Injured helicopter pair rescued after crash landing at South Pole

Round-the-world flight almost ends in disaster as British woman and co-pilot are downed in -40C temperatures

A grandmother attempting to fly around the world in a helicopter via the North and South poles and her co-pilot were rescued yesterday after their aircraft crashed in temperatures of -40C in Antarctica, 120 miles from the nearest camp.

Despite breaking her arm in the crash, Jennifer Murray, 63, managed to put up a tent, where the pair sheltered for several hours until help arrived. Her co-pilot, Colin Bodill, 53, is believed to have serious injuries.

A distress signal from the Bell 407 helicopter, which crashed at 1am GMT on the Ronne ice shelf, was picked up on the other side of the world at RAF Kinloss in Scotland, which alerted the Falkland Islands rescue service, which in turn alerted the British Antarctic Survey.

"There is concern about his condition," said a spokesman for Polar First, the organisers of the expedition. He said the cause of the crash was not yet known. The couple were taken to Patriot Hills - a camp in western Antarctica - before being flown to Chile yesterday afternoon for medical treatment.

Mrs Murray, from Somerset, and Mr Bodill, from Nottingham, arrived at the South Pole on Wednesday, marking the completion of the first half of their world-record-breaking 33,000-mile attempt.

The Polar First Challenge 2003 lifted off from New York on 22 October.

The expedition also aimed to raise awareness for the conservation organisation WWF. The pair had flown down the east coast of the United States, through Central and South America, to reach the Pole.

They had just started their journey up to the North Pole via the west coast of the Americas and had hoped to arrive in New York in mid-April last year.

They planned to make more than 160 stops on the journey to highlight the work of the WWF, fly scientists to key conservation sites, undertake mapping and zoning of uncharted territory, track the illegal destruction of natural resources and follow endangered species.

In her online diary last week, Mrs Murray described the hostile conditions the pair faced.

"We camped 30 miles out from the Pole," she wrote. "Finding a landing spot that would hold the weight of the helicopter without sinking proved a nightmare. Repeated attempts at landing were followed by that sinking sensation. I suggested that I get out and put planks of wood under the skids. While getting the wood out, my computer fell on to the ice and I didn't have time to put on jacket and gloves."

The pair are seasoned adventurers. Mrs Murray entered the Guinness Book of Records in 1997 as the first woman to circumnavigate the globe in a helicopter, raising more than £50,000 for Save the Children. In 2000, Mr Bodill became the first person to fly around the globe solo in a microlight aircraft.

Her husband, Simon, 63, is bidding to become the oldest man to walk 850 miles to the South Pole unsupported. He is accompanied by the explorer Pen Hadow. Mr Murray said: "I understand that Jennifer's morale is strong in spite of her injury and she is most concerned about Colin's condition, which is more serious than her own. Of course, I would love to be at her side.

"I am hugely concerned for Colin, who is a super guy and a wonderful friend, as his condition is unclear. This raises anxiety for his family in particular and all those who know and adore him."