The completion of the sea acceptance trials, conducted on the east coast of India at Visakhapatnam where the system will be based, marks a key milestone in ensuring there is a comprehensive fly-away submarine rescue capability in place that will safeguard the lives of submariners operating anywhere in the world.
Following on from a similar set of sea trials and training delivered to the Indian Navy’s west coast Submarine Rescue Unit at Mumbai last year, JFD has now completed the rigorous sea trials process for both systems. As a next step in the ongoing trials and acceptance phase of the delivery, JFD will conduct air loading trials of the key equipment into Indian Military IL76 and C17 aircraft, providing the Indian Navy with extensive rescue capabilities and ensuring the highest safety standards are upheld.
Throughout the sea trials process, JFD and the Indian Navy conducted multiple dives of the system’s Deep Search and Rescue Vehicle (DSRV) to both fixed and angled targets, as well as mating exercises with Indian Navy submarines including the safe transfer of personnel, testing all aspects of the DSRV’s capabilities. As part of the trials and acceptance process, a team of more than 30 experts trialled all aspects of the submarine rescue system including conducting multiple dives of the Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) to ensure accuracy in locating targets and conducting surveys, Side Scan Sonar exercises to accurately locate and identify targets, and Transfer Under Pressure operations, including mating to the three deck decompression chambers, to prove the capability of the system in conducting the evacuation of personnel at pressure followed by a safe decompression process. The trials programme proved the ability of the DSRV to operate effectively with multiple India Navy submarines maximising the chances of a successful rescue operation.
Giovanni Corbetta, Managing Director, JFD, commented: ‘The delivery and sea trials acceptance of these two new third generation fly-away submarine rescue systems ensures the provision of a highly advanced rescue capability, not only to the Indian Navy, but – crucially – to submariners operating all over the world.”
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