US NAVY CALLS UPON PHOENIX FOR SUBMARINE RESCUE SUPPORT

Thursday, August 11, 2005 -- Washington, DC -- Phoenix International, Inc., (Phoenix) was called upon by the US Navy to mobilize its one-Atmosphere Diving System (ADS) from its Morgan City, Louisiana facility as part of the international effort to rescue a trapped Russian submarine. The manned submersible Priz AS-28 fouled in fishing nets during a military exercise off the Kamchatka Peninsula and entombed its seven man crew under 625 feet of seawater.

Phoenix responded to the Navy’s request for assistance by quickly sending its self-contained ADS diving system, pilots, and technicians from Morgan City, LA and San Diego, CA to Petropavlovsk, the city closest to the accident site. Over 50,000 lbs. of ADS related equipment and tools were readied and loaded onto a USAF C-17 within hours of notification of the mishap. Simultaneously, Phoenix mobilized the Navy’s Remotely Operated Vehicle, Deep Drone, from the company’s complex in the Landover, MD facility. British rescue assets were the first to arrive on the scene and were able to cut away the fish nets, freeing the Priz and its crew. The successful action precluded the need to use Phoenix’s ADS and the Navy’s Deep Drone for the rescue operation.

ADS’s are single occupant, pressure resistant suits that allow diving to a water depth of 1200 feet. ADS’s are an integral part of the Navy’s next generation rescue system called the Submarine Rescue Diving and Recompression System (SRDRS). Phoenix is under Navy contract to operate and maintain SRDRS in concert with active duty Navy personnel. During a rescue operation, the ADS systems are responsible for inspecting and clearing a submarine’s escape hatch in order to facilitate extraction of the trapped crew.

Phoenix provides commercial ADS services to the oil and gas industry in the Gulf of Mexico where the systems are used to conduct underwater inspections, non-destructive tests, and to provide support for subsea construction projects. Although the Navy has taken possession of new ADS systems capable of diving to 2000 feet, the system is not yet approved for operations to the depth of the Priz. Consequently, the Navy called upon Phoenix to provide its proven commercial systems and pilots.

Phoenix recently participated, as did the British and Russians, on Sorbet Royal, a multi-nation submarine rescue exercise completed in the Mediterranean Sea. This cooperative effort may have contributed to the Russian decision to quickly request rescue assistance.

Phoenix is a marine services company providing quality manned and unmanned underwater services to an international customer base. Worldwide operations include Underwater Ship Inspection & Repair, US Navy & ABS Certified Underwater Welding, ROV Services, Deep Ocean Search & Recovery, Subsea Construction Support, Submarine Rescue, and Engineering Design. Phoenix resources include divers and diving systems, Remotely Operated Vehicles, underwater tools and sensors, and one-Atmosphere Diving Suits (ADS).

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For More Information Contact:

Phoenix International, Inc.

9301 Largo Drive West, Largo, MD, 20774 USA

Tel: +1 (301) 341-7800

Fax: + 1 (301) 499-0027

tjanaitis@phnx-international.com or tbailey@phnx-international.com