after the first yachtsman made it up.
"I have never felt such a strong feeling like that again to this day".
That was because he knew at least one person was going to be going home to their family.
His confidence soared each time they managed to winch one more yachtsman to safety. And that is what kept him going.
By the eighth rescue he was so exhausted he couldn't even lift his arm to signal the winch operator. Moments later a second rescue helicopter arrived and winched the four other members of Stand Aside's crew to safety only 25 minutes before it sank.
After the rescue Mr Davidson said he didn't get a chance to speak to the eight men whose lives he saved before they were quickly taken away in a fleet of ambulances. His team were asked to quickly refuel and get back out and search for the men in another yacht.
Mr Davidson said since that dramatic day he and the crew had many accolades bestowed upon them. But what meant more than even meeting the Queen was meeting the people he saved.
"I would have to say the most rewarding thing to come out of this incident was that many weeks after it was all over I was invited to South Australia to meet all these men who we rescued," he said.
"To turn up there this night and meet these men and see the smiles on their faces. And see the smiles on the faces of their wives, their girlfriends and their mums and dads. And just feel the warmth that was extended to me on that evening. That was just worth more than any of those physical awards ever could. And it is a memory that will live with me forever".
Mr Davidson's parting words after sharing the story of his remarkable, exhausting, heroic and life-changing day on the job was "whenever you are in those times of self doubt and you feel the odds are stacked against you, if you are prepared to stick together and work closely as a team, and above all just be prepared to get out there and give it a go, you too will be amazed at what you can achieve".
Mr Davidson received a standing ovation at the end of his talk. And in delivering the thank you Vicki Tiegs described him as a humble Australian who like many of our military personnel have to show courage and bravery every day on the job.
She said on that horrid day in Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race history he had not only showed bravery and courage but was selfless and blessed in a helicopter that started life in duty for the Pope.
Mrs Tiegs thanked Mr Davidson for his service and for giving eight families the relief of having a loved one come home.
"Because here at Legacy we know that sometimes they don't come home," she said.
Wollongong South Coast Legacy Club - Wollongong Group chairman Phil McNamara said Legacy provides support and services to 1188 people between Helensburgh and Bega who are from families who have suffered the loss of a husband, father, wife, mother or provider during, or as a result of, military action in service of our country.
The 121 volunteers in the region who accept the legacy of care for their comrades' families are called Legatees
"Here in the Wollongong and Kiama area we have 512 widows, seven juniors and nine persons with a disability. We can complete our task with 28 Legatees," Mr McNamara said.
Lagacy Business and Community Lunch Committee chair David Swan said in the 12 year history of the annual lunch to launch Legacy Appeal Week in the region $330,000 had been raised to provide many forms of assistance.
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Greg Ellis
Almost four decades in electronic, print and digital media. A writer, presenter, emcee, photographer and videographer with degrees in business management, marketing and human resources and tertiary qualifications in photography.
Almost four decades in electronic, print and digital media. A writer, presenter, emcee, photographer and videographer with degrees in business management, marketing and human resources and tertiary qualifications in photography.
