Methods for combating modern piracy......

[={FH}=Paddy]

An interesting article in regards to the ongoing issue of modern day piracy and some considered methods in which to combat it.
I found most interesting the “Update” mention for the potential use of Q-Ships and submarines alike! (Made me think of Jimbuna’s great MOD)
Hope you enjoy.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7991512.stm

[Letum]

I'm not convinced that government's or navies need to do anything.
The shipping company can surely hire out their own private security. If they
chose not to because of the cost then it is their own ships they are putting
at risk.

[nikimcbee]

Originally Posted by Letum

I'm not convinced that government's or navies need to do anything.
The shipping company can surely hire out their own private security. If they
chose not to because of the cost then it is their own ships they are putting
at risk.

An interesting though. There was a guy on the radio last night making the same argument (to use private security vs national navy)

I thought the role of one's navy was to protect their national interest.

[nikimcbee]

These include:

• Convoys. Already done in the case of aid ships going into Kenyan and Somali ports
• Arming the crews. The crews might not want this, though in the latest case the American crew of cargo ship Maersk Alabama did fight back
• Arming merchant ships with heavy guns. Ship owners might not want to risk an engagement at sea
• luring pirates into attacking apparently unarmed ships which then declared themselves as warships. Would this be in "accordance with international law"?

Other ideas suggested would appeal to officers Denman and Decatur.
(Update: I have had a flood of further e-mails, for which many thanks. The plans proposed range from having submarines on stand-by to surface when needed, to 'Q-ships' (armed, disguised merchantmen), to immediate sinking, to blockades, to invasion. The general feeling is that governments and navies are too weak. There have been a few writers, though, who say that the real problem is in Somalia itself and that the pirates take to their trade because they cannot make a living in other ways.)

I see the author has been tapping subsim's knowledge base!

[SteamWake]

You all have it wrong !

Dolphins are the answer !

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/20...t_11184581.htm

[Quillan]

Sharks! Sharks with fricken' laser beams!

[Platapus]

Originally Posted by Quillan

Sharks! Sharks with fricken' laser beams!

You know, I have one simple request. And that is to have sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads! Now evidently my cycloptic colleague informs me that that cannot be done. Ah, would you remind me what I pay you people for, honestly? Throw me a bone here! What do we have?

[Letum]

Originally Posted by nikimcbee

I thought the role of one's navy was to protect their national interest.

I agree there, but the navy would not give you an escort if you sailed through
iceberg filled waters without radar just because you didn't want the expense
of radar, so why should they escort you through pirate infested waters
because you didn't want the expense of private security?

That said, it isn't a strong opinion of mine. Perhaps the navy is the way to go.


Would it compromise the navy's independence if they offer to protect ships for a price?

[MothBalls]

Isn't there an issue with many countries not allowing armed vessels of any kind into their waters and harbors? I thought I read something a few months back, when all of this finally escalated to CNN proportions, that arming the ships wasn't an option. It also had something to do with the crews not being trained to fight. I'll have to go search around for the report.

When this plays out I think we'll discover that diplomacy isn't always an option. The solution is inevitable, fight fire with fire, only our fire is going to a little hotter than theirs.

I'd be willing to bet that someone corporation like Blackwater is going to come up with a plan to load weapons and personnel after the ships loads up clears the harbor. They then become responsible for the safety of the vessel until it nears its next port. Before leaving international waters they'll have to offload the weapons and crew.

(Heeeyyyyyy.... if we tap into the resources of Subsim I'm sure we can come up with our own mercenary ship for hire. Subman can probably get us more and better weapons than most countries could get. If that failed, we could always get Skybird to talk them to death.)

No matter what happens, there is one thing that all of us know is a given, if it hasn't happened yet it will soon. Through higher prices, insurance premiums and taxes, you and I are the ones that will be paying for the solution no matter what it costs.

[Jimbuna]

A simple convoy system, two escorts (each equipped with at least one helicopter for a rapid response).

The vessels meet at a pre-determined formation point and time then disband when a safe distance away.

The two escorts pick up the next opposite direction convoy at this point and so on and so on.

A simple system of half a dozen countries agreeing a rota for the supply of two ships each for a given time.

This could/would also be beneficial to all participating countries as a training aid for joint sea ops.

Failing that.....Q Ships...BE MORE AGGRESSIVE!!...SINK EM ALL!!

[Kratos]

Creeest they cant be that hard to spot

:rotfl:

[AVGWarhawk]

Originally Posted by nikimcbee

An interesting though. There was a guy on the radio last night making the same argument (to use private security vs national navy)

I thought the role of one's navy was to protect their national interest.

If I'm not mistaken, Marines were formed during the tailship era to protect vessels going to foreign ports. I think the Marines need to go back to old school and ride these container ships from port to port...just like the good old days.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Kratos

Creeest they cant be that hard to spot

:rotfl:

...or even

[={FH}=Paddy]

Well firstly, I’m glad to see that this article has gained an element of debate, both with serious and somewhat more humoristic approaches!!!

A couple of points that I was considering, after reading over your comments, please correct me if I am wrong but is it not an international maritime offence to carry weaponry through national shipping jurisdictions? I know that in Indonesia (and general Far East) this “piracy” issue has been greatly looked in to and debated over many years. Some suggestions have been both the use of armed escorts (navy ship in the form of convoy protection) and alternatively, specially assigned “on board task force” accompaniment through the Strait of Malacca but this did not completely hold maritime legislative water; excuse the pun! (It has also been claimed and reported that some of the Indonesian / Philippine “British trained” anti piracy special force groups have seen it fit and more lucrative to join the other side and exploit their gained training to great reward!!)

The comment about the use of “Blackwater” (or any such CPC for that matter) in such a scenario would worry me greatly. Their trademark of overwhelming, indiscriminate use of force has a tendency to escalate a situation unnecessarily and runs the risk of greater use of reciprocating force and avoidable reprisals; greatly in comparison to what we have seen in the Gulf of Eden and East Coast of Africa to date. (If we look at Iraq, Blackwater, being still a more or less unaccountable entity has achieved little more than to justify the moderate Iraqi to become the extremist on many occasions, through their heavy handed approach. While on the contrary but in the same line of work, the British CPC’s have gained both respect and credibility on the ground by blending in with the indigenous population, not creating a scene with their “potential” firepower and maintaining a effective and low presence and thus being more efficient and professional alike). Either way, CPC’s would worry me.

As jimbuna mentioned, I see the use of “ferryman convoys” being the most realistic for the time being, rally point and drop off, return journey reciprocated etc. As we speak we have a multinational maritime force insitu, British, American, Chinese, Dutch, and Australian, to mention but a few participating nations, yet still no eradication or even an element of prevention to date? Is the obvious being over looked?

The (token stand in government in Somalia, for what it is worth) has agreed for international forces to use force within their waters to prevent piracy, can anyone say if this has been afforded to land based operations? Maybe as the old man “Lord Palmerston” suggests, "Taking a wasps' nest... is more effective than catching the wasps one by one…….."? Should these forces start land based operations at the hub of the problem? Or is “The Mog” still to fresh a topic to consider this action?

I welcome both your interest and thoughts on this debate.

(Humorous ones too!)

[Letum]

Originally Posted by ={FH}=Paddy

please correct me if I am wrong but is it not an international maritime offence to carry weaponry through national shipping jurisdictions?

I could also be wrong, but I am under the impression that this only applies to
mounted guns, not small arms. Can anyone confirm this?