Two mountain rescue teams from the north-east joined forces to learn the ropes with a new fleet of helicopters.
Braemar and Aberdeen mountain rescue teams took part in the joint familiarisation training on the new S92 Search and Rescue helicopter with pilots and winch-men from Bristow on Saturday.
The new helicopters will be replacing the RAF and Navy Sea Kings that previously carried out the rescues when Bristow take up the search and rescue contract on April 1.
The iconic yellow Sea Kings, provided by 202 Squadron from RAF Lossiemouth, from will be retiring from service after being a welcome site for rescue teams across the north-east since the 1970s.
But the new choppers have been described as “state of the art” by members of the teams.
Malcom MacIntyre, of Braemar mountain rescue team, said: “The RAF and Navy are losing the contract for search and rescue on April 1 and Bristow is taking it up so we were learning about their helicopters essentially.
“I’ve been with the team for about 20 years now and I’ve always previously worked with the Sea King so it’s been very worthwhile getting to see the new ones.
“These new helicopters are very modern and there are some quite big differences between them and the Sea Kings.
“There is all sorts of differences to learn from the winches to the doors. It’s about knowing exactly what to do when you see one to minimise the time it takes to transfer the causality.
Scott Stevens, team operations manager at Aberdeen mountain rescue team, said the latest training would be reinforced throughout the year.
He said: “There are lots of differences between the new aircraft and the old Sea Kings.
“The Bristow helicopters go faster and have more modern equipment onboard like better night-vision and GPS tracking.
“We require the helicopter to be available quickly so this could be a real change.
“This is the first of the familiarisation exercises but we will continue to train with them year-round.
“We try to maintain a good working relationship with Bristow and the Braemar team so it was good getting to see all the faces we’ll be working with.”