Chennai: A massive coordinated search operation has been launched along the shoreline of Tamil Nadu after a Coast Guard aircraft with three crew members on board went missing on Monday night. The Dornier aircraft CG-791, which was inducted barely last year, took off from Chennai at 5.30 pm on Monday with Deputy Commandment Vidyasagar (pilot), Commandment M. K. Soni (co-pilot) and Deputy Commandment Subhash Suresh (navigator) on board.
The flight was on a routine surveillance mission along coastal Tamil Nadu and Palk bay. On Monday 9.23 pm, the aircraft made contact with air traffic authorities in Tiruchy, stating its position was about 16 nautical miles off the coast of Chidambaram, somewhere between Cuddalore and Karaikal. Subsequently all contact with the flight was lost.
Inspector General S.P. Sharma, Eastern region commander, Coast Guard, said the personnel on board had told ATC that their mission had been completed and they were on their way back. “All three were all highly qualified and well-trained. We are confident of locating them and the aircraft as early as possible,” he said adding that Coast Guard staff is in touch with family members of the missing personnel.
Five Coast Guard ships, four naval ships along with aircraft of the two forces from Kochi and Chennai, including the latest maritime surveillance aircraft P-8i have been pressed into the search and rescue (SAR) mission. By Tuesday evening, search was particularly intensified off the coast of Cuddalore after local fishermen reported to police about ‘some burning objects’ falling into the sea. Operation Hamla, a 48-hour anti-security drill, organized twice a year post Mumbai terror attacks, was to start at 6 am on Tuesday but has been postponed following this incident.
