By Hollie Harris
THE McDermott Aviation Group has been called in to supply helicopters in the search for a missing skipper off the Fraser coast.
Three twin-engine helicopters from Sunshine Coast airport are currently searching for the man who has now been missing for more than 24 hours.
The choppers are fitted with state-of-the-art rescue gear and can fly for up to four hours in the search area.
The prawn trawler capsized about eight kilometres south-east of Indian Head at Fraser Island in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Two men were able to escape.
Two fishermen aboard the trawler were rescued by a passing vessel after they set off a flare, however their skipper remained missing.
They are now joining the search for the man, who is from Yeppoon.
Earlier this morning, police divers searched the man’s sunken trawler off Fraser Island to try and find whether the man was able to escape the craft.
Inspector Paul Biggin said the 53-year-old man went missing, about 3am on Tuesday, when his prawn trawler capsized.
The cause of the capsize is still under investigation and the 15-hour air and a sea search including several helicopters, trawlers, police vessels and the VMR Bundaberg has found no sign of the man.
The original 100 square kilometre search area was expanded to more than 600 square kilometres by yesterday afternoon.
