New Delhi: The Indian Navy swiftly responded to a distress alert from the Iranian frigate IRIS Dena, deploying aircraft and vessels to support search-and-rescue efforts in the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka after the warship sank following a torpedo strike by a US submarine.
The alert reached the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) in Colombo in the early hours of March 4, according to information relayed by Sri Lankan authorities. The vessel was positioned approximately 20 nautical miles west of Galle, placing it within Sri Lanka’s designated search-and-rescue zone.
Upon receiving the notification, the Indian Navy acted without delay. A long-range maritime patrol aircraft was dispatched around 1000 hours on March 4 to strengthen the operations already underway under Sri Lankan Navy coordination. A second aircraft, equipped to drop life rafts, was kept on immediate standby.
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The sail training ship INS Tarangini, which was operating in the vicinity, was rerouted to the incident area and reached the search zone by 1600 hours the same day. The survey vessel INS Ikshak sailed from Kochi to provide further support and remains active in the region, assisting in the effort to locate any remaining missing crew members as part of the wider humanitarian response.
Coordination between the Indian Navy and Sri Lankan maritime authorities has continued closely throughout the operation.
The IRIS Dena, a Moudge-class frigate, had just completed a multinational naval exercise in Visakhapatnam hosted by the Indian Navy and was returning to Iran when the incident took place. The frigate sank after being struck by a torpedo from a US submarine in international waters about 40 nautical miles from Galle.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi strongly condemned the attack on platform X, calling it an “atrocity at sea” against a ship he described as a “guest of India’s Navy” carrying nearly 130 sailors, and stating that the United States would “bitterly regret” setting such a precedent.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth later confirmed the submarine’s action at a Pentagon briefing, describing the strike as a “quiet death” delivered by torpedo in the context of the ongoing conflict involving the US, Israel, and Iran.
Sri Lanka, which has maintained neutrality in the wider regional tensions, has reiterated its commitment to fulfilling international maritime rescue responsibilities within its zone. Reports indicate that a second Iranian warship, IRIS Bushehr, was approaching Sri Lankan waters the following day.
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