Paul and Rachel Chandler said they were “happy to be alive” yesterday after the Somali pirates who hijacked the British couple’s yacht near the Seychelles last year released them for a ransom.

The retired couple appeared in good health and smiled as they briefly spoke to journalists during a stopover in Mogadishu, on their way to Nairobi from the town of Adado where their 388-day ordeal came to an end earlier yesterday.

“We are feeling very happy to be alive and happy to be here... among decent everyday people,” Rachel Chandler said, adding they were “desperate to see family and friends” and thanking the Somalis who worked for their release.

British Prime Minister David Cameron in a statement welcomed the pair’s release as “tremendous news”, thanked all those who contributed to their freedom and promised to swiftly reunite the couple with their family.

Instead of flying directly from Adado to the safety of Nairobi, where they landed in the evening, the pair left the country of their ordeal from war-torn Mogadishu, one of the world’s most dangerous cities.

After being greeted by officials at Somalia’s presidential palace, which has been routinely attacked by Al Qaeda-inspired insurgents in recent months, Rachel Chandler climbed back onto the plane wearing a red cap and fresh clothes.

Her husband Paul followed her after taking pictures on the tarmac.

They eventually landed at a military base in Nairobi, avoiding media attention, and were expected to be debriefed and undergo medical treatment at the British high commission in Kenya.

In Adado they were given breakfast and a chance to make phone calls and shower, hosted in the compound of Mohamed Aden “Tiiceey”, the president of the local self-styled administration of Himan and Heeb.