French warship saves stranded NZ familyJuly 1, 2009 - 11:54AM
A French warship has rescued a family of eight from their stricken yacht in the Pacific north of New Zealand, rescue officials said.

The French warship La Glorieuse picked up the Bradfield family after their boat was dismasted and the rigging became tangled around the keel and rudder, Rescue Coordination Centre New Zealand (RCCNZ) said.

RCCNZ search and rescue officer Christine Wilson said La Glorieuse was on its way to New Zealand when it diverted course late on Tuesday after the rescue centre picked up a distress signal.

It then found the yacht with the family of two adults and six children 375km north of the northern tip of New Zealand.

No one on the yacht, which was sailing from Tonga to New Zealand where the family live, was injured, Wilson said.

Charles and Joy Bradfield - and their six children - had to watch their vessel scuttled by the French navy.

The family will arrive in Auckland on Thursday on La Glorieuse, in an inglorious end to their sailing holiday, a trip to Tonga which began in May.

The children - Josh, 18, Matt, 16, Emma, 14, Tom, 13, Abby, 10, and Rebekah, 6, - have kept an internet blog on their voyage, which they called the Bradfields Adventure to Tonga.