Joint Search and Rescue Communication Exercise with Indonesia's Rescue Coordination Center

On the morning of November 6, 2024, the Vietnam Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (Vietnam MRCC), under the Vietnam Maritime Administration, conducted a collaborative search and rescue communication exercise (SARCOMEX) with Indonesia’s Rescue Coordination Center (RCC). The drill was held across two main locations in Hanoi and Da Nang on the Vietnamese side and in Jakarta and Surabaya on the Indonesian side. The exercise involved coordinating responses to two simulated emergency scenarios.

Scenario 1: At 10:00 AM on November 6, 2024, the Vietnamese-flagged cargo vessel, Hai Phong, en route from Hai Phong Port to Surabaya, Indonesia, reported that a crew member had fallen overboard at coordinates 06-07S 112-09E, approximately 42 nautical miles southwest of Surabaya. The crew immediately conducted an onboard search but was unable to locate the missing crew member. The captain of Hai Phong (played by an MRCC Vietnam officer) requested assistance from Indonesia’s RCC to aid in the search and rescue efforts.

Scenario 2: At 10:30 AM, the Indonesia-flagged cargo ship Bahtera Satu was reported to have sunk in Vietnamese waters at coordinates 16-26N 110-27E, about 120 nautical miles northeast of Da Nang, while en route from Jakarta, Indonesia, to Hainan, China. The ship’s 12 crew members abandoned the vessel and boarded two life rafts. The vessel’s captain requested urgent assistance from MRCC Vietnam for search and rescue operations.

Using English in accordance with international search and rescue (SAR) protocols, the two centres communicated effectively via phone and email to coordinate the response to these simulated scenarios. The drill proceeded smoothly and successfully as planned, with Indonesia’s RCC expressing high appreciation for Vietnam MRCC’s capabilities and coordination.

Since the beginning of the year, Vietnam MRCC has conducted eight international SARCOMEX with foreign counterparts, including the United States, India, Singapore, Thailand, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, and Indonesia.