A NORTH-EAST engineer is among the team of experts spearheading a mission to raise the Kursk submarine.

The nuclear-powered vessel plunged to the bottom of the Barents Sea last year, with 118 Russian sailors onboard.

Heavy haulage specialist Malcolm Dailey, 52, of Norton, Stockton, flew from Norway yesterday to the Dutch pontoon The Giant, from which the lengthy process of lifting the 10,000-tonne sub is being coordinated.

The wreckage will be transported to Murmansk, in Russia.

Mammoet Transport, which has bases in Middlesbrough and Wallsend, Tyneside, is working with Dutch partner Smit International to salvage the Kursk.

Its sinking in August last year sparked a high-profile, but doomed, international rescue attempt.

Now Mammoet has contracted project director Mr Dailey - who has his own engineering consultancy firm - to oversee the process.

At their home in Rook Lane, his wife Maureen, 50, is waiting for news.

"It is hard work and long hours, with a lot of time away from home, but he has always thrived on things that are a bit different," she said, reflecting on the grim task the recovery team faces.

"At first we talked about it a lot - we have two boys who are the same age as the lads who were on that sub.

"It is very important that they can be sent home, and he is absolutely thrilled to be involved with this job."

The couple lived in Houston, Texas, for three years, but moved back to the North-East in June so Mr Dailey could concentrate on the salvage mission.

"We were in America when we first heard about what happened. Someone asked him if he wanted to be involved in a new project and when they explained what it was, he jumped at the chance," said Mrs Dailey.

Mr Dailey has three children - 28-year-old Carolyn, Jonathon, 25, and Iain, 22, and a three-year-old grandson, James.

Iain, who lives at the family home, said his father had been chosen because of his 24 years' experience in heavy lifting and design engineering.

He said: "It is a great opportunity for him, and this is the sort of high-profile job he has been after all through his career.

"He has a very good reputation for safety - he knows all the guidelines inside out. We were shocked when he told us he was involved in a big military operation."

Divers are using robots to drill holes in the hull of the Kursk and lifting will begin on Thursday, weather permitting.

* For further details log on to www.kursksalvage.com