US Destroyer pursuing pirate hijacked ship

[HankB]

. . . A shot off the bow won't do *expletive deleted*it, because the pirates know the navy will not actually shoot the ship itself. Probably even a small-arms firefight on board is out of the question, considering the cargo.

Sounds like there is a legitimate use for chemical weapons after all . . . .

There was a rumor some years back that pirates tried to hijack a large merchantman somewhere around Indonesia . . . as they attacked, they were met with a hail of gunfire from all manner of small arms and artillery . . . the "merchantman" was supposedly a new amphibious assault vessel belonging to the Russian Navy. (This really is a feel-good story, but do the Russkies even have any amphibious assault vessels?)

[Manedwolf]

I doubt the Benzene would go boom.  I guess it depends on how it was stored.  I don't think it would burn without oxygen/air to burn with.  It could catch fire and be very hard to put out though.  I would be more worried about leaks affecting our sailors. 

Mont Blanc, Halifax Harbor, 1917.

It was the guncotton and picric acid that blew it up, but spilled drums of benzene lashed to the deck caused a massive inferno that set that off.

[AZRedhawk44]

I think mfree is the winner here:

NK Benzene hauler gets "hijaacked" by Somalis. Ship goes off course for a while, off it's plan, etc. Somalis unload "questionable" items that were on board. NK crew "takes the ship back" from the pirates, goes about their merry way with nobody the wiser. NK has it's ship, pirates have whatever it was that was given to them... 

If the tanker is a floating bomb, the US isn't going to use force to stop it.

I wonder what got dropped over the side in an airtight/watertight container for a later pickup date?  Maybe about 2.5 kilograms of warm grey metal in a lead container?

[Tallpine]

Because many, many ports will not allow armed ships or armed crews in.  Some won't even allow armed ships in thier territorial waters.

So don't go there.  If all the merchant ships follow that policy, then said countries and ports will be begging for commerce to resume.

I just think that it's a crock that we have to go protect some other country's ships on the other side of the world. 

[Firethorn]

Because many, many ports will not allow armed ships or armed crews in.  Some won't even allow armed ships in thier territorial waters.

So don't go there.  If all the merchant ships follow that policy, then said countries and ports will be begging for commerce to resume.

I just think that it's a crock that we have to go protect some other country's ships on the other side of the world. 

I'd have to agree, but an awful lot of ships would go bankrupt in the meantime.

Makes me want to set up our own little Island paradise.  Heck, a number of them, so we have an excuse to run armed cargo ships in between them.

[De Selby]

The firehoses are good defenses, from what I'm told, against the less sophistocated pirate vessels.

[280plus]

You mean the ones without the AK-47s and RPGs? 

[De Selby]

You mean the ones without the AK-47s and RPGs? 

I always wondered about that-AK's are great, and so are RPGs, but against a vessel?  That's like hunting polar bears with a beeman.

[MechAg94]

I doubt the Benzene would go boom.  I guess it depends on how it was stored.  I don't think it would burn without oxygen/air to burn with.  It could catch fire and be very hard to put out though.  I would be more worried about leaks affecting our sailors. 

Mont Blanc, Halifax Harbor, 1917.

It was the guncotton and picric acid that blew it up, but spilled drums of benzene lashed to the deck caused a massive inferno that set that off.

Yeah, the benzene itself is flammable, but not explosive unless mixed with air or oxygen. 

The plant I work at makes hydrogen and CO.  It is only explosive if you mixed it with oxygen.  We monitor for that and purge with nitrogen if necessary.  Purging out air/oxygen after shutdowns is critical.   

Other plants of ours make pure oxygen.  Seeing the results of an oxygen fire in a compressor is very impressive.  Just about anything will burn in pure oxygen. 

[Firethorn]

The firehoses are good defenses, from what I'm told, against the less sophistocated pirate vessels.

Better yet, hook the firehose up to a fuel tank, and have another crewman standing by with a flare launcher...

[Manedwolf]

The firehoses are good defenses, from what I'm told, against the less sophistocated pirate vessels.

Better yet, hook the firehose up to a fuel tank, and have another crewman standing by with a flare launcher...

Oh, that's a GOOD and evil idea, actually. When in pirate waters, keep a high-pressure pump on deck that can handle solvents. Bring up a drum of diesel, bunker oil or whatever. Spray at marauding vessel, start launching flares.

I always wondered about that-AK's are great, and so are RPGs, but against a vessel?  That's like hunting polar bears with a beeman.

All they need to hit is the bridge, even the base of the funnel to screw up the ship pretty badly. Also, most merchant ships do not have very thick hulls. An antitank-penetrator RPG into the stern would likely punch right through the shell plating and explode in the engineering spaces.

For other antipirate things in the future...one word. Railgun.

