23 August 2017

News Story: Multinational search for missing US Navy sailors expands in Asia

USS John S. McCain (Image: Wiki Commons)
By: Mike Yeo

MELBOURNE, Australia – The multinational search and rescue for sailors missing from the U.S. Navy destroyer USS John S. McCain following a collision with an oil tanker near Singapore has expanded, even as remains of some of the missing have been located inside the flooded compartments of the ship.

Both Singapore and Malaysia have increased the number of assets taking part in the SAR operations for the 10 sailors initially reported missing following the collision, while Indonesia has also started scouring the waters off its islands closest to where the collision occurred. Australia has also offered an aircraft to assist in the search, according to a media statement from Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority on Tuesday.

The new, expanded search area covers more than 1,100 square miles, with Singapore and the U.S. covering the center of the identified search area while Malaysian and Indonesian assets are covering the north and south.

The collision occurred in waters where there is an unresolved maritime boundary dispute between Singapore and Malaysia, and both have said the collision occurred in their respective territorial waters and have laid claim to leading the search operation. That said, the disagreement has not interfered with the search operation so far.

U.S. Navy MH-60S helicopters and Marine Corps MV-22 tiltrotors from the amphibious assault ship USS America are also involved in the search, while the Republic of Singapore Air Force has deployed a C-130 transport and a Fokker 50 maritime patrol aircraft to join two patrol vessels each from the Singapore Navy and police coast guard already on scene. A Singaporean Super Puma helicopter had earlier evacuated four of the five sailors injured in the collision to a hospital on Monday morning.

Read the full story at DefenseNews