A Search and Rescue team of five from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island conducted a rescue mission on Mount Stuart on Saturday, Aug. 13.

The crew received a call Saturday evening to rescue a severely injured 29-year-old woman in Chelan County.

The woman was located at about 8,800 feet, according to a Navy press release.

The crew launched at 8:20 p.m. and arrived on scene 45 minutes later. They immediately spotted the woman, thanks to her hiking party’s flashlights, according to the press release.

After evaluating the area and noting relatively high temperatures, the crew determined it would not initially have the power margin required to conduct the rescue.

The crew opted to land in a valley at a lower altitude to offload gear to make the helicopter as light as possible, according to a press release issued by the base.

A couple minutes later, the crew took off again, weighing approximately 1,000 pounds less than before, and found that they now had an acceptable power margin for hovering.

With limited time remaining to stay on station, the crew hovered about 100 feet above the survivor and lowered the Helicopter Inland Rescue Aircrewman, or HIRA, to the ground.

After quickly evaluating the injured woman, the rescue aircreman secured her into the rescue vest and the two were hoisted into the helicopter.

The crew flew to Harborview Medical Center, arriving 25 minutes later.

The injured woman was transferred to higher care, according to the Navy press release.

“Every aspect of this mission required a deliberate discussion of the risks involved by all members of the crew due to the precariousness of the survivor’s location,” said Lt. Adam Laakso, the SAR copilot.

Laasko was also on his first mission with the unit.

“Ultimately, the mission was a perfect example of a crew working together, utilizing an effective mixture of training and experience, in order to provide timely care to an individual in need,” Laasko said.

This was the 17th rescue of 2016 for NAS Whidbey’s SAR, which has also conducted seven searches and eight medical evacuation missions this year.

The Navy SAR unit operates three MH-60S helicopters from NAS Whidbey as search and rescue platforms for the EA-18G Growler aircraft as well as other squadrons and personnel assigned to the installation.

NAS Whidbey has an agreement to assist Washington state and the surrounding areas with medical evacuations and search and rescue activities if other assets are unavailable.