[Mishmash] So Quiet

[David Brown]

I was very impressed with the precision attack by the seals.  They did a
wonderful job.

I remain concerned that whilst Captain Phillips has been saved the problem
has not been addressed.  I think another 4 ships have been hijacked in the
last few days.

David

> -----Original Message-----
> From: mishmash-bounces at mishmash.net [mailto:mishmash-
> bounces at mishmash.net] On Behalf Of Richard Barth
> Sent: Wednesday, 15 April 2009 4:25 AM
> To: Mishmash
> Subject: Re: [Mishmash] So Quiet
> 
> At 10:55 PM 4/13/2009, I wrote:
> >That may be a major part of the problem, Fred.  For the pirates,
> >it's a business.  For the shippers, it appears it's also a
> >business.  An article in the Post the other day quoted some expert
> >in the business as saying that it's cheaper for the shipping lines
> >to pay ransom than to protect their ships. Reasons include:
> >insurance rates go up if the crew is armed and  armed ships may not
> >be permitted to enter certain ports.  It appears that American crews
> >are being taught evasion tactics (such as zigzagging to avoid being
> >boarded) but not how to fight off pirates.  I'd be interested in
> >knowing how the crew of this ship managed to take back control from
> >the pirates.  Haven't read today's paper yet; it may be covered.
> >
> >There are mixed and confusing reports on exactly what happened.  An
> >early report said the captain offered himself as a hostage to
> >protect his crew.  Another, later on, said the crew had not only
> >repelled the pirates but taken one captive.  A bit of difference but
> >I've yet to find out where the truth lies.
> >
> >Once the captain and the four pirates were in the lifeboat, though,
> >the process was probably straight forward as far as the navy was
> >concerned.  Not having heard anything concrete, I visualize
> >something like this: The lifeboat is being circled by a destroyer,
> >and the pirates (at water level) can't see what's happening on
> >deck.  Seals go overboard on the far side of the deck where they
> >can't be seen.  They use rebreathing devices (are Momsen lungs still
> >being used?) to avoid making bubbles.  Swim to the lifeboat,
> >reconnoiter, and on a signal, surface and start firing at anything
> >that doesn't look American.   They already knew the general layout
> >from the UAV being used for surveillance. Wonder if that's how it
> >happened.  Anybody heard?
> 
> Well, I finally got around to reading yesterday's paper, and the
> truth apparently was somewhere in the middle.  The crew managed to
> trap one pirate in the engine room and capture both him and the ship.
> The captain offered himself as a hostage if the pirates would leave
> his ship, with their promise to release him once they were off.  They
> didn't keep their promise, since he was the only leverage they had
> with a U.S. destroyer staring them in the face.
> 
> A group of seals parachuted into the water and were picked up by the
> destroyer (which had since been joined by two other navy ships) and
> stationed a group of snipers on the fantail. A teenage pirate who had
> been injured in the takeover surrendered and was aboard the
> destroyer. Obama personally issued orders to take action if the
> captain's life was threatened. One of the three remaining pirates
> aimed an AK-47 at the captain's back, the on-site commander gave
> orders to the snipers to fire at will.  Result: three dead
> pirates.  A seal climbed down the tow rope (the destroyer was towing
> the lifeboat at the time) and took over the boat.  Captain taken on
> board the destroyer, given a chance to shower and get into some clean
> clothes.
> 
> A lot simpler than my idea, but hey, it would have made a good book.
> :-)
> 
> Dick
> 
> 
> Richard Barth *** W3HWN(at)ARRL.NET *** Silver Spring, MD
> 
> 
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