Indonesian Navy Holds DIVEX 2026 Joint Drill at Jinhae Naval Base and Other Sites During Visit to Korea

【Jakarta, Indonesia = Aulia Maulida Hamdani】The Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) and the Indonesian Navy strengthened naval cooperation by carrying out a joint drill at Jinhae Naval Base in Changwon-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, and around Jeju Island to improve underwater search and rescue and military diving capabilities.
According to Indonesian military authorities on the 31st, the Navy Divers and Rescue Corps (Koppeba) and the Navy special forces unit KOPASKA conducted "Dive Exercise (DIVEX) 2026" from the 25th to the 30th at Jinhae Naval Base and around Jeju Island. DIVEX is an annual underwater operations drill jointly hosted by the Indonesian Navy and the ROKN in alternating years in each country. A total of 12 personnel took part in this year's exercise, including 10 from Koppeba and two from KOPASKA.
The drill focused on improving the ability to conduct underwater search and rescue operations in Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) scenarios, while also strengthening the professionalism and operational readiness of personnel from both countries.
The exercise included wet bell diving procedures, helicopter rescue swimming, underwater object observation and identification using a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV), and underwater object search, detection, and identification using 3D side-scan sonar. It also featured field training exercises (FATEX) based on real-world scenarios, including underwater search and rescue (SAR), aircraft black box recovery, and the lifting of large objects using lift bags.
Through the drill, the two navies plan to expand practical cooperation in underwater operations and strengthen mutual trust, while continuously developing operational capabilities that can respond jointly to a range of situations in the maritime security field.
[email protected] Aulia Maulida Hamdani Reporter