Special ships to join search for missing AN-32

The AN-32 IAF aircraft went missing over the Bay of Bengal on Friday.

Special ships of the Geological Survey of India (GSI) and National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) have been requested to join the search operation to locate the missing AN-32 IAF aircraft that went missing over the Bay of Bengal Friday.

The GSI has been asked to deploy its oceanographic research vessel, Samundra Ratnakar, for sub-surface search, while NIOT research vessel, Sagar Nidhi, will conduct the sea bed search.

Besides these, a total of 16 ships and 20 aircraft continued to be deployed in the area for the fifth day on Tuesday.

The Navy is planning to deploy another ship, INS Nirupak, on Wednesday. This ship is fitted with autonomous underwater vehicle and camera, which will add to the underwater search effort.