Seven fishermen rescued by air force
Seven Kiribati and Fijian fishermen have been rescued by the Royal New Zealand Air Force, but a third boat has not been found. The air force was first asked to help find a wooden fishing boat with three men aboard, which had been missing since November 16, from Kiribati. The Orion crew then got asked to help find another boat with four people who were reported missing from Kiribati. The air force found the boat on Sunday, dropping a survival pack which had an activated locator beacon and a note with information about how the four would be rescued. The crew then continued the search for the first fishing boat. Despite extensive efforts they were unable to find it. On Tuesday, the crew received its third request to search for a fishing boat reported overdue after departing Gau Island for Suva, Fiji, on Saturday. On Wednesday, the boat was found drifting about 40 nautical miles to the southeast of Kadavu Island. ‘‘The three people aboard appeared well and waved at the crew.’’ The air force dropped a pack with a beacon and radio to the people and Fiji police sent a boat to rescue them.