A man has been rescued from a partially submerged boat in the Atlantic Ocean, 12 miles off the coast of Florida.

The boater, 25-year-old Charles Gregory, had been missing at sea for about 35 hours in the ocean after going on an early morning fishing trip, his father told CNN.

His family contacted officials after he failed to return to a boat ramp in St Augustine, Florida.

The US Coast Guard said they eventually rescued him after a search crew in a plane flying overhead spotted him sitting in his jon boat - a type of small, flat-bottomed fishing boat.

His father Raymond Gregory told CNN that a wave had capsized his son's boat and he began drifting far from shore. He said Charles had lost his life jacket and mobile phone and had seen sharks and been stung by jellyfish.

"He was scared to death. He said he's had more conversations with God in that 30 hours than he's had his whole life."