| HK CAD, PLA hold joint search, rescue exercise |
HONG KONG, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Civil Aviation Department (CAD) of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Garrison of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) successfully completed an annual search and rescue exercise here Thursday.
Code-named "SAREX 2006," the two-day exercise consisted of a long-range exercise on Oct. 25 over the South China Sea, 80 nautical miles south of Hong Kong, and a short-range exercise on Thursday in Port Shelter near Sai Kung in the New Territories of Hong Kong.
The exercise also involved Government Flying Service (GFS), Marine Department, Marine Police, Fire Services Department (FSD), Civil Aid Service, and U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy and U.S. Coastguard. And for the first time this year, the China Maritime Search and Rescue Center (CMSARC) also sent a vessel and a helicopter to Hong Kong to take part in the exercise.
"The exercise is held annually to strengthen co-operation and co-ordination in Search and Rescue (SAR) operations among the (CAD) department, PLA, other SAR units of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, and if possible with mainland and overseas SAR authorities," a spokesman for CAD said.
"It provides air traffic controllers, aircrew and other SAR units with continued training and familiarization with search and rescue techniques," he added.
The Thursday operation simulated a light executive jet making a forced landing in the sea off Sai Kung. All 12 people on board were rescued through the joint efforts of rescue boats and helicopters of PLA, CMSARC, GFS, Marine Police and FSD.
Wednesday's long-range exercise simulated a passenger airliner crashing 80 nautical miles south of Hong Kong. Three search aircraft, one each from the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Coast Guard and GFS were deployed to look for the airliner which was located in an hour.
"In accordance with Annex 12 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation, the CAD organizes annual search and rescue exercises to enhance the department's search and rescue capabilities," the spokesman said.
"The exercises also give SAR experts in the region an opportunity to communicate and to exchange the latest SAR techniques," he said.
According to CAD, more than 130 Search and Rescue experts from the Chinese mainland, the United States and other Southeast Asian countries including Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, watched the exercise.
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