Naked anglers on stag party weekend hook RAF rescue crew

Naked anglers on stag party weekend hook RAF rescue crew - An air rescue crew called in to check on a suspicious vessel at sea caught a naked stag party instead.

The party had the bare-faced cheek to wave hello at the RAF chopper as it buzzed down to check whether something fishy was going on.

Unknown to them, they were also filmed by a BBC cameraman who happened to be on board following the rescue crew's activities.

Tackle out: The naked men from Bristol were on a stag party

The 10-strong party, from Bradleystoke, Bristol, was caught during a two-hour fishing trip in Swansea Bay, South Wales, on Saturday.

Suspicious Coastguard bosses spotted the small boat off Mumbles Head and asked a passing RAF rescue helicopter to take a closer look.

'A search and rescue Sea King helicopter was returning to base at RAF Chivenor, in Devon, when Swansea Coastguard asked it to check a suspicious boat," an RAF spokesman said.

'As they approached they soon realised all the anglers aboard the vessel were completely naked.

'It transpired they were a stag party having a bit of fun in the ocean. They were running no risk - apart from catching a cold.

'They (the helicopter crew) were on their way back from another search and rescue mission and they were just asked to fly over this boat and let the coastguard know what was going on.

'I'm sure there were a few giggles going on in the cockpit at the time.'

A Maritime and Coastguard Agency spokesman said that as the vessel was evidently not in distress no action was necessary.

Mark Thomas, skipper of the boat, Blue Thunder, told the Swansea Evening Post he had the 10-man stag party on board on Saturday.

Suspicious boat: The RAF Sea King helicopter was returning to base when it was asked to investigate the stag party

'I went to do something, and I turned around and somebody had dropped their shorts.

'The T-shirts then came off and they all egged each other on to take all their clothes off.

'I saw a helicopter hovering above us, and then they dropped a smoke flare into the water. The lads were jumping up and down, waving and having a good laugh.

'It was all good fun. They were like it for more than an hour-and-a-half and were well behaved. They did invite me to join in, but it was a bit chilly for me!'

The group had gone to Swansea for the stag weekend of groom-to-be Dave Lloyd.

Nick Woore, 25, his best man, told the newspaper it had been the best fishing trip he had ever been on.

'What started off as a quiet fishing trip with a few beers turned into naked madness. It was one of the best fishing trips we have ever had and we have some very memorable moments.' ( dailymail.co.uk )