Lucky-to-be-alive skipper Robert (Bobby) Lambe has been declared 100 per cent fit after being released from the sickbay on board the American warship that rescued him from treacherous seas last week.

The 34-year-old fisherman, who was the only survivor when his boat New Nuts sank last Tuesday night off the coast of Bermuda, was finally allowed to leave his hospital bed on board USNS Comfort on Saturday.

When he was plucked from the Atlantic after 20 hours battling to stay alive in seas with up to 15 foot swells he was suffering from hypothermia and exhaustion.

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However, he said yesterday that he had now made a full recovery.

"I'm out of sickbay now - I have been out for two days and I'm feeling pretty good," said Mr. Lambe.

"I'm 100 percent again. In fact, I think I'm beginning to go the other way - I'm eating too much. I think I have been putting on a few pounds. The food is great."

But although Mr. Lambe said he was feeling physically fit, he said he still felt very downhearted about the loss of his two friends, Micah Battersbee and Alan Edness, who are believed to have gone down with the boat.

And he said he was beginning to get homesick, and was very much looking forward to being able to return to Bermuda.

The USNS Comfort was on her way to the Persian Gulf in preparation for possible war against Iraq when she diverted to assist in the rescue of Mr. Lambe last week.

As a result of the mission, she was unable to alter her schedule, so Mr. Lambe does not know when or where he will be allowed to get off the ship and fly home.

However, he said the crew on board had been tremendous and had helped him through the ordeal, both mentally and physically.

Mr. Lambe, who usually runs five or six miles a day and believes his level of fitness helped him to survive in the ocean for so long, said he had not been out running on deck yet, but he was hoping to put his strength to the test last night.

"I'm supposed to be going to the gym with a couple of friends tonight," he said yesterday.

"I have made a lot of new friends on the ship. Yes, I think I will keep in touch with a few people.

"But I don't know when I will be able to get home. They are saying maybe another week or so. I am starting to get a little bit homesick. I have no idea where we are."

Mr. Lambe said when he was finally able to leave the ship, he believed the British Consul was going to be there to meet him.

"Even when we get there (to port), I have no idea which way home they are going to send me," he added.

"The British Consul is going to be there. I don't have any documentation on me whatsoever. I'm wearing Navy issue clothes right now. What they decide to do is ultimately up to them."