KOCHI: Three tall ships set off from Kochi Naval Base on Wednesday to retrace the ancient maritime trade route between the Malabar Coast and the Persian Gulf.The ships - INS Tarangini and INS Sudarshini - of the Indian Navy and Zinat-al-Bihaar of the Royal Omani Navy will sail together over a distance of 1,200 nautical miles to Muscat. The ships are expected to reach Muscat on November 29.
Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lanba, along with the Commander of Islamic Republic of Iran Navy Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi flagged off the ‘Tall Ships Sail-Together’. The event, organised as part of the 10th anniversary celebrations of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium, was attended by the navy chiefs and delegates from 26 countries participating in the symposium.
The tall ships have one sea rider each from Sri Lanka, China, United Kingdom, Australia, Bangladesh and Maldives participating in the sailing expedition.The ships are accompanied by smaller Indian sailing vessels, among them Mhadei will be heading towards Seychelles, while the others would continue towards Muscat. A grand flypast with nine helicopters and three fixed wing aircraft was undertaken to mark the occasion.