VietNamNet Bridge - On the morning of March 25, the hospital vessel HQ-561 and the army medical and engineer forces of the Vietnam navy left the Cam Ranh Military Port to take part in a multilateral maneuver of ASEAN and partner countries, named Komodo in Indonesia.

This is the first time the Vietnam Navy participating in a multilateral exercise. It is expected that the ship will arrive at the Indonesian island of Batam on March 28 and start participating in the exercises from March 29 to April 3. Dozens of naval ships and helicopters of various countries, including Russia, China, Japan, India, the U.S., will also participate in the Komodo exercises.

The Komodo exercises is held by Indonesia, themed "Cooperation for Stability", focusing on naval campaigns on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

The exercise is organized to build confidence, implement the initiatives that have been agreed between ASEAN and partners in the framework of cooperation mechanisms of the ASEAN Defense Ministerial Plus Meeting (ADMM+), the ASEAN Navy Chiefs Meeting (ANCM) and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF).

Komodo exercise will not only enhance intra-ASEAN cooperation but also contributes to maintaining ASEAN's central role in disaster relief in particular and regional security issues in general.

The hospital ship HQ-561 was designed by the Institute of Shipbuilding Science and Technology Institute, with the length and width of 70.62 mx 13.22m, water displacement of 2,068 tons at full load. The ship has two main diesel engines, totaling 4,964 horsepower in capacity and three 380V/220V-50Hz three-phase generators and three 3-phase air-cooled backup generators. The largest velocity of the ship is 16 nautical miles per hour, range of 2,500 nautical miles. The vessel is capable of running at sea for 45 days and nights, withstanding wave at level 9 and winds at level 10.

Medical equipment on board include high frequency X-ray machine, versatile sonograms, ECG, endoscopy machine, 18-parameter blood test machine, urinalysis. It is also equipped with anesthesia, intensive care and surgery devices. In particular, the ship can be connected directly with mainland hospitals in case of needing support consultation.

The ship also has a patient reception room, a sterile operating room, an intensive care room, a function diagnosis room, and a dental - maxillofacial treatment rooms.

QDND