The submarine, which broke into three parts and disappeared on Wednesday, was found on the sea floor off Bali, according to Navy Chief of Staff Yodo Margono.
The Indonesian army chief, Hadi Tjijanto, told reporters that “the 53 crew members have all died.”
Indonesian President Joko Widodo offered his condolences to the families of the wrecked submarine crew.
Hundreds of military personnel, aircraft and ships were mobilized to locate the KRI Nanggala 402, a German-built submarine that was about 40 years old – but in good condition, according to the Navy – that disappeared while carrying out maneuvers.
The authorities did not provide any explanations for the wreckage, but indicated that the submarine may have been the victim of a defect that would have prevented it from climbing to the surface.
Margono rejected the hypothesis of the explosion, saying that everything indicated that the submarine crashed under the pressure of water to a depth of more than 800 meters, which is much more than what it was designed for.
In 2000, the nuclear submarine Kursk, of the Russian Northern Fleet, sank while maneuvering in the Barents Sea (northwest), killing its 118 crew.
In 2017, the Argentine submarine San Juan, with 44 sailors on board, disappeared 400 km off the coast.
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