NEW DELHI: Indian and US navies are gearing up for a maritime exercise with an eye on anti-piracy and executing disaster relief operations. The Malabar exercise is the16th bilateral exercise between the two Navies and will be held off the coast of south east India off the coast of Tamil Nadu state. “The Malabar exercise will have two phases and will comprise of elements of boarding operations, air defense exercise, coordinated submarine welfare as well as helicopter operations,” a joint statement released by the navies of both the nations said. The ten day exercises will start Saturday and range from conventional war missions as well as asymmetric warfare. Indian naval vessels including destroyers like INS Ranvijay, INS Ranvir, INS Kulish and US vessels like USS Bunkerhill and USS Carl will be participating in the navy drill. The objective of the exercise is to get the navies ready for joint operations for countering piracy in the Gulf of Aden and conducting relief operations.