Royal Navy frigate HMS Argyll rescues all 27 crew from blazing ship in Bay of Biscay

Watch the moment the crew of HMS Argyll save every crew member aboard the Grande America in the Bay of Biscay after the ship’s cargo of containers and cars caught fire.

The frigate responded to a mayday from the 28,000-tonne merchant ship about 150 miles southwest of Brest: the crew were fighting a losing battle against the flames and were abandoning ship into 5m to 6m seas at night.

When they did, all 27 crammed aboard the lifeboat which smashed into the heavy seas as it launched, damaging the craft which was unable to make headway.

Watch the video to see the dramatic rescue.