Benóný Ásgrímsson is an Icelandic aviator. He served with the

Icelandic Coast Guard The Icelandic Coast Guard (, or simply ) is the Icelandic defence service responsible for search and rescue, maritime safety and security surveillance, and law enforcement in the seas surrounding Iceland. The Coast Guard maintains the Iceland ...

for 50 years, including 38 years as a helicopter pilot from 1978 to 2016 where he participated in several high-profile rescue operations.

Coast guard career

He started his career with the Coast Guard at the age of 14 on board the ICGV ''Ægir'' but later moved to its helicopter division. In 1986, he participated in the rescue of two survivors of the Ljósufjöll air crash onboard TF-SIF. In 1997, he was the captained TF-LÍF when its crew rescued 29 sailors in two incidents over a four-day period. On 5 March, 19 sailors from the cargo ship were rescued aboard TF-LÍF after the ship suffered engine failure and ran aground on the south coast of Iceland, east of

Þjórsá Þjórsá () is Iceland's longest river at 230 kilometers (about 143 miles). It is in the south of the island. Þjórsá is a glacier river and has its source on the glacier Hofsjökull. It flows out through narrow gorges in the highlands of I ...

. One crewmember from washed overboard during the rescue operations and drowned. On 9 March, he again piloted TF-LÍF as its crew rescued 10 out of 12 crewmembers from the cargo ship ''Dísarfell'' after in sank south east of

Hornafjörður Hornafjörður () is a small fjord in southeastern Iceland. The town Höfn Höfn () or Höfn í Hornafirði () is an Icelandic fishing town in the southeastern part of the country. It lies near Hornafjörður fjord. The town, the second large ...

. He officially retired from the Coast Guard on his 65th birthday on 30 September 2016.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Benony Asgrimsson Asgrimsson, Benony Asgrimsson, Benony Icelandic aviators