THE Queen will honour a heroic Merseyside airman who helped save 23 people from a stricken ferry.

Leading aircrewman Kevin Regan, from Bootle, will receive the Queen’s Gallantry Medal for his courageous work to rescue the passengers and crew of the Riverdance ferry.

His team flew out to save people trapped onboard the 6,000-ton ferry when it was caught in gale force winds off the coast of Blackpool last year.

Mr Regan, 30, winched himself down from the helicopter, but instead of accompanying the passengers one at a time, he detached himself and allowed them to be lifted to safety in pairs. He was onboard the ferry as it was battered by 70mph winds and listed heavily at a 45-degree angle.

The storm was so ferocious it took Mr Regan’s team, Royal Navy search and rescue unit HMS Gannet, 25 minutes to lower him onto the deck.

But that was not the Royal Navy winchman’s only heroic effort.

The previous year, he rescued a man from the freezing waters of Loch Long, in Scotland, after police were unable to pull him free.

The man was high on drugs and aggressive, and tried to assault father-of-two Mr Regan as he lowered himself into the water.

He then passed out from exhaustion, allowing Mr Regan to winch him clear of the water before giving him first aid on his way to the hospital.