Somalia pirates taking ships- where was the on-board security?

[Brian d marge]

Like I care ! hey its insured comes ouit in the cost of the hire of the vessel!...

I have been distributing oil for awhile, no skinnys ave got me yet...!

Stephen

[CookMySock]

Its not the crews problem, they just drive the thing and sweep the floor. It's the owners and the insurance companies problem. Giving the crew weapons and telling them to stand up to pirates is a quick way to get them all slaughtered. Just leave the pirates to it and go get the roast out of he oven and put a movie on the big screen.

Steve

[NighthawkNZ:Me]

I hear the questions why the navies of the world don't just sort them out... The Indian Navy just suck a pirate ship...

The main problem is it is a big ass lot of ocean out there to cover and too few navel vessels... and then the rules of enagement need to be reviewed.

There isn't a lot the owners and or insurance companies can do either... the pirates are now carrying rpg's and have heavy cal machine guns on fast moving boats... its not as if the super tanker can out run or out manouver it...

No point just giveing the crew guns;
A)- breaking international agreements, (yeah yeah I know the irony of it)
B)- it would simply become a blood bath

You could have a security contingent on each ship but again the pirates simply out gun, and out number...

The only possible solution is a conveys and have an escort through the dangerous waters... and all that is going to do is put the price of every up, and you will have to wait longer for your goods...

even this wouldn't stop them but may slow them...

[portokiwi]

There are so many hot spots with pirates. and all of them with rouge govts.
Some too close to home as well. If any country trys to intervine the local govt cry threats. The cover up all the time. Most of them paid under the table.

[wbks]

I think people were meaning trained soldiers or guards, not just ol' cap'in and deck hand with a machete, nighthawk. Rolling over for the pirates and still likely loosing your ship sounds pretty shitty to me compared to spending 20K each trip on your own private miliatary.

[slimjim]

poor buggers should have jumped for their life raft and lefted a couple of smoke's going with the gas oven turned on in the gallery....

[NighthawkNZ:Me]

I think people were meaning trained soldiers or guards, not just ol' cap'in and deck hand with a machete, nighthawk.

I know that, you can only have a few trained solders per ship...

The pirates don't even have to board to cause damage or death to the crew... with rpg and heavy... you fire q .5 cal or rpg at the super structure I wouldn't want to be on the other side of it...

Unless you are going to arm every ship with detection and anti ship eapons it will still happen

[Tank]

I worked with a company (Computacenter) in the UK where the boat was borded and everyone onboard gagged, beaten, and shot.

There are over 3000+ small boat attacks like that per year and they arnt actually recorded in the piracy figures.

Gutless scum.

The guys cannot defend themselves - if the lock into a panic room or dont stop - the pirates simply shot a rocket into the side of the boat causing a multimillion dollar enviornmental disaster or sink the ship. No point being in a safe room once you are under water.

[portokiwi]

You got it in a nut shell there Tank

[Winston001]

The Indian Navy just suck a pirate ship...

Damn, there's an image for ya.......

Them Indians are pretty wrapped up at home but once out on the high seas, they are game for anything.....

[vifferman]

Only do it once? Theres millions of dollars in it for people who would (and historically have) kill each other for food.

I had a little birdy (actually 2 birdys, one crew member, one "extra") tell me years back that at least one team of somalian pirates were dealt to severely. These guys are not going to stop doing this for as long as the money is there.

Indeed.
From the reports, there is a never-ending availability of people willing to be pirates. The fishing industry in Somalian ports is basically fucked because of Yurpeen trawlers illegally fishing in and cleaning out the Somalian fisheries. Apparently, a successful Somalian pirate can earn $5000 a year! Big money for a poor country.

"They'd" only do it (it being to sink a ship to say "fuck you" ) once, cos a pirate blown to kingdom come ain't going to do nothing again.

See above. They know it's risky, but they don't have any other employment prospects. Plus they're looked on as being people of status: they're brave, daring, and (in Somalian terms) rich.

'S simple. They need boats to reach the ships. Track the boats to whereever they lurk. Send naval ships to bombard the boats, wharves, jetties villages and such like . Boats blown up and sunk, pirates dead, problem solved. Sheesh , Palmerston would have had it solved in a few weeks. Too much ponsy pussy footing around.

Possibly. They already know where the pirates are lurking, but you'd have to mount a covert (not naval, but either mercenaries or undercover) operation. It'd be too non-PC to beat up a poor, broken-down African country.

There are so many hot spots with pirates. and all of them with rouge govts.
Some too close to home as well. If any country trys to intervine the local govt cry threats. The cover up all the time. Most of them paid under the table.

True.
And Somalia doesn't really have an effective gummint now, and no doubt the officials higher up are in on the take too.
The other thing is the people who act as 'intermediaries' in these cases are often the ones making the real money, and the ones driving the whole thing. The pirates themselves get fuck all - maybe a few hundred dollars (HUGE money to them). The 'negotiators' (some of whom are reputed to be Canadian) negotiate a price in the millions, then pocket a large proportion themselves.
Think about it: you've got a Somalian pirate, who captures a ship. Then what? He can't find out who owns it, phone them up, and ask them for cash. If him and his mates were working oin their own, they'd be fucked. They'd capture a ship, and then not know what to do with it, apart from stealing all the food and stuff on board,

There'll be some fat cats somewhere exploiting these guys to do their dirty work - they're the ones driving it, and the ones who need to be taken out.
This latest one was a ship worth over $250million, with a cargo worth over $200million. The ransom will be a mere fraction of that, possible only a couple of million. Relatively cheap, probably cheaper than the insurance would be.

There are over 3000+ small boat attacks like that per year and they arnt actually recorded in the piracy figures.
The guys cannot defend themselves - if the lock into a panic room or dont stop - the pirates simply shot a rocket into the side of the boat causing a multimillion dollar enviornmental disaster or sink the ship. No point being in a safe room once you are under water.

True.
It's easier to just pay, and factor the insurance and other costs into the transport costs.
Shipping costs are rising dramatically as a factor of fuel costs, insurance, and stuff like this.

[Morcs]

shoot all somalians = no more somalian pirates...

[pzkpfw]

They don't always get away with it.

http://www.bautforum.com/off-topic-b...ml#post1339450

[SPman]

. They need to call Maggie Thatcher back, she'd have them sorted out in less time than it took her to find her handbag.

So - we have it on record...

Ixion calling for the return of Maggie Thatcher......

(is there a touch of royal blue under that, oh so red, exterior, Les?)

[portokiwi]

Got to admit Maggie had big balls. If there was a problem she would have it sorted