Spanish Navy conducts sub rescue drills during exercise Cartago 2015

This training activity will be conducted in NATO's Trident Juncture 2015 from 3 October to 6 November and will see the participation of more than 30,000 people from 30 nations.

Staff, Naval-technology.com
11 September 2015

The Spanish Navy is performing submarine rescue drills as part of the exercise Cartago 2015 off the coast of Murcia, enhancing the crew's ability to address emergency situations.
Co-organised with state rescue and maritime security agency (SASEMAR), the exercise is also aimed to improve coordination at sea between the Spanish Navy ships and Public Administration units.
This five-day exercise will see the deployment of a damaged submarine to simulate an accident and also the naval and air units to rescue the crew.
Exercise Cartago 2015 will involve the submarine 'Galerna', the rescue ship 'Neptuno', the minehunter 'Turia', the OPV 'Vencedora', along with a special naval warfare detachment from the US Marine Corps.
Other participating organisations in the exercise include the Fleet, Submarine and Central Naval Staffs, and the international submarine escape and rescue liaison office (ISMERLO).
The state maritime security agency will participate with the rescue ship Clara Campoamor and an aircraft.
The exercise will see two rescue phases, including ventex and podex. The first consists of blowing air into the
submarine from the surface, while the second involves transferring different materials to the crew of the submarine by means of specific containers.
The submarine's crew will be later rescued through the aft escape hatch. The final stage of the exercise will include the refloating of the submarine by a group of divers from the rescue ship 'Neptuno'.
In addition, the Spanish Navy will send approximately 2,650 servicemen, 12 surface ships, a submarine, four helicopters, two fixed-wing aircraft and Marine Corps units to participate in the Nato deployment, Trident Juncture 2015.
This training activity will be conducted from 3 October to 6 November and will see the participation of more than 30,000 people from 30 nations.
The exercise is aimed to train and certify a high readiness force to rapidly and efficiently deploy wherever required.