Indonesian Warships Pay Tribute to Crew of Sunken Submarine

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Several Indonesian warships moored at East Java's Tanjungwangi Port and lowered the national flag to half-mast on Monday to honor 53 submariners who were on board KRI Nanggala-402 when it sank near Bali.

The warships included KRI Bontang, KRI Oswald Siahaan, KRI Rimau, KRI Bawean, KRI Rigel-933, which located the missing submarine using a multi-beam sonar and magnometer.

Not only warships, but the Indonesian Navy's Marine SAR command post for KRI Nanggala-402 at Tanjungwangi Port in Banyuwangi district, East Java, and the Taftib marine battalion in Surabaya also hoisted the Red and White flag at half-mast.

Earlier, in Jakarta, House of Representatives (DPR) speaker Puan Maharani had made an earnest request to lawmakers to fly the national flag at half-staff at their residences as a mark of respect for the 53 submariners who died on duty.

Maharani also ordered the hoisting of the national flag at half-staff at the parliament building to honor the sailors who were on board KRI Nanggala-402 when itsank in the waters north of Bali Island on April 21, 2021.

Contact with the German-made submarine was lost while it was preparing for a torpedo drill.

Indonesian Navy’s Chief of Staff, Admiral Yudo Margono, confirmed that the submarine had sunk after several of its components were retrieved during the search mission.

"The components (that have been found) are torpedo tube-straighteners, coolant pipes wrap, a bottle of periscope lubricating oil, prayer mats, and heat-retaining sponges," Margono disclosed at a recent press conference.

Read: Govt Guarantees Education for Children of KRI Nanggala-402 Crew

ANTARA