MOSCOW. April 19 (Interfax) - Russia's Northern Fleet has held a rescue forces exercise involving an AS-34 autonomous submersible vessel and its carrier vessel, the Mikhail Rudnitsky, the fleet's press service said in a statement on Wednesday.
"The AS-34 conducted a check of its systems and mechanisms and practiced submersion and maneuvering on the surface and under water in one of the bays of the Kola Gulf," the press service said.
The AS-34 autonomous submersible vessel practiced interaction with the Mikhail Rudnitsky command post. The rescuers checked communications equipment and fulfilled orders received from the command post, it said.
The exercise involved the troops and civilian personnel of the Northern Fleet's directorate for search and rescue work, it said.
"The exercise lasted several hours. Besides the training tasks, the AS-34 focused on preparing the rescue vessel for operating underwater, and launching and boarding it," it said.
This was a scheduled exercise, it said.