India-Australia bilateral maritime exercise next month

NEW DELHI: India and Australia will undertake their first first bilateral maritime exercise - AUSINDEX - in Visakhapatnam next month.

Three Royal Australian Navy ships and a Royal Australian Air Force AP-3C aircraft are expected to travel to India for the week-long exercise, sources said today.

The ships, including frigate Arunta, tanker Sirius, and a submarine Sheean, are expected to participate with four Indian Navy ships.

The exercise will include table top exercises, scenarios and practical demonstrations ashore, as well as a sea phase.

At sea, surface and anti-submarine warfare and coordinated anti-submarine exercises will be conducted.

India, US and Japan will also undertake a joint naval exercises called Malabar in October.