From left: Dr Niall McMahon of the emergency medical retrieval team, who was with the duty crew on the day they picked up Adam; Petty Officer Taff Ashman, winchman and paramedic; Adam Potter; Lieutenant Mike Paulet and Lieutenant Al Hinchcliffe, both pilots. Photo: Stuart Hill/MoD

A man who survived a 1,000ft fall from a Highland peak today met the aircrew who winched him to safety.

Adam Potter was with his girlfriend Kate Berry when he slipped near the summit of Sgurr Choinnich Mòr in the Grey Corries in January.

Despite tumbling over three separate hundred-foot drops and ending up more 300m (1,000ft) down the mountain, the crew of the HMS Gannet Sea King helicopter found the walker standing at the foot of a crag consulting his map.

The Royal Navy rescuers initially thought they had found the wrong man, but debris and gear above the 35-year-old outdoors enthusiast confirmed it was their casualty. The crew had feared the worst and thought they would be dealing with a fatality.

Today, Adam was reunited with his rescuers at their Ayrshire base where he will thank them personally.

Three of the four members of the crew who rescued the hillwalker, as well as the unit’s commanding officer, were on hand to welcome him. Among them was Petty Officer Taff Ashman, who was the Gannet aircrewman on the day. A fully qualified paramedic, he was the first to medically assess Adam before winching him on board the helicopter

Mr Potter said it was ‘an honour’ for him to be able to visit.

The Glasgow-based walker suffered minor breaks to three of his vertebrae, though without damage to the spinal cord; chest injuries and abrasions to his face but was able to describe his eventful afternoon to the crew in the helicopter en-route to hospital.

Adam expressed a wish to visit the Royal Navy’s Prestwick-based helicopter search and rescue unit so that he could properly thank those who plucked him to safety as soon as he was able.

“I am obviously very lucky to have survived this fall,” he said. “It’s very important to me to be able to thank the Royal Navy crew who came to my rescue so quickly. Without their almost immediate assistance, it’s anyone’s guess what may have happened.

“I know I was standing up, but I was also in extreme shock and very disorientated. Who knows what I may have tried to do. The guys did an amazing job and I’m really looking forward to seeing them face-to-face under much less challenging circumstances.”

Two rescue helicopter crew members also marked milestones at today’s event. Captain Michael ‘Jack’ Frost of the Royal Marines, has just notched up 6,000 flying hours, and Petty Officer Marcus ‘Wiggy’ Wigfull, has become the Royal Navy’s most experienced search and rescue aircrewman, with 800 emergency sorties.

HMS Gannet’s Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander Debdash Bhattacharya, said: “It has been a pleasure to meet Adam here at the base and I know that the members of that day’s crew have really enjoyed seeing him again.

“His story is truly incredible and I am sure that it stands out as one of those most unusual SAR callouts that my crews have attended.

“I am sure that neither Wiggy with his extensive search and rescue experience nor Jack with his thousands of hours in the aviation environment would have come across as lucky an escape. Their service achievements are significant and I am proud to have them as part of this close-knit team at HMS Gannet.

“The year for HMS Gannet seems to have begun with a number of superlatives. Not only was the unit heralded as the busiest in the UK in 2010, but we also benefit from having some very experienced aircrew on hand to deal with the full range of SAR activity.

“I feel justifiably proud of my crews who take great pains to ensure that they fulfil their role in providing SAR services to the very best of their ability. Contributing to our success is the teamwork that exists across the wider web of emergency service providers from the police, fire and ambulance services to the mountain rescue teams, Royal National Lifeboat Institution, Coastguard and other airborne assets from the Maritime Coastguard Agency, Royal Air Force and Helimed services.”

Adam’s ordeal on the 1,094m (3,598ft) munro hasn’t put him off his mountaineering. He said he intends to tackle an Everest trek when he is fit enough.