Article

2005-11-09 Africa: Horn

Cruiseship officers hailed for fending off pirates

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Posted by DanNY 2005-11-09 00:04|| || Front Page|| [2 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 A passenger took the photo that accompanies this article, of the pirates as they reload. Unfortunately I couldn't find a bigger photo. The one in our dead-trees paper was much larger, and shows the pirate on the stern smiling. They look like they're just out messing around. You can see the faces of the two forward men, including the one with the RPG, clearly. They should be abled to be identified, assuming anyone ever bothers to look for them.

This search should turn up more photos by the passenger. If not, do a Yahoo news photos search on "Norman J. Fisher".

Posted by Angie Schultz 2005-11-09 10:27|| http://darkblogules.blogspot.com]">[http://darkblogules.blogspot.com] 2005-11-09 10:27|| Front Page Top

#2 I fully expect Amnesty International to condemn the officers.

Posted by dushan 2005-11-09 11:05|| 2005-11-09 11:05|| Front Page Top

#3 The attack took place about 160 kilometers from the coast of Somalia

The photos by the tourist show guys in something that looks like a small whaler. Did they really sail that 160km off the coast? Wouldn't that take 3 or 4 hours or more? Perhaps there was a larger mother ship in the area?

Posted by Unomomble Jolunter9368 2005-11-09 12:46|| 2005-11-09 12:46|| Front Page Top

#4 I recall reading in an article days ago that the pirates were using inflatable, Kodiak-style boats. That pic says otherwise.

We must be getting more graduates from the Dan Rather School of Journalism™.

Posted by Dar">Dar 2005-11-09 12:54|| 2005-11-09 12:54|| Front Page Top

#5 100 miles off the coast in a rubber dingy? Them's some mighty sea-farin' men. I'm not sure I'd want to take a 16-foot fiber glass boat out that far.

Posted by Fred 2005-11-09 15:56|| 2005-11-09 15:56|| Front Page Top

#6 Well - they are local pirates. Maybe they now the shortcuts and hidey holes in case the weather kicks up.

No way they'd get that far offshore in that boat alone. If so, they're descendants of Drake and Nelson - so many al-Drakkes and ibn-N'elsons.

Posted by Clomoth Jineck7638 2005-11-09 16:08|| 2005-11-09 16:08|| Front Page Top

#7 Hard to judge from the photo, but if you take the size of the people on board and compare them to the boat, that's easy a 18 footer, maybe 20, 22. Nice and beamy with a good depth of hull. Big outboard with multiple tanks of gas, yeah, they can get out that far easy. Fishermen do it all the time. Most likely run in packs in case of trouble.

Posted by Steve">Steve 2005-11-09 16:23|| 2005-11-09 16:23|| Front Page Top

#8 It looks like the gunnels may have been modified or have an inflatable addition.

Posted by Shipman 2005-11-09 16:45|| 2005-11-09 16:45|| Front Page Top

#9 A merchant vessel recently had an encounter with what may a "mother-ship".

Posted by Pappy 2005-11-09 19:02|| 2005-11-09 19:02|| Front Page Top

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