Amputee David Watts had to be rescued by Wiltshire Air Ambulance when his new mobility scooter broke down on a cycle path between Chippenham and Lacock.

The 53-year-old from Little Englands had rented the scooter for only six days when it's battery died along the isolated path two miles from his home last Wednesday.

His own mobility scooter was in for repair and he had hired the other one at £150 a week with his disability benefit.

The air ambulance took just 45 minutes to launch and track down Mr Watts using sophisticated imaging equipment onboard.

Earlier, a friend had been travelling along the path with Mr Watts, but had decided to go home.

The frienD had disappeared around a corner and out of earshot by the time Mr Watts realised he was in trouble. Mr Watts has been unable to walk since a car crash in 1976.

The crash, in which he was driving, left him in a coma for three months with a crushed spine, broken back and punctured lungs.

His legs were amputated between 1999 and 2000 and he has used wheelchairs and mobility aids ever since.

He said: "I was just stuck there in the middle of nowhere.

"I felt really daft and annoyed that a scooter I had only a few days had clapped out on me."

Luckily a friend who knew he was using the path called Chippenham police and the air ambulance was launched to find the stranded man.

A cyclist using the path walked out into a field and directed the helicopter to where the stricken pensioner was.

Mr Watts said: "They were so quick and efficient but I felt sick that it had come to calling them out.

"I know we're very lucky round here to have an air ambulance and I know it relies on donations to keep going, so I just felt sick that I had caused all that trouble."

Paramedics and police pushed the amputee to the nearest farmhouse from where an ambulance drove him home.

Paramedic Richard Miller of Wiltshire Air Ambulance said: "We were glad we found him so quickly otherwise he may have been stuck there all night.

"We are thrilled that we managed to locate Mr Watts with the help of our colleagues on the road and with Chippenham police - it was a great bit of team work."