A climber was rescued after falling in “appalling white-out conditions” in the northern corries of the Cairngorms at the weekend.
The 25-year-old man suffered injuries to his head, leg and pelvis after falling “a considerable distance”.
He had been climbing on his own the Fiacaill Buttress in Coire an t-Sneachda before getting into difficulty at around 4pm on Saturday.
Willie Anderson, leader of Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team, praised the crew of RAF Lossiemouth helicopter Rescue 137 for their “amazing” flying in blizzard conditions to help recover the climber.
The climber, who is understood to have travelled to the Highlands from Wales, was airlifted in the Sea King helicopter to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness where he is recovering.
The mountain rescue team were mobilised after another party of climbers found the injured man at around 4pm.
Twenty-five members of the Cairngorm MRT were called out into the mountains, including four doctors.
The team initially feared that they would have to stretcher the casualty off the hill themselves because of the poor visibility for the helicopter, an operation which would have taken several hours.
However, Rescue 137 was able to collect the climber after being guided into the corrie by the torch lights of members of the rescue team – flying just 10ft or less of the ground.
Mr Anderson said: “The crew did some of the most amazing flying I’ve ever seen to reach him.
“Their incredible efforts meant this man was able to be taken to hospital several hours earlier than would have been possible any other way.”
Once out of the mountains the helicopter was forced to make another stop in Aviemore again as conditions closed in before completing the trip to Raigmore.
The incident was the third call-out of the week for the mountain rescue team, and the second in challenging conditions.
On Wednesday walkers Alex Kirby and Luke Copeland had to be rescued on Ben Macdui, Britain’s second highest mountain, in blizzards, lightning and “unrelenting winds” of more than 100mph.
And on Monday a party from Glenmore Lodge on a mountaineering course had to be rescued after two members of the groups suffered injuries in a fall in the Coire an t-Sneachda area.
