THE mother of rescued American teenage sailor Abby Sunderland has said the family cannot afford to reimburse the Australian Government for the cost of saving her daughter which could top $300,000.

"What price would you put on a child's life?" Maryanne Sunderland said yesterday when questioned about compensation.

"The full cost of chartering an Airbus would be so high, you'd think they (Australian rescue authorities) would have to work with the US government for that.

"We're not wealthy people."

Late yesterday, with the 16-year-old Californian safely aboard the Ile De La Reunion fishing vessel which picked her up 2000 nautical miles off the Western Australian coast, a spokesman for Transport Minister Anthony Albanese said the full cost of the rescue mission was yet to be worked out.

But it included her delivery to La Reunion, an island east of Madagascar, off the east coast of Africa.

"The expectation is that she will be transferred to La Reunion as part of the search and rescue operation," he said. "From that point the family or US consulate would take responsibility."

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority's Rescue Coordination Centre took over the rescue of Ms Sunderland from the French on Friday, after her stricken yacht Wild Eyes drifted into Australia's search and rescue region.

A Qantas A330 Airbus with spotters on board located the yacht later that day. Two Australian Defence Force APC3 Orians were also deployed.

It was also revealed yesterday the American Sailing Association refused to sponsor Ms Sunderland's solo circumnavigation bid, citing concerns about the timing of her trip.

Ms Sunderland has hit out at her critics.

"There are plenty of things people can think of to blame for my situation; my age, the time of year and many more," she wrote on her blog on Saturday. "The truth is, I was in a storm and you don't sail through the Indian Ocean without getting in at least one storm.

"Storms are part of the deal when you set out to sail around the world. As for age, since when does age create gigantic waves and storms?"

The young woman has vowed to attempt another circumnavigation.

Originally published as 'We can't pay Abby rescue costs'