Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Tuesday said India has spared no resources in the search for an Indian Air Force flight that went missing last Friday. Parrikar said all leads in the investigation had “turned bad”, despite pings being picked up over the Bay of Bengal. The AN-32 aircraft, which was flying from Chennai to Port Blair, went missing with 29 passengers on board soon after it took off.

Officials said there has been no sign of the plane’s Personal Locator Beacon or Emergency Locator Beacon. Parrikar added that the search was using satellite surveillance, besides the 30 ships and submarine that were deployed. Coast Guard officials said that they had also sought assistance from the Geological Survey of India and National Institute of Ocean Technology in the search. A Mauritius vessel also reportedly joined search operations.

Chief of the Eastern Naval Command Vice Admiral HCS Bisht on Sunday had said they were "augmenting their search efforts" by deploying more ships, aircraft, helicopters and coast guard vessels. The depth of the sea at certain points, however, was a major hindrance in their operations, beside rough waters and monsoon conditions, he added. "The depth is 3,500 m. As the depth increases, challenges become much more severe," the vice admiral said, adding that fixed-wing aircraft were carrying out regular aerial surveillance, ANI reported.