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India-Pakistan
Indian Navy repulses pirate attack on Indian merchant vessel
2008-11-11
Posted by:john frum

#13  Someone's been watching too much "24".

Never seen the show.
Posted by: Pappy   2008-11-11 23:24  

#12  Alternate headline:

"Indian Navy fails to sink pirate vessel"
Posted by: logi_cal   2008-11-11 22:53  

#11  "It means moving valuable satellite assets."

Someone's been watching too much "24".
Posted by: crosspatch   2008-11-11 22:00  

#10  Again, RJ - that will take time. It means moving valuable satellite assets. It also means that there has to be real-time coordination to know where and when a ship has been boarded.

Not saying it can't be done. It's a great idea. But it means a hell of a lot better coordination than there is now and some way to free up assets to do the job..
Posted by: Pappy   2008-11-11 20:51  

#9  Yep, they can actually see the humps on a pack of Camels, and an RJ can hear them passing gas and pinpoint placement in the herd. Technology is wonnerful.
Posted by: Besoeker   2008-11-11 20:09  

#8  Don't we have satelites capable of picturing a pack of cigarettes?

Why not simply picture the surrounding area(Say 30 square miles) and see what vessels repeatedly are near at each "Boarding"?

Seems simple to me, the ships that keep showing up are probably the motherships, board and "Inspect" them.
Posted by: Redneck Jim   2008-11-11 19:55  

#7  Since it's it's Veterans Day.....

I was thinking of a Q-Ship, hiding a MOAB....


Posted by: .5mt   2008-11-11 15:41  

#6  Why isn't the Iwo Jima there, complete with a complement of Cobra helicopters and AV-8B Harrier aircraft?

You have to find them first. It's not like they fly the skull-and-bones.

The motherships are fishing vessels or small cargo craft. There are no especially significant markings.

The ships are either stolen or purchased elsewhere (similar to how the Tamils get their arms-supply vessels). Again there are no pirate flags, no loudspeakers broadcasting 'Yo Ho Ho', guys with eyepatches lounging around on deck. There isn't any visible armament. They look like any other fishing or small cargo vessel.

SOP is to hide among fishing boats or cruise within the usual shipping lanes for coastal craft. If they do fly a flag, it's likely Yemeni, or UAE, or any other other Red Sea/African Horn countries.

So you have three options:

1. Tie up assets searching every fishing vessel and small cargo craft.

2. Sink every boat or small ship you see. I know you perked right up at that one - that's also great way to end up with the proverbial testicles-in-a-vise.

3. Develop intel sources, press for more aggressive ROEs and additional assets from other countries. More time consuming, but you won't f*ck up as much.
Posted by: Pappy   2008-11-11 15:03  

#5  Why isn't the Iwo Jima there, complete with a complement of Cobra helicopters and AV-8B Harrier aircraft?

Because this piracy is not currently affecting US interests, it would be a waste of assets, the ships that have been captured are not US flagged ships and the Iwo Jima is busy heading up the Expeditionary Strike group.

The following ships are in the 5th fleet area of operations and are more then capable of policing the area if their governments decide to act. Let them step up to the plate and do something. I'm glad to see India taking a lead and protecting her own kind.

HDMS Absalon (L16)
RFS Neustrashimyy (712)
RSS Resolution (L 208)
HMCS Ville de Quebec (FFH 332)
FS Courbet (F712)
FS Commandant Birot (F796)
FS Floreal (F730)
FS Nivôse (F732)
FS La Boudeuse (P683)
HMS Lancaster (F229)
HMS Northumberland (F238)
HMAS Parramatta (FFH 154)
HNLMS De Ruyte (F804)
KD Sri Inderapura (L 1505)
INS Tabar (F44)
INS Ganga (F22)
HMS Ramsay (M 110)
HMS Blyth (M 111)
HMS Atherstone (M38)
HMS Chiddingfold (M37)

Posted by: Yosemite Sam   2008-11-11 13:35  

#4  In a swift action, warship INS Tabar intervened to thwart two near-simultaneous attacks by pirates on an Indian cargo vessel MV Jag Arnav and a Saudi flag carrier MV NCC Thihama within 25 nautical miles of each otheron Tuesday morning.

The Indian warship, which was deployed in the region on October 23 in the wake of rising attacks by pirates on merchant vessels, received an SOS from the Saudi ship at around 1000 hours after a group of pirates surrounded it.

Marine commandos on board INS Tabar flew out in an armed helicopter and launched an assault on the attackers, who were in five speed boats, forcing them to flee into the Somali waters.

Even as this operation was on, the warship received a panic call from MV Jag Arnav, a merchant vessel owned by Mumbai-based Great Eastern Shipping Company, with about 20 crew members on board.
Posted by: john frum   2008-11-11 13:28  

#3  The only way to reduce piracy is to kill the pirates and sink their vessels. Why isn't the Iwo Jima there, complete with a complement of Cobra helicopters and AV-8B Harrier aircraft?
Posted by: Old Patriot   2008-11-11 12:28  

#2  agreed, shoot first.... shipping them to places that will torture and execute them might just work out the opposite way as they could be recruited and further trained by some other, even worse bunch of "bad guys"
Posted by: blackbeard   2008-11-11 09:55  

#1  Good on them, but the only way this nonsense is going to stop is to either blow them out of the water or capture them and make it a point to turn them over to nasty countries who torture and execute prisoners.
Posted by: Free Radical   2008-11-11 07:16  

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