Indonesia navy searching for submarine with 53 aboard

JAKARTA: Indonesian navy ships on Thursday scoured a patch of ocean off the coast of Bali searching for a submarine with 53 crew aboard after losing contact with the vessel during military exercises.

The German-built KRI Nanggala 402 was scheduled to do live torpedo exercises when it asked for permission to dive early Wednesday morning, authorities said.

"After permission was given according to the procedure, the submarine lost contact and could not be reached," the defence ministry said.

A helicopter looking for the missing vessel spotted an oil spill in waters where the submarine was thought to have submerged, it added.

The navy said it has not pinpointed the submarine's location but narrowed the search down based on the spill.

The oil "could indicate damage on the body" of the submarine, navy spokesman Julius Widjojono told MetroTV.

Two warships and some 400 personnel were sent out to hunt for the sub, while a third vessel was deployed from the capital Jakarta.

The navy also sent out an international distress signal and "several countries have responded and are ready to help including Singapore, Australia and India," the defence ministry said.

There were 53 crew aboard the vessel, which was believed to be in waters about 700 metres (2,300 feet) deep.

Indonesia, which has been moving to upgrade its military equipment in recent years, has five German and South Korean-built submarines in its fleet.

The 1,300-tonne KRI Nanggala 402 was built in 1978, according to a government website.

The vessel is a Type 209 diesel-electric attack submarine that has served in more than a dozen navies around the world, including Greece, India, Argentina and Turkey, over the past half century.

"It's a classic submarine," French navy vice admiral Antoine Beaussant told AFP.

It had a safety descent level of 250 metres, and "if it went down to rest at 700 metres the likelihood is it would have broken up," he said.