S. Korea to host multinational submarine rescue drill

South Korea and five other countries including the U.S. and Japan will hold a joint submarine rescue drill later in the month, Navy officials said Tuesday.

The “Pacific Reach 2016” drill, which will take place from May 25 to June 3 in the South Sea, is held once every three years and simulates a situation in which a submarine requires a search and rescue operation.

The six participating countries -- which include Australia, Singapore and Malaysia -- will take part with their crew and equipment, including a deep submergence rescue vehicle and a pressurized rescue module.

The naval forces of each countries will train how to communicate and cooperate on the missions, and learn about the rescue procedures they will each have to follow on such joint missions.

The participating vessels will start arriving at the navy port in the southern port city of Jinhae from May 23, and will commence field training in the waters of Jejudo Island from May 29 to June 2. They will then move to the Jeju Civilian-Military Complex Port for a post-training evaluation and a closing ceremony.

“The Pacific Reach 2016 is a humanitarian rescue drill to ensure that in case of submarine-involved accidents, neighboring countries can participate to rescue the crew as quickly as possible,” said a Navy official.

It was first conducted in Singapore in 2007, biennially then, and has been conducted once every three years since 2007. South Korea had previously hosted the drill in 2004.

By Yoon Min-sik (minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)