ship and flown to Bermuda.

Mrs. Diana Palmer has now recovered from an operation to have her appendix removed after an acute attack of appendicitis forced her to return to the Island by helicopter.

The dramatic airlift from the cruise ship, Dreamward took place on Thursday.

The ship was 26 miles northwest of Bermuda when the US Coast Guard received the captain's emergency call.

Mrs. Palmer and her husband Gary, from Long Island, New York were lifted to safety in a basket only 20 minutes after the call was placed.

"I was eye to eye with the navigation bridge so these guys were pretty close,'' said Mr. Palmer.

"From the time the helicopter arrived, it took them about seven minutes for us to get on and away from the ship,'' he said. "It was a very smooth operation.'' An ambulance, the fire service and the police were all on standby when the Coast Guard helicopter touched down in the show ring of the Botanical Gardens.

Mrs. Palmer was taken immediately to the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital where she was operated on early Friday morning.

"Once we got to the hospital we had to make a quick decision. Either we had to go back to New York for treatment or we stayed here. In the end, we opted to stay,'' said Mr. Palmer.

Mr. Palmer attributed his decision to the care both he and his wife received at King Edward.

"The service was exceptional,'' he said. "We were particularly impressed by Dr. (James) King. He was very nice, calming and professional.'' Mrs. Palmer was discharged from hospital on Sunday and is recovering well. She and her husband are due to fly back to New York tomorrow.