Navy chief of staff Adm. Yudo Margono said on Thursday the oxygen supply in the event of a blackout, as might be the case of KRI Nanggala, would last 72 hours. With the clock ticking, every second will count in this life-saving operation.

Singapore, Malaysia and Australia have responded to Indonesia’s call for help while other nations, including the United States, Germany, France, Turkey, India and Russia have offered assistance.

A slight hope arose on Thursday as Navy ship KRI Pulau Rimau detected a high magnetic object at about 100 meters below the sea surface, according to Yudo. Previously oil slicks were spotted in several different locations.

As we hope the rescue team will find the submarine as soon as possible, the accident serves as yet another reminder of the need to continue modernizing our military capability, particularly that of our naval force given the country’s vast maritime territory along with its rich resources that we must protect.

KRI Nanggala, which was built in Germany in 1977 and joined the Navy’s fleet in 1981 and underwent a two-year refit in South Korea, is one of only five submarines the country operates. Each of the submarines bears a heavy responsibility safeguarding 650,000 square kilometers of Indonesian waters.

In terms of its submarine fleet, Indonesia, dubbed the world’s largest archipelagic state, lags behind fellow ASEAN member countries. Close neighbor Singapore reportedly operates 20 submarines, while Vietnam has six. Asian giant China has 79, the biggest fleet in the continent.

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