All 14 Indian mariners aboard a disabled vessel in the Northern Arabian Sea have been rescued following a multi-agency search and rescue operation involving the U.S. Navy, Omani authorities and a merchant vessel that diverted to assist.
The Indian-flagged dhow Virat 1 reportedly suffered engine failure while operating off the coast of Oman, forcing its crew to abandon the vessel and take refuge in a liferaft.
Omani authorities coordinated the rescue effort, calling on nearby vessels and international assets to assist.
According to the U.S. Navy, a distress call from the stranded mariners was received at around 2 a.m. EST on 14 June. A U.S. Navy P-8 maritime patrol aircraft was the first asset to reach the scene and deployed a search-and-rescue package, including a life raft, which the crew successfully boarded.
The UAE-based cargo vessel MV Jabal Ali 9, which had diverted from its voyage, subsequently arrived and rescued 11 of the mariners from the raft.
The remaining three crew members were recovered by an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter operating from the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.
The Navy said rough seas caused the life raft carrying the trio to capsize shortly before the helicopter crew reached them.
“The three mariners were transported to M/V Jabal Ali 9, where they were in good health and spirits,” the Navy said.
The guided-missile destroyer USS Michael Murphy also responded to the distress call as part of the rescue effort.
The Embassy of India in Oman initially reported that 11 crew members had been rescued while efforts continued to locate the remaining three.
A subsequent update confirmed that all 14 mariners had been safely recovered.
“All 14 crew members have been rescued and are presently onboard Jabal Ali 9 heading to Mumbai. The crew members are safe and in good health,” the embassy said.
The successful rescue comes at a sensitive moment in regional maritime security. Tensions between Washington and New Delhi have intensified following the deaths of three Indian seafarers aboard the tanker Settebello during a U.S. blockade enforcement operation in the Gulf of Oman last week.
India has formally protested the incident, with External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar telling U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio that “such lethal actions against commercial shipping are not justified”.
The United States has defended its enforcement activities, maintaining that commercial vessels operating in the region must comply with instructions issued by U.S. forces implementing sanctions and restrictions on Iranian oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.