Pirate Attacks

Beez Neez now Chy Whella
Big Bear and Pepe Millard
Thu 3 Mar 2011 13:10
Pirate Attacks and Piracy

 

 

 

 

 

What happened to Quest, currently Ing has motivated us on Beez Neez to look at the facts. This taken from our friends blog:

 

 

 

 

This is the Arabian Sea with pirate attacks in January. We were supposed to find a safe route through all of this which we did by making a huge detour north but the attacks are now very close to our route down the Omani coast. Quest and the Danish boat Ing (including three children aboard) were attacked by the pirate group in the centre of this photo.

 

 

 

The actual threat areas by year - some say that as there have been no serious typhoons in 2010 the geographic area of attack could grow significantly.

 

When we began planning our At-Venture (Adventure AT our own pace) the threat area was constricted to places we had no intention of sailing to - now - most definitely pirates attacking on our course. 

 

Taken from gCaptain:

(John Konrad is co-founder and CEO of Unofficial Networks and Editor In Chief of gCaptain.com. He is a USCG licensed Master Mariner of Unlimited Tonnage and, since graduating from SUNY Maritime College, he has sailed a variety of ships from ports around the world. John currently lives in Morro Bay, California with his wife and two kids, Jack and Ellie).

 

 

 

January 2011 actual attacks one against the 'baddies' nonetheless someone's sons wiped out.

 

 

The big news for the start of 2011 is the move of pirates to areas further from their traditional hunting ground. November 2008 saw the first capture of a ship far from the Gulf of Aden, the pirate’s traditional hunting ground, when the pirates hijack the Saudi super-tanker Sirius Star and demand a 25m dollar ransom for its return. Five of the pirates aboard that ship drown in January of 2009 while returning home in a small boat with the ransom money but that hasn’t stopped others from venturing far from home to hijack ships.

There are now 25 vessels and 601 hostages being held by pirates off the coast of Somalia, according to the international chamber of commerce. The total includes three ships that were hijacked between Christmas Day and Dec. 27: a Taiwanese fishing vessel with 26 crewmembers on board that was hijacked about 120 nautical miles off the northeast tip of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean; an Antigua-Barbuda-flagged cargo ship, the EMS RIVER, that was captured along with its crew of eight 175 nautical miles northeast of Salalah; and the MV THOR NEXUS, a Thailand-flagged cargo ship that was seized along with its 27-member crew approximately 450 nautical miles northeast of the island of Socotra.

More recently, after payment of an unspecified ransom, pirates released the German products tanker MARIDA MARGUERITE and its 22-member crew on December 28th. The vessel had been hijacked eight months before. All the members of the crew are said to be in good health. 

The international maritime authorities have reported that as many as seven pirate attack groups aboard previously pirated mother ships are now operating in the Arabian Sea and the greater Somali Basin. The list of vessels now being used as mother ships is said to include the LPG tanker YORK, the MT MOTIVATOR, MV HANNIBAL II, MV IZUMI and MV POLAR.

 

The most striking element of the list is not the number of motherships, the pirates have long been using fleets of vessels to coordinate attacks, but the size of these vessels. The ship pictured above is the M/V Motivator a 13,065 deadweight ton tanker. The use of large ships captured in previous hijackings gives the pirates the range needed to broaden their efforts as far east as the Maldives and, more recently, as far south as the Mozambique channel. The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) Piracy Reporting Centre has released statistics that show an approximately 10 percent increase in the number of pirate attacks reported in 2010. There were 440 attacks reported in 2010 and 404 in 2009, the IMB said.

 

 

 

WARNING TO: U.S. Registered Yachts and Sailing Vessels: The U.S. Coast Guard strongly advises against all operation of and travel by U.S. yachts and sailing craft, or by U.S. citizens on foreign registered yachts and sailing craft, on the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, Somali Basin and the western parts of the Indian Ocean.  A U.S. registered sailing vessel was hijacked by pirates in February 2011 off the southern coast of Oman in the northern Arabian Sea and all of its crew were tragically killed.  This case is a stark reminder of the grave dangers of operating in these high risk waters, especially by recreational vessels.

All mariners already in these waters are urged to register with the Maritime Security Centre (Horn of Africa) for up to date advice and guidance on passage round the Horn of Africa.  They should also report regularly to the UKMTO (email: ukmto {CHANGE TO AT} eim {DOT} ae; Tel: +971 50 552 3215    +971 50 552 3215 ), giving location, course and speed, and plan their routing carefully to reduce the risk of an attack.

Piracy is a significant threat in the Gulf of Aden and the northwest Indian Ocean and has occurred in excess of 1000 nautical miles from the coast of Somalia. Up-to-date information about attacks and pirated vessels can be referenced from the EU Naval Force Somalia web site at http://www.eunavfor.eu.  Sailing vessels are particularly vulnerable to attack due to their low speed and low freeboard.  All mariners intending to sail through high risk areas should reconsider the necessity of their travel and alternatives, such as transporting the vessel by yacht carrier.

Participants in yacht races and rallies in these high risk areas are at great risk of attack.  These events are often publicized and could draw attention from pirates, despite the security and safety measures that might be put in place. The U.S. Coast Guard strongly advises mariners not to participate in events that will require transit through high risk waters. Requirements and amplifying guidance promulgated by the U.S. Coast Guard for commercial vessels intending to transit high risk waters are unaffected by this advisory.

February 22nd 2011: Based on today’s tragic events, I would like to update my previous ROE (Rules of Engagement) discussion with the following statement:

Anyone traveling through the Arabian Sea or Gulf of Aden on a ship or private yacht should be highly prepared and ready to defend themselves using deadly force.

 

If a boat is close enough to yell at you, they are already too close. Shoot first, ask for forgiveness later.

 

 

 

Pirate attacks in 2005

 

 

Pirate attacks in 2010

 

Beez Neez Comment: Whether driven by greed, thrill or poverty - piracy is wrong. How much is as a result of local politics is something we will not go into at this time, it is just too big a subject. Just one point though, the Somalian Government sold the fishing rights for cash to other countries – effectively wiping out their own peoples way of life.  

 

 

ALL IN ALL TOO SERIOUS TO IGNORE