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| Southeast Asia |
| Pirates strike twice near S’pore waters |
| 2004-02-03 |
| PIRATES struck twice near Singapore waters last Thursday, boarding vessels on the move and even surprising the shipmasters in their cabins. In the light of the attacks, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) issued a statement yesterday warning all shippers to be vigilant. No injuries were reported in the two incidents, which took place in the Singapore Straits, near Karimun Island in Indonesia. The two spots are 24km or so outside Singapore waters. The pirates first struck the Cape Haralambos, a bulk carrier registered in the Marshall Islands which was heading for Singapore from India to load up on fuel, just after midnight. Three pirates armed with knives boarded the 69,000-ton vessel, tied up the shipmaster and scooted off with the ship’s cash and the crew’s valuables, worth more than $3,000 in all. Less than three hours later, just 6km away, another group struck the 8,900-ton Turkish-registered container ship Border. This time, five pirates wielding long knives boarded the ship and forced the shipmaster to surrender the key to its safe. But he managed to slip away and alert his crew. The pirates fled with only his watch. The Border was heading for Singapore from Port Klang, Malaysia. The area has been relatively quiet till now, with no attacks reported there for more than a year. There had been one incident in 2002, and three each in 2001 and 2000. About 400 ships pass through this busy area daily. Some ships are known to replenish fuel, water and other supplies from other vessels out at sea. The MPA said shippers should use designated areas within the port for such activities. It ’strongly urges’ shipmasters, their crew, and the local and international shipping community to step up surveillance. This means, for example, ensuring vessels have anti-piracy measures such as closed-circuit cameras to monitor movements on the ship, and pirate-intrusion alarms. Could be the same group did both attacks. Otherwise coordinated attacks are a AQ trademark, and this could have been a dry run. Sending a large cargo vessel at top speed against any naval vessel would guarantee to sink it and US naval vessels go through this Strait all the time. |
| Posted by:phil_b |
| #9 Nah, these are just dirt-poor people who are desperate. This is the high seas version of a pawn shop in the bad part of town getting robbed. In these two cases, agreed. In the Straits, there's tradition of fishermen engage in such side-business. The U.S. Navy has a top-secret defense against being rammed by cargo vessels...it's called, "moving out of the way". phil_b is right. Ships move fast in the Straits, many of them don't follow navigation rules or the designated channels (think French drivers) and there isn't a lot of time to react. The USS Ranger paid for it by colliding with a bulk freighter in 1979. Of course being in total EMCON didn't help matters any... |
| Posted by: Pappy 2004-2-3 11:07:00 PM |
| #8 Phalanx may be replaced on many ships by the newer RAM (Rolling Airframe Missile) Sorta like Shipboard Chaparrral only without fins.... |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-2-3 7:21:53 PM |
#7 I had thought somebody had posted it before on Rantburg that the Phalanx was being replaced, but it didn't show up in the search:In recent years, the Vulcan 20 mm gun that is the heart of this weapon has increasingly been seen as not being effective enough against modern missile threats. For this reason, Phalanx may be replaced on many ships by the newer RAM (Rolling Airframe Missile) System or other more potent CIWS systems. |
| Posted by: Dar 2004-2-3 4:24:55 PM |
| #6 Will a Phalanx depress far enough to engage a surface target? If so, it'll ruin your whole day, for sure. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2004-2-3 3:37:45 PM |
| #5 If they're just using knives a Mossberg might suffice. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-2-3 2:04:31 PM |
| #4 Mike: don't forget a few .50 cal's for "close in" work. Or a Phalanx. |
| Posted by: PBMcL 2004-2-3 11:52:56 AM |
| #3 Then there's the other "top-secret defense against being rammed by cargo vessels:" 5"/62 Mk 45 Mod 4 5"/54 Mk 45 . . . and for those of you who love the old classics . . . 5"/38 Mk 12 (on the Iowa-class BB) |
| Posted by: Mike 2004-2-3 10:26:34 AM |
| #2 "moving out of the way". Easy on the high seas, but a lot harder in a narrow strait with lots of shipping. I've watched ships move through the straits of Singapore and they pass at less than a thousand meters. At 35 knots, thats about 90 seconds to react. 45 seconds if each ship is approaching the other at 35 knots. A stationary ship or docked ship has no chance of getting out of the way. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2004-2-3 5:46:16 AM |
| #1 Nah, these are just dirt-poor people who are desperate. This is the high seas version of a pawn shop in the bad part of town getting robbed. The U.S. Navy has a top-secret defense against being rammed by cargo vessels...it's called, "moving out of the way". |
| Posted by: gromky 2004-2-3 4:44:36 AM |