Vietnamese and Indonesian coast guards conduct joint drill on SAR at sea

Sr. Col. Nguyen Minh Khanh (center) directing the drill

Crew-members of Ship CSB 8001 of the Vietnam Coast Guard Region 3 Command and Ship KN Pulau Dana 323 of the Indonesian Coast Guard joined the event. Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff of the Coast Guard Region 3 Command Senior Colonel Nguyen Minh Khanh commanded the joint drill.

The simulated situation was that while on patrol, the two coast guard ships received an SOS signal from a ship on fire. Troops of the CSB 8001 and KN Pulau Dana 323 quickly determined the coordinates, contacted each other over a common frequency, and promptly approached the distressed ship and coordinated to stamp out the fire.

The two ships extinguishing the fire

After the fire was put under control, the crew-members noticed that an individual fell overboard, and they quickly pinpointed the location and deployed high-speed rescue boats to reach the victim. Subsequently, crew-members brought the rescued individual aboard for first aid.

Thanks to the close coordination and high determination from the officers and crew-members of both sides, the drill was successfully conducted, fulfilling its set objectives.

Approaching the victim

Col.  Khanh evaluated that this practical activity serves as an opportunity for both coast guard forces to meet and learn from each other to improve their capabilities in handling various situations while conducting search and rescue, fire prevention, and response operations at sea.

Providing emergency aid for the victim

This is also an opportunity for officials and soldiers from both countries to gain additional experience in ensuring security and safety, as well as responding to incidents at sea; to enhance their pro-activeness, creativity, resilience, and command capabilities in carrying out assigned missions.

Translated by Tran Hoai