Indian Navy rescues nine sailors from capsized oil tanker off Oman

The ship was carrying 13 Indian and three Sri Lankan crew members

Nine of the 16 crew members who were missing after an oil tanker capsized off Oman have been found alive. Indian Navy

The Indian Navy said on Wednesday it had rescued nine of the missing 16 crew members of an oil tanker that capsized off the coast of Oman.

The navy said its warship, the INS Teg, had rescued eight Indian citizens and one Sri Lankan.

That would leave five Indian and two Sri Lankan crew members still unaccounted for, two days after the ship capsized.

The Comoros-flagged MV Prestige Falcon capsized about 45km south-east of Ras Madrakah in Oman, the Indian Navy said.

The tanker was heading to the Yemeni port of Aden when it overturned off Duqm in Oman – a major port for oil and gas mining projects – south-east of Ras Madrakah on Monday.

The search for the tanker has been complicated by difficult weather.

"The Search & Rescue by Indian & Omani assets is being undertaken in challenging weather conditions as the area is experiencing rough sea and strong winds. Indian Navy's Long Range Maritime Reconnaissance aircraft P8I is also assisting in search for survivors," the Indian Navy said in a statement.

A navy source told The National it had sent a ship and a reconnaissance aircraft for the search mission in co-ordination with Omani authorities on Wednesday.

The country's Maritime Security Centre said the vessel remained “submerged, inverted”. Oman had immediately launched a search and rescue operation.

The Omani Government Communications Centre on Tuesday said the oil tanker had sunk.

“One of our ships which is deployed in the area for Operation Sankalp … was diverted and carrying out search and rescue operations and this is being done with the co-ordination of Omani authorities,” the Indian Navy official said.

“One long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft has also been deployed for locating survivors. Till this morning, there was no input on any survivor being located.”

The vessel is a 117-metre oil products tanker built in 2007, shipping data showed. Such small tankers are typically used for short coastal voyages.

The ship is owned by United Arab Emirates-based Netco FZE, according to the Equasis marine database.

The port of Duqm is on Oman's south-west coast, close to the sultanate's main oil and gas projects. These include a major oil refinery in Duqm's vast industrial zone, Oman's biggest single economic project.

India's navy plays an active role in rescue and anti-piracy missions across the Indian Ocean and up to the east coast of Africa.

In January, an Indian Navy patrol vessel intercepted an Iranian-flagged fishing vessel that had been hijacked by suspected pirates off the eastern coast of Somalia.

Indian navy commandos also boarded the Liberian-flagged merchant vessel Lila Norfolk in early January after it was ambushed by pirates off Somalia. All 21 crew members, including 15 Indian citizens, were rescued.