A Royal Navy pilot who saved a climber’s life on a Scottish mountain has been honoured for his “grit, determination and courage”.

Lieutenant Commander Craig Sweeney, from Harrogate, led his search and rescue team when climber Dr Gareth Bradley became stranded on the 3,074ft Beinn Sgulaird, in Argyll, with a broken ankle.

The former Harrogate Grammar School student has been awarded the Air Force Cross for using his years of experience in the Arctic and Afghanistan to battle blizzards, plummeting temperatures and pitch darkness, with his team’s Sea King helicopter flying close to the mountain’s rockface fto rescue Dr Bradley in December 2011.

“I am very honoured, humbled and proud,” said the father-of-three, 38, whose parents and grandparents live in Harrogate and who leaves the service next month. “It was a thorough team effort and it reflects the efforts of all on board that day.

“What was clear was that Dr Bradley had a serious ankle injury and was not going to be able to walk down the mountain – the mountain rescue team felt it was unlikely he would survive a night on the hill.

“We had to go extremely close to the rockface – that’s how bad the visibility was. All around us was nothing but swirling snow and we were very close to whiteout conditions – essentially, as a pilot, I could see nothing.

“It was intense flying which relied on dozens of years of the crew’s experience and expertise, and really full-on team work.”

Dr Bradley congratulated Lieutenant Commander Sweeney, saying: “I am very grateful to all those who risked their safety to help me, and the fact my rescue was successful was a credit to all involved. They were brilliant, very professional, reassured me all the time and talked me through exactly what was happening. If it wasn’t for these guys, I might not be here today.”

In his citation for the award, HMS Gannet’s commanding officer, Lieutenant Commander Andy Drodge, said the rescue showed “outstanding airmanship and courage”.

“Sweeney demonstrated exceptional levels of leadership, grit and composure enabling him to fly the most demanding sortie of his career.”