Prince William Conducts Irish Sea Rescue Mission

Prince William is kind of the man.

Not only is he rich, famous, intelligent, married to a lovely young woman and the heir to the British throne, he's an accomplished pilot in the UK's armed forces - as evidenced during a daring rescue mission he took part in this morning.

William helped save the lives of Russian seamen whose cargo vessel sank into the Irish Sea off the coast of North Wales early today, according to various reports.

Known simply as Flight Lt. William Wales in the Royal Air Force, he was co-pilot in a four-man rescue helicopter crew that responded to a mayday call around 2 a.m.

At that point, the vessel Swanland's hull apparently cracked in bad weather.

He and fellow military servicemen saved two men, airlifting them to safety at William's base on the Welsh island of Anglesey, where he lives with Kate Middleton.

The body of one of Swanland's crew has been recovered; five are still missing.

"We know at least some of [the missing] are wearing immersion suits and have strobe lighting with them," Jim Green, a coast guard spokesman, said Sunday. "However, sea conditions are challenging at best."