A Filipino sailor, who is suspected to be COVID-19 positive, was evacuated from a merchant vessel in the high seas off Kochi. The Navy-Coast Guard operation was carried out after the vessel sent out an SOS saying the sailor’s oxygen levels were plunging and that he needed urgent medical evacuation.

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The operation took place after 4 PM on Tuesday. “The pilots of the helicopter displaying tremendous skill and professionalism successfully completed the mission in adverse weather conditions and ensured safe evacuation of the patient,” the Defence PRO for Kerala tweeted. 

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The evacuation was carried out in the navy’s Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH).

Visuals, as posted on Indian Navy’s Twitter handle showed the naval team, wearing PPE kits and protective gear, airlifting the sailor from MV Lyric Poet. 

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After being airlifted, the sailor, Chief Officer Michel John Abaygar, was taken to INS Garuda and later, to Naval Hospital in Kochi, INHS Sanjivini, the Navy said.

The Philippines ship was going from Gibraltar in Europe to China’s Machong.

Advanced Light Helicopter or ALH-DHRUV is a developed utility aircraft by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). The indigenously built helicopter is with a twin-engine. It has a multi-role, multi-mission dimension to it.

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It’s development started in 1984. The ALH-DHRUV was initially designed with Germany’s assistance Messerschmitt-Bolkow-Blohm (MBB). It was first flown in 1992 but entered service after certification in 2002.

The ship started in Gibraltar, which is a British Overseas Territory located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula. It is bordered to the north by Spain. On the other hand, Machong is a town under the jurisdiction of the prefecture-level city of Dongguan in the Pearl River Delta region of Guangdong Province in China.