Northern Isles MSPs back suspended helicopter pilot

Orkney MSP Liam McArthur and Shetland MSP Tavish Scott are supporting the Coastguard helicopter pilot, who was suspended after stopping off in Orkney to pick up some butcher meat.

The operator, CHC Helicopters, have suspended the pilot but hundreds of people across the Northern Isles are supporting his re-instatement.

Tavish Scott said: “Oscar Charlie’s crew put their lives on the line in rescue after rescue in the worst of the weather. So collecting Orkney beef from an Orkney butcher is in no way a hanging offence.

“I want the Coastguard Agency and CHC Helicopters to recognise the intense bravery and commitment that Oscar Charlie’s crew shows all the time. That is more important than this particular incident. The Coastguard Agency wasted millions trying to close the Lerwick Coastguard Station. If anyone should be suspended it is the people who came up with that bad and dangerous idea.”