Prirates try to hijack Maersk Alabama again

[vaskidmark]

http://news.aol.com/article/maersk-alabama-targeted-by-somali/742659?icid=main|htmlws-main-n|dl1|link3|http%3A%2F%2Fnews.aol.com%2Farticle%2Fmaersk-alabama-targeted-by-somali%2F742659

2 videos at the link.

An on-board security team repelled the attack by using evasive maneuvers, small-arms fire and a Long Range Acoustic Device, which can beam earsplitting alarm tones

Let's see -- who's been absent for a while?

And how come the rest of us weren't invited to go along?

stay safe.

skidmark

[taurusowner]

Small arms?  I thought there was a big hoopla about that being a no-no on ocean going vessels that dock in foreign ports.

[AZRedhawk44]

Small arms and private security = good.

Small arms and regular old ship's crew = bad.

Small arms and my own theoretical pirate-hunting pleasure yacht and some APS'ers = pirate chum and swordfish fishing.

[dogmush]

However, Roger Middleton, a piracy expert at the London-based think tank Chatham House, said the international maritime community was still "solidly against" armed guards aboard vessels at sea, but that American ships have taken a different line than the rest of the international community.

OK, but these two quotes taken togehter make me think the rest of the maritime community might want to rethink that one.

Everything is safe and secure and Maersk Alabama is proceeding to their intended destination,"

vs.

a self-proclaimed pirate said Wednesday that the captain of a ship hijacked Monday had died of wounds suffered during the ship's hijacking.

Just sayin'.

I also noted that the shore folks have lost contact with the pirates that attacked the Maersk Alabama. 

[makattak]

As I'm considering the remunerative aspects of pirate hunting, I'm struck by the problem that no longer would pirate's spoils be found on their ships.

As I result, I have to ask: do these pirates have bank accounts? Are these companies/countries that pay ransom wiring money into a bank account?

If so, why haven't we seized said bank accounts!?

[AZRedhawk44]

As I'm considering the remunerative aspects of pirate hunting, I'm struck by the problem that no longer would pirate's spoils be found on their ships.

As I result, I have to ask: do these pirates have bank accounts? Are these companies/countries that pay ransom wiring money into a bank account?

If so, why haven't we seized said bank accounts!?

When paying ransom, companies literally helicopter-drop money onto the hijacked ship.  The pirates then take the money, and leave the ship.

[S. Williamson]

When paying ransom, companies literally helicopter-drop money onto the hijacked ship.  The pirates then take the money, and leave the ship.

Do pirates accept pennies? 

[HankB]

. . . the international maritime community was still "solidly against" armed guards aboard vessels at sea . . .

I doubt that this "maritime community" includes much in the way of active sailors.

[AJ Dual]

As soon as the major maritime insurance companies decide that it's less risky to have armed guards than it is to have ships hijacked, this will all change.

And professional mercenary companies that have their own insurance, bonds etc., the DynCorp's and Blackwater/Xe's of the world will have enough paper-pushing accumen to make everyone feel warm and fuzzy about it.

[Jamisjockey]

Small arms?  I thought there was a big hoopla about that being a no-no on ocean going vessels that dock in foreign ports.

Truth.  What they do is insert the security team before the ship transits the danger area, and then remove them when they leave it.

[guns and more]

I always said............Blackwater.

A couple of guys well trained with AR's and Barrett 50's. Riddle the pirate boat, feed the sharks, file no reports, keep moving, deny.

[Jamisjockey]

Again, its been happening for years in another pirate hotspot, Indonesia.

[KD5NRH]

A couple of guys well trained with AR's and Barrett 50's. Riddle the pirate boat, feed the sharks, file no reports, keep moving, deny.

Something suppressed, from a bit of a distance so they have no idea where it's coming from.  A few AKs, maybe an RPG, and whatever other hardware they have can be considered "spoils of war."

[vaskidmark]

http://www.popeater.com/2009/11/18/nicolas-cage-pirates-kenya-united-nations/?icid=main|htmlws-main-n|dl2|link5|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.popeater.com%2F2009%2F11%2F18%2Fnicolas-cage-pirates-kenya-united-nations%2F

Nicolas Cage has visited a Kenyan prison holding suspected Somali pirates awaiting trial to highlight the problem of piracy in the Indian Ocean. Inmates danced for the movie star and shook his hand as he toured the Shimo La Tewa prison in the Kenyan coastal town of Mombasa. The prison has become a model for other jails in the country because of the reform work of its chief warden, Wanini Kireri.

Cage, a U.N. Goodwill Ambassador on Drugs and Crime, told The Associated Press Television News on Tuesday that he wanted to meet with some of the suspected Somali pirates, hear their stories and understand what is fueling piracy off the Somali coast.

Dear Nic,

It's money.  There is none in Somalia.  As a matter of fact there is nothing in Somalia.  The folks there watch TV and see all the good things they could buy if they had money.  Some of them sit and pout.  Others go and figure out how to get an AK-47 or AK-74, an RPG, and a boat.  Then they go get a ship.  They don't really want the ship, but they figure the owner does, so they trade the ship for money.

Hope this helps you understand what is fueling piracy off the Somali coast.

Love,

skidmark

[280plus]

Dear Dic,

FIFY... 

[taurusowner]

Truth.  What they do is insert the security team before the ship transits the danger area, and then remove them when they leave it.

Sneaky.  I like it.

[AJ Dual]

Again, its been happening for years in another pirate hotspot, Indonesia.

Although a lot of the Indonesian/Straits of Malacca piracy is just organized shipping title and insurance fraud. The boat is taken, re-painted, re-registered, the shipper files a claim, then buys the "new" boat back at a discount.