MOSCOW, January 1. /TASS/. Russian Ministry of Emergencies has dispatched rescuers to Indonesia to help in the search for a Malaysian jet which crashed on December 28, ministry’s spokesman Aleksander Drobyshevsky told TASS.
“At Indonesia’s request the Russian government decided to send a group of rescuers to give aid in a search-and-rescue operation in the Malaysian jet crash area,” he said.
The A320-200 airliner on the way from Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore was carrying 155 passengers and seven crewmembers.
Two Russian emergency jets Ilyushin Il-76 and Be-200 departed for Indonesia, Drobyshevsky said. “The jets will deliver 72 rescuers from state-run central aero-mobile rescue unit Tsentrospas and high-risk rescue operation centre Leader as well as high-tech equipment, including a new-generation remote-controlled deepwater vehicle Folkon designed for the search in offshore or internal waters at depths of up to 1,000 metres,” the ministry’s spokesman said. The jets also deliver an acoustic echo sounder, compressor equipment, boats and engines for them, diving equipment and equipment needed for examining underwater objects, unmanned aerial vehicles to search for the missing airliner.
“With the underwater complex, which includes side-scanning sonars, sound surveillance system and a remotely-controlled vehicle, rescue specialists have an opportunity to examine underwater objects at depths of up to 300 metres. This complex helps monitoring dives during underwater technical operations in complicated conditions,” Drobyshevsky said.
After the reconnaissance in the search area of the missing jet and determining the scale of search-and-rescue operations two emergency jets Il-76 with helicopters on board which can make the search will be put on a three-hour alert for a flight.
Rescuers who went to Indonesia have a vast search-and-rescue experience in many countries on the water surface and underwater. “They gained deserved recognition among search-and-rescue units in many countries a long time ago. For instance, the Tsentrospas formation passed international certification on criteria set by the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG). They were granted the status of a unit able to respond to major emergencies in extremely difficult conditions,” Drobyshevsky said.
Emergencies Ministry’s rescuers have already participated in similar search for a medium-haul passenger aircraft Sukhoi SuperJet-100 in this region in May 2012. Amphibious aircraft BE-200ChS and rescuers were also fighting fires in Indonesia in most hazardous areas in the area of islands Sumatra and Kalimantan in 2006.