RACQ CareFlight has airlifted a 20 year old fisherman off the coast of Coolangatta after he was attacked by a shark aboard a tuna boat.

The 3 metre mako shark was hauled onto the tuna more than 100 nautical miles off Coolangatta when it swung around and sank its teeth into man’s right calf.

“Apparently the guy accidently stood on the shark's tail. It locked on so tight that the skipper was forced to cut off the shark’s head to release it from the guy’s calf,” said RACQ CareFlight Intensive Care Paramedic Darrin Hatchman.

“The bite went down to the bone, it was pretty messy.”

The deep sea rescue pushed the RACQ CareFlight helicopter to its limit. Once the vessel was located the crew carried out the rescue operation in challenging 3-5 metre swells.

“The range of the chopper is 110 nautical miles.  We intercepted the boat when it was 105 nautical miles offshore, so we were pushing it knowing our fuel capacity,” said RACQ CareFlight Pilot Adrian Park.

Paramedic Darrin Hatchman was winched onto the boat and the patient hoisted back with him into the rescue chopper within minutes.

“If the bite had been a couple of millimetres either way, it would have been a real mercy dash to stop him from bleeding out,” said Mr Hatchman.

The man was flown to Gold Coast Hospital where he received 30-40 stitches to the wound and is in a stable condition.

Media Contact Renee Buckingham 0421 381 023.