The Broughty Ferry lifeboat was called to the aid of a kite surfer who had gotten into difficulty in the water off St Andrews on Monday evening.
The crew of the Ferry boat were called to assist at St Andrews shortly after 6pm.
A kite-surfer had been blown offshore by strong winds while out to sea, and an RNLI Lifeguard from the local beach patrol used his paddle-board to initially see if the surfer required assistance.
It is understood the kite surfer might have jettisoned his equipment after getting into bother in the choppy waters, which was later recovered by the lifeboat crew and the man was able to return to the shore safely.
A dogwalker who was on the beach when it happened said she saw a number of coastguard and lifeguard officials standing on the shore, while the large lifeboat could be seen out to sea.
She said: “At first I saw the lifeguard and some men in blue drysuits standing on the beach, and thought it might be an exercise or a drill.
“I then heard that the lifeguard had paddled out to see if the male kite surfer was alright.
“He had apparently got himself stuck so he abandoned his kite.
“I think someone onshore called the coastguard, not the lifeguards themselves.
“It looked like the person had been blown or swept out towards Tentsmuir, as a small rib did go off in that direction at one point.”
