Portland will welcome helicopters back to the island next week following the departure of the search and rescue facility.

HeliOperations, a helicopter training company, finally completed their purchase of the site on August 30.

Their first activity will be training German Navy search and rescue pilots in a contract backed by the Ministry of Defence.

Richard Drax, MP for South Dorset, has said that he is delighted at the news that Osprey Quay on Portland will continue to operate as a helicopter base.

He said: “This is wonderful news for South Dorset.

“It represents the culmination of many years of effort by HeliOperations and it will benefit us all to keep rotors turning on Portland.”

“HeliOps will bring jobs and apprenticeships and a high level of professionalism to the area.

“Their instructors are all former Navy pilots and SAR experts, with the skills and expertise to attract contracts from across a wide spectrum of military and civilian aviation work.”

“For South Dorset, their presence at Osprey Quay will mean Coastguard SAR helicopters are able to land and refuel en route to incidents, saving precious time they would otherwise spend returning to more distant bases.”

“I would like to thank HeliOperations, Weymouth and Portland Borough Council and the Housing and Communities Agency (HCA) for their enlightened support of this solution to what was originally a sad loss for Portland. While we have regrettably lost our SAR facility, this must be the next best thing.

“We look forward to the arrival of the first Sea King training helicopter, which is at the moment scheduled for September 12.

The state-of-the art helicopter base on Portland was, until last month, home to the Marine and Coastguard Agency’s (MCA) Search and Rescue (SAR) helicopter.

The MCA’s decision to close the base was energetically opposed by many campaigners and Drax, who called debates in the House, invited Ministers to Portland, met the Prime Minister and wrote a report for the Transport Select Committee in his efforts to save the base.

Despite pleas from fisherman, sailor, divers, charter boats and the wider community that the closure would put lives at risk, the government approved the closure.

The closest MCA SAR helicopters now operate from Solent and Culdrose in Cornwall.