Aircraft crash, ship fire scenario tests maritime rescue readiness off Paradip coast

Bhubaneswar, Oct 8 (UNI) A passenger aircraft crash at sea involving 228 people and a container vessel formed the centrepiece of a major mass-rescue drill off Paradip on Thursday, as the Indian Coast Guard tested the country's preparedness to respond to complex maritime emergencies. The 12th National Maritime Search and Rescue Exercise (SAREX-2026), conducted under the aegis of the National Maritime Search and Rescue Board, brought together the Coast Guard, Navy, Air Force and multiple civil and state agencies to demonstrate a coordinated response to a simulated simultaneous aeronautical and maritime distress emergency. The exercise was reviewed by Coast Guard…