Somalia Piracy Update for December 12, 2008 is provided by NATO Shipping Centre
2 December – a cluster of possibly co-ordinated approaches made to 5 merchant vessels in Gulf of Aden, successfully repelled by Italian destroyer, Luigi Durand de la Penne
MV CENTAURI was released 27 November (ransom payment amount not known)
MV MAERSK REGENSBURG was attacked approximately 450n miles east of Dar es Salaam (350nm west of Seychelles). Two pirate skiffs made two attempts to board the vessel and used small arms and 3x RPGs in the attack causing small fire on board. This is the most southerly incidence of piracy yet reported.
The last successful hijack was of MV BISCAGLIA 28 Nov
MV CAPTAIN STEFANOS was released 7 December; tbe vessel is now on route to Suez (ransom payment amount not known).
13 vessels remain hijacked comprising 11 merchant ships 1 fishing vessel and tug boat Yenegoa Ocean
The current slide displays last known position of hijacked vessels.
Over 200 merchant seamen are still held by pirates. The use of mother-ships seems to be on the rise, and potentially, vessels are hijacked with the sole intention of using them as such.
In short, the trends in latest piracy incidents are as follows:
- Targeting larger cargo / oil / gas / chemical tankers
- Approaches / attacks conducted from 2-3 small speedboats with 3-5 armed persons each. The number of boats involved in each incident seems to be increasing.
Given the significant increase in piracy (and piracy related) incidents in the Gulf of Aden, the NATO Shipping Centre asks any ship or ship owner to report to us with any details of (perceived) suspicious activity (e.g. ships on radar shadowing their movements, changing course to intercept, changing speed to match or intercept)
- course and speed of vessel if available
- positions and date/time
- identity or description of suspicious vessel(s)
- photograph if available
Please report any such activity to the NATO Shipping Centre’s (NSC) free call centre: +44 (0)1923 956574, or by fax: +44 (0)1923 956575, or E-mail: info@shipping.nato.int
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Tags: · piracy, piracy-at-sea, somalia
These days, it is impossible to watch or read any news publication, maritime or not, and not know about pirates operating in the Gulf of Aden. The hijacking of the M/V Faina last month carrying 33 Ukranian tanks and other military equipment, has sparked worldwide interest in the staggering growth of incidents. Just today Bloomberg reported a pirate attacks have climbed five-fold in the Gulf of Aden for first nine months of this year with 51 boardings or attempts to board. Yesterday, it was announced that NATO is sending 7 warships to the area to assist with escorts and patrols.
The problem has lead to increased insurance premiums, a sense of unease when navigating the area and cries for help from ship owners. Well to answer those cries, one US company is taking matters into its own hands and has deployed a ship to the area to help with efforts.
Blackwater USA, the private military organization known as either a private security firm or a mercenary organization (depending on your political beliefs) plans to send its 183-ft. M/V McArthur to the Gulf of Aden. As we reported in a previous gCaptian post, the vessel boasts “state of the art navigation systems, full GMDDSS communications, SEATEL Broadband, dedicated command and control bas, helicopter decks, hospital and multiple support vessel capabilities.” [Continue Reading →]
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Tags: · anti_piracy, blackwater, nato_officials, Navy, piracy, piracy-at-sea, somalia
In reaction to what appeared to be an attempted hijacking, a security team aboard United States Naval Vessel John Lenthall was forced to fire warning shots at two small boats that were pursuing the vessel off the coast of Somalia. U.S Naval Forces Central Command tells us:
Despite defensive measures to deter the vessels from approaching John Lenthall, small boats continued to approach the ship. The rounds impacted the water approximately 50 yards from the closest boat and resulted in both small boats ending their pursuit. All shots were accounted for as they entered the water.
“This incident is clear proof that all mariners must remain vigilant,” said Captain Steve Kelley, the commander responsible for all Military Sealift Command (MSC) ships in the region. “I am extremely pleased with the actions taken by the ship’s master and ultimately by the security personnel aboard. They initially used defensive measures and when those weren’t enough the security personnel took action to defend the ship.”
While it is unclear if personnel on the boats were intent on attacking the 41,000-ton ship, it is clear they were not following the international rules of the road observed by mariners around the globe. More importantly, the location of the incident, the types of boats involved (small open skiffs), and the maneuvering they undertook was consistent with reports from previous attacks on merchant vessels in the region. [Continue Reading →]
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Tags: · merchant-navy, MSC, Navy, navy-ships, navy_ships, piracy, piracy-at-sea, pirate, pirates, somalia
(Note: This article was originally published in Dec 2007)
We have taken a look at piracy in the Strait of Malacca and showed you how criminal organizations scrub a stolen ship’s documents now we turn our attention on finding and repossessing these vessels.
The primary company in recovering hulls in North America is New Orleans based VessEx. Here is a clip about VessEx from
Only a few repo men possess the guile and resourcefulness for such a job. One of them is F. Max Hardberger, of Lacombe, La. Since 1991, the 58-year-old attorney and ship captain has surreptitiously sailed away about a dozen freighters from ports around the world.
“I’m sure there are those who would like to add me to a list of modern pirates of the Caribbean, but I do whatever I can to protect the legal rights of my clients,” said Hardberger, whose company, Vessel Extractions in New Orleans, has negotiated the releases of another dozen cargo ships and prevented the seizures of many others.
His line of work regularly takes him to a corner of the maritime industry still plagued by pirates, underhanded business practices and corrupt government officials, waters the Aztec Express sailed right into.
The saga began in 2003 when the vessel’s Greek owner died and his company did not keep up payments on a $3.3-million mortgage. Read More…
(link via BoingBoing)
Also read Capt. Hardberger’s article for Marine Money Magazine
Here is the video:
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Tags: · boingboing, corrupt_government_officials, ISPS Code, marine_money, max_hardberger, money_magazine, phantom-ship, piracy, piracy-at-sea, pirates, pirates_of_the_caribbean, repo, repo_men, Video, youtube
In this modern age with AIS tracking and global satellite coverage you may ask how a pirate can get away with stealing an entire ship. Occasionally referred to as Seajacking this video shows how legal ships are stolen and redocumented to appear legitimate.
Seajacking and phantom ships:
Related Video:
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Tags: · bbc, ISPS Code, malacca-straight, marsec, phantom-ship, piracy, piracy-at-sea, pirates, Video, youtube
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