Merchant ship en route to Mangaluru hit by drone, catches fire; crews safe

A commercial tanker, MV Chem Pluto transiting through the Arabian Sea on Saturday reported an explosion and caught fire when it was hit by a drone, prompting the Indian Coast Guard and Indian Navy to deploy their ships and aircraft to investigate the incident on the high seas.

An Indian Coast Guard ship ICGS Vikram had its rendezvous with the merchant ship, which was making its way to Mumbai, officials said. The vessel carrying chemicals and en route to New Mangalore was located 200 nautical miles southwest of Veraval off Gujarat when it was hit.

“The Indian Coast Guard Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), Mumbai received information regarding the fire onboard MV Chem Pluto. The merchant ship with 20 Indian and one Vietnamese Crew was reportedly attacked by a suspected drone strike or aerial platform,” Commandant Niranjan Pratap Singh, Indian Coast Guard spokesperson at the headquarters said in a statement.

The merchant vessel commenced its Voyage from Al Jubail in Saudi Arabia on Dec 19 and was bound for New Mangalore port with arrival on Dec 25.

The MRCC established real time communication with the vessel’s agent and ascertained nil loss of life and assured all assistance. It was also learnt that the vessel fire had been doused by the crew.

The vessel has started making way towards Mumbai post undertaking damage assessment and repairs on its power generation systems. It sought escort assistance due to steering issues and ICGS Vikram is escorting the ship during its passage. The vessel is likely to enter Mumbai tonight.

Earlier in the day, the Indian Navy was alerted by the UK Maritime Trade Organisation, which reported the attack by an unmanned aerial vehicle and the subsequent fire.

While the identity of the drone remains unknown at this point, the strike happened amidst the strike by Houthi militants based in Yemen targeting the commercial shipping vessels sailing through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. The tanker was sailing with a Liberian flag.

The Houthis have been carrying out drone and missile strikes on commercial vessels in the Bab-el-Mandab strait – the southern entrance to the Red Sea – in response to Israel’s aerial strikes and ground offensives in the Gaza Strip. This may be the first incident of a drone strike in the Arabian Sea.

An Indian P-8I maritime naval patrol aircraft ascertained the safety of the vessel and its crew, sources said. The aircraft flew overhead and established contact with the vessel. "The aircraft ascertained the safety of the vessel and its crew," said an official.

The navy has also dispatched a frontline warship to ensure the safety of the cargo vessel. From the Coast Guard’s side, ICGS Vikram is sailing towards MV Chem Pluto while one of the Coast Guard’s Dornier surveillance aircraft also established communication with the distressed vessel.

As per the inputs received here, the fire has been extinguished but it has affected its functioning. Officials said the power generation system of the ship was functional.

In a brief statement, the UKMTO said it "received a report of an attack by the Uncrewed Aerial System on a vessel causing an explosion and fire. The incident (happened) 200 NM South West of Veraval, India. The fire was extinguished and there were no casualties. The authorities are investigating.”

The UKMTO further advised the vessels to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity.

The ICGS Vikram was deployed on the patrol of the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone when it was directed towards the merchant ship in distress.