The navy said it was investigating whether the submarine lost power during a dive and could not carry out emergency procedures as it descended to a depth of 600-700 metres, well beyond its survivable limits.Īn object with “high magnetic force” was spotted “floating” at a depth of 50-100 metres, Margono had said, and an aerial search had spotted an oil spill near the submarine’s last location. Search helicopters and ships had left Bali and a naval base in Java heading to the area on Friday where contact was lost with the 44-year-old vessel on Wednesday as it prepared to conduct a torpedo drill, with the head of the Indonesian submarine fleet aboard.Īn American reconnaissance plane, P-8 Poseidon, landed early on Saturday to join the search, along with 20 Indonesian ships, a sonar-equipped Australian warship and four Indonesian aircraft.Īn air force pilot said six tonnes of equipment had been flown to a base to help with the search, including underwater balloons to help lift a vessel.
