Navy vessel picks up beacon signals of missing Coast Guard plane

A Navy ship searching for the missing Dornier aircraft is reported to have picked up beacon signals from around the place from where the Coast Guard aircraft went missing off the Chennai coast on Monday with three crew members on board.

INS Sandhayak, one of the 10 Naval vessels participating in the sub-surface search, detected intermittent transmission on 37.5 KHz, likely to be from the sonar locator beacon (SLB) of the missing aircraft, an official statement from the Coast Guard said.

The signals were picked up south of Puducherry, between Port Novo and Karaikal, close to where the Coast Guard's aircraft is said to have disappeared.

"INS Sandhyak undertaking sub-surface search, detected intermittent transmission of 37.5 KHz, likely to be from the Sonar Locator Beacon (SLB) of the missing aircraft," a statement from the defence ministry said today. It also said that "a multi coloured sheen of oil in concentric circles was sighted, which indicated oozing of oil," adding that the "sample of oil has been sent to the laboratory for analysis.''

The defence ministry release said search for missing aircraft continued uninterrupted by Coast Guard and Naval ships and aircraft for the fourth consecutive day.

INS Sandhayak, a hydrographic survey vessel of the Navy, is using its underwater detection equipment to detect any transmission from the Sonar Locater Beacon of the aircraft.

Aerial search by Paramotors through Coastal Security Group of Tamil Nadu was undertaken 30 km south of Cuddalore from 1330 - 1500 hrs of 11 June along the coast over marshy mangroves, which is not approachable by sea.

INS Sindhudhvaj, a submarine of the Indian Navy is expected to join the search by afternoon today.

Assistance of the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA) has also been sought for analysis of the satellite imagery of the area, for possible location of the aircraft.

The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad and the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai are also helping with the search.

Besides, a team from Omcar Foundation, Thanjavur has embarked onboard 'ICGS Sarang' for undertaking underwater photography and acoustic survey, the release added.