Last year alone, the Moruya-based service was sent on close to 100 missions and conducted 13 search and rescues, keeping watergoers, bushwalkers and many others out of harm’s way.

Southern Region crews are on standby seven days a week, 365 days a year, responding to life and death situations, natural disasters, accidents and mishaps.

However, the service doesn’t come cheap, with the cost of operating the famous yellow and red helicopter coming in at about $4000 an hour.

Thankfully, the recent extension of Westpac’s partnership will help keep the chopper up in the air for the next five years.

Southern Region CEO Steve Leahy said the service continued to serve a vital role along the coast.

“In 1973, the Bank of New South Wales, now known as Westpac, got behind the simple idea that a helicopter operated by volunteer surf lifesavers could help prevent swimmers from drowning,” Mr Leahy said.

“That has led to the service becoming the oldest and longest-serving civilian aviation rescue service in Australia, and has helped us save thousands of lives in NSW.”

Moruya crewmen Rob Wildman, Mitch Van der Meulen and Harley Dengate bring a vital mix of aviation, rescue and surf lifesaving skills to their role.

“It all started from lifesaving,” rescue crew officer Mr Van der Meulen said.

“We were initially just a helicopter up in Sydney plucking people out of the surf, but we’re now spread far wider than that.

“We go way out to sea and help boats out there and we go up in the hills and find people that are lost up in the mountains.”

Air crew officer Harley Dengate said the service was essential in assisting other emergency personnel during major search and rescue missions, accidents or disaster events.

“A couple of years ago, we spent two and a half weeks up in the Kosciuszko National Park searching for a missing Canadian bushwalker up there,” Mr Dengate said.

“We’ve also done a couple of stints with floods where we’ve been away for just as long in Orange, Wagga, Port Macquarie and Coffs Harbour.

“We range quite a bit in what we do, but predominantly, we are coastal rescue.”

Sadly, not all missions have a good ending.

“Quite often, the people we are rescuing are deceased,” pilot Mr Wildman said.

“That’s never a good part, but it’s a necessary part of what we do.

“We’re able to derive some comfort from being able to actually find the people we’re looking for, and even if it isn’t a great outcome, we can bring closure.”

But for the crew, nothing beats the reward of seeing a rescued person safely reunited with family and friends.

“Just seeing them, walking away from the aircraft to their loved ones, makes the job pretty satisfying,” Mr Dengate said.