Article Posted on : - Jun 16, 2011

Mooring lighter KIL-158.

MADRID (BNS): For the first time Russian Navy took part in a joint submarine rescue exercise ‘Bold Monarch 2011’ with NATO countries in Spain.

Russia participated with its Black Sea Fleet (BSF) assets – rescue ship Epron, salvage tug Shakhter, mooring lighter KIL-158 and diesel submarine Alrosa.

Over 2,000 sailors from 13 nations had joined the exercise at off the south-eastern tip of Spain.

The triennial exercise is conducted to test the ability of allied teams including UK-based NATO Submarine Rescue System (NSRS).

Submarine rescue vehicles from Italy, the USA, Russia and Sweden all deployed to the waters off Cartagena, plus the Faslane-based Anglo-French-Norwegian NSRS.

They were joined by specialist divers and hyperbaric medical teams from France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Britain, charged with coping with challenging deep sea illnesses such as decompression.

The next exercise Bold Monarch 2014 is scheduled to be conducted in Polish waters.