NF Rescuers Take Preparations in Barents Sea for Bold Monarch 2012 Exercise

Crews of deep-sea submersibles operated by Northern Fleet (NF) Search and Rescue Dept are preparing for participation in the Bold Monarch 2012 international submarine rescue exercise.

Practical training takes place in Varlamov Bay Range, Barents Sea. Operators improve control skills of submersibles at deep waters and dock with coaming of a dummy submarine.

The next phase of the training will be practice on real submarine in the Barents Sea. Rescuers will dock with a submarine lying on the seabed at the depth over 60 meters.

International submarine rescue exercise Bold Monarch 2012 will be held in the Norwegian Sea coming summer. Russian rescuers along with foreign colleagues will practice salvage of “damaged” submarine with crew evacuation by escape vehicle.

Earlier in 2008, NF rescuers took part in similar exercise, and observers from 25 countries highly appreciated actions of Russian specialists.

NF search-and-rescue service operates Prize- and Bester-type manned deep-sea submersibles designed for evacuation of submariners. Titanic hull makes possible to operate at depth down to 1,000 meters. Onboard radioelectronics helps to identify the submersible’s position and detect damaged submarine.

The submersibles are delivered to the site by ships. NF rescue ships Mikhail Rudnitsky and Georgy Titov are used as submersible carriers.

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Subsea World News Staff , March 30, 2012;  Image: Rus Navy