Growing fears for missing Indonesian submarine KRI Nanggala 402 as oxygen supply runs out
There are grave fears for 53 submariners aboard the missing Indonesian submarine KRI Nanggala 402, with oxygen supplies running out. There are growing fears for a submarine crew that went missing with 53 people aboard off the coast of Bali. Authorities lost contact with Indonesian submarine KRI Nanggala 402 after it submerged early Wednesday during a torpedo drill.
The crew could have enough oxygen until early Saturday, but hope is fading as rescuers continue to search waters near where it disappeared. An oil spill has been located near where the submarine was thought to have submerged, pointing to possible fuel-tank damage. “There’s time until Saturday around 3 am (1 am AEST). Let’s hope we can find them before then,” Navy Chief of Staff Yudo Margono told reporters.
Defense analysts have warned that the vessel could have already broken into pieces if it had sunk to depths believed to be as much as 700 meters. That is well below what it was built to withstand.
Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo asked his country to pray for the crew, while Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton said initial reports raised the prospect of a “tragedy”.
The German-built submarine was scheduled to conduct live torpedo exercises when it asked for diving permission. It lost contact shortly afterward.
Search teams were focused on an area around the oil slick. The navy said the vessel’s exact location had yet to be pinpointed, with warships and helicopters assisting in the hunt.
RACE AGAINST TIME
Damage to the submarine’s fuel tank could spell big trouble.
“If your tank’s cracked, it is not very good news,” said Collin Koh, a naval affairs specialist and research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.
“Because we are talking about the submarine’s pressure hull being breached. So it could cause potential flooding.” Neighboring Singapore and Malaysia have already dispatched ships expected to arrive in the coming days, including the city-state’s MV Swift Rescue — a submarine rescue vessel.
India said Thursday it had sent a ship to assist in the hunt, while the United States, Australia, France, and Germany are among other nations that have offered help.
Indonesia’s military has so far refused to comment about whether the decades-old submarine, carrying 53 crew, was over capacity. But it has been said the submarine might have sunk to vast depths after a blackout that left its team powerless to control the vessel.
“There are too many unknowns right now,” said Curie Maharani, a defense expert at Indonesia’s Bina Nusantara University. “But we know it’s a race against time.” Frank Owen, secretary of the Submarine Institute of Australia, warned that rescuing any surviving crew quickly would be near impossible.
“If the submarine is on the seabed, and if it is in the depth of water that is there, there is little they can do toget the people out,” he told Australian media.