[Chris]

You know, I'm glad to hear that the Navy is interceding in these matters.  Live fire practice is difficult to come by, and often hard to justify in these budget days.   

[Tallpine]

Really, I'm surprised that some pirates haven't bought one of those surplus diesel subs that the Ruskies are selling off ...

[French G.]

They have bought diesel subs from Russia. They are called Iran. One day they will shut down the straits and try to extort the world. Should work for about 72 hours until a couple of carriers, some SSNs and an SSGN show up.

 If you think humanity is great you should capture some Somali pirates. 100lb malnourished, poo flinging(literally) savages. They usually come as a boxed set with AKs and RPGs in a dilapidated motorized dory full of the world's biggest cockroaches.

[Manedwolf]

Really, I'm surprised that some pirates haven't bought one of those surplus diesel subs that the Ruskies are selling off ...

Go tour the one that's in Long Beach, and look at how many hundreds of valves there are to turn in the engine room. There was one in Rhode Island, too, but it sank, and not in a good way.

They're a little complex to operate for illiterate thugs.

[Scout26]

Having been through the U-505 at Museum of Science and Industry here in Chicago.

They're a little complex to operate for illiterate thugs.

Yep, getting them to go under the water is easy.

Getting them to come back up is the tricky part.... 

[The Viking]

Having been through the U-505 at Museum of Science and Industry here in Chicago.

They're a little complex to operate for illiterate thugs.

Yep, getting them to go under the water is easy.

Getting them to come back up is the tricky part.... 

You say this as if it is a bad thing .

[Tallpine]

They're a little complex to operate for illiterate thugs.

They just need "Commander Dodge" (Kelsey Grammer) to straighten them out.  


The merchant ships could arm themselves with pumpkin cannons made of PVC pipe.  Surely they have air compressors on board ...? 

[280plus]

I Guam they have (had) one of those Jap mini subs outside of the EM club, you could climb right in it. Barely enough room for one man.Them guys were NUTS!

[Manedwolf]

I've gotten to climb in various historical and current boats.

The WWII ones are tiiiiiight to move around in, especially for someone tall. The USS Nautilus wasn't too bad, but the doorways were still a bit low. Decent wardroom, though. Wow, those bunks are close together! Sit up more than an inch or so and you'd whack your face.

A more recent "boomer" was absolutely luxurious in space, though. More like wandering around some sort of spaceship.

Also, they really made toys like this at one time?!

[Werewolf]

Also, they really made toys like this at one time?!

DAMN!

That thing is truly COOOOOOL! and only $6.98.

I want one.
Christmas is comin' up.
Darn it! Why do we have to grow up?

[De Selby]

All they need to hit is the bridge, even the base of the funnel to screw up the ship pretty badly. Also, most merchant ships do not have very thick hulls. An antitank-penetrator RPG into the stern would likely punch right through the shell plating and explode in the engineering spaces.

For other antipirate things in the future...one word. Railgun.

I'm trying to imagine how an RPG would cripple something like a container ship or a tanker with a hit as described, and I still come up with an image of a guy shooting polar bears with his pellet gun.  What would hitting the masthead or making a hole in some compartment in the stern do besides....make a relatively small hole?

[CAnnoneer]

On older ships, an RPG can take out the hinge of the rudder. Without a rudder, the ship is crippled, especially in coastal waters.

[Jamisjockey]

All they need to hit is the bridge, even the base of the funnel to screw up the ship pretty badly. Also, most merchant ships do not have very thick hulls. An antitank-penetrator RPG into the stern would likely punch right through the shell plating and explode in the engineering spaces.

For other antipirate things in the future...one word. Railgun.

I'm trying to imagine how an RPG would cripple something like a container ship or a tanker with a hit as described, and I still come up with an image of a guy shooting polar bears with his pellet gun.  What would hitting the masthead or making a hole in some compartment in the stern do besides....make a relatively small hole?

They probably aim for the bridge.

[De Selby]

All they need to hit is the bridge, even the base of the funnel to screw up the ship pretty badly. Also, most merchant ships do not have very thick hulls. An antitank-penetrator RPG into the stern would likely punch right through the shell plating and explode in the engineering spaces.

For other antipirate things in the future...one word. Railgun.

I'm trying to imagine how an RPG would cripple something like a container ship or a tanker with a hit as described, and I still come up with an image of a guy shooting polar bears with his pellet gun.  What would hitting the masthead or making a hole in some compartment in the stern do besides....make a relatively small hole?

They probably aim for the bridge.

What would this do, besides make a small hole wherever the rocket strikes?

Seriously folks-take a stand next to a container ship sometime.  Even a moderately sized one is HUGE. 

Maybe someone with Navy/Merchant Marine experience can chime in and tell us more about the pirate threat.