This doesn't look like an inflatable boat to me. And these "pirates" don't look more like they were interested in beheading rich American tourists.
Posted on 11/06/2005 7:39:59 AM PST by aculeus
IN MARITIME circles it is regarded as the pinnacle of luxury - a boutique ship that offers its passengers a lifestyle which, like private jets, the top suite at the Ritz and Krug champagne, is reserved for the privileged few.
But in the early hours of yesterday morning, as guests slept in their spacious en-suite cabins complete with sea views, marble bathrooms and mahogany dining rooms, a band of armed pirates was preparing to storm aboard the Seabourn Spirit.
Passengers, some of whom had paid more than £19,000 for the 16-day voyage, were woken at 5.30am when the attack began 100 miles off the coast of Somalia, in the Indian Ocean.
Armed men on board two 25ft inflatable boats fired live bullets and rocket-propelled grenades as they tried to climb aboard the liner. Terrified passengers reported a series of explosions as the pirates fired on the luxurious 10,000-tonne cruise liner.
But despite the onslaught by the heavily armed bandits, the 200-man crew managed to scare them off using a loud acoustic boom to imitate the sound of an explosion.
None of the 302 passengers, 20 of whom were British, were injured, although one crew member was slightly hurt by flying debris from a ricocheted bullet.
The ship was rated as the most luxurious in the world earlier this year by Condé Nast Traveller and has previously boasted passenger lists including Bill Gates and Donald Trump.
Solicitor Norman Fisher, 55, from Hampstead Garden Suburb in north London, was on board working when captain Sven Erik Pedersen announced over the ship's PA system: "Stay inside, we're under attack."
The passengers were told to go to the restaurant as the sound of the grenade and gunfire filled the air.
"I heard what sounded like a crack from outside at 5.50am," said Fisher.
"I looked out of the window and saw a small boat with about five people in it about 20 yards away.
"One of them clearly had a rifle. Later I realised that two of them had rifles and one had some kind of rocket launcher.
"They were firing the rifle and then fired the rocket launcher twice. One of the rockets certainly hit the ship - it went through the side of the liner into a passenger's suite. The couple were in there at the time so it was a bit of an unpleasant experience.
"At first I didn't know what was going on, but when I saw the rocket launcher I started getting a bit scared."
Fisher said the captain tried to ram one of the boats in an attempt to capsize it and stop them getting on board.
"The atmosphere in the restaurant was a little tense. People were pretty good and they weren't panicking, but one or two were certainly looking nervous," he added.
"The captain came in at about 6.30am and explained what was going on and said he was reasonably confident we had lost them. Of course, he got a massive round of applause.
"It was all a very surreal experience - not the kind of thing you expect on a cruise."
The guests, mainly wealthy Americans, were 13 days into a 16-day voyage which had taken them via Jordan, Egypt and the Red Sea. They were due to visit Mombasa in Kenya, where an exclusive safari awaited them.
Barman Richard Fuller, who worked on board, said the passengers were kept inside while the crew attempted to repel the bandits. He said the atmosphere on the ship was still tense.
He said: "A lot of the guest are still nervous. One of the crew suffered minor injuries while he was on deck watch duties. He was hit by a bit of debris but he is all right."
Another passenger, Edith Laird from Seattle, said one of the grenades launched at the ship hit a cabin just a few doors away from where she and her daughter had been sleeping.
In an e-mail sent from the ship, she said: "My daughter saw the pirates out our window.
"There were at least three RPGs that hit the ship, one in a stateroom four doors down from our cabin."
Passenger Mike Rogers of Vancouver said: "The captain tried to run one of the boats over, but they were small boats, about 25ft long.
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"There's some minor damage done to the ship. I believe one of the grenades actually went off in one of the cabins, but everyone on board is fine."
Carol Marlow, a spokeswoman for the Miami-based company Seabourn Cruises owned by US cruise giant Carnival, said the ship was sailing in an area it had sailed many times before and was adhering to international maritime safety regulations.
She said: "All the passengers and crew are safe. The ship's crew immediately initiated a trained response and, as a result of protective and evasive measures taken, the occupants of the small craft were unable to gain access to the ship.
"The ship has diverted so we are now heading to the Republic of the Seychelles rather than Mombasa. We felt that was a more appropriate measure in the light of what has happened.
The type of inflatable that can sail 100 miles into blue water is not the sort that can be sunk by an airgun.
How would you get from Egypt to Kenya on a ship?
Armed men on board two 25ft inflatable boats fired live bullets…
I have watched several accounts of this on the TV news – and with one exception all the newsreaders seemed shocked that there are still pirates roaming the sea lanes. The one exception went on to include the number of attacks last year and the most dangerous areas.
If crews are to be armed, a shotgun is the last damn thing I would want. Give them something with stopping power and range.
Your motorhome has slide out gun turrets and flamethrowers?
Ya' need to park in better neighborhoods......
Actually, it sounds like you can park any darn place ya' want...
Are also deflatable with a little grapeshot.
The goal was to kidnap and behead the 150 Americans on-board. These "pirates" were Al Qaeada, and the goal wasn't to steal jewelry.
Indeed, but I had been under the impression (perhaps incorrectly) that the inflatables came off a larger ship and did not sail out 100 miles from shore.
I think it's simply a bit of harmless newspaper puffery. S on S tends to be pretty decent.
They would have to stop the ship. Shooting it in the side like they did won't work.
If they'd used their RPG's to damage the propulsion area it might have worked.
Then threats with their small arms could force a boarding party.
Most do. What they really need is a response team that is trained to not only escape an attack, but kill the attackers.
I was in the Navy working in Special Ops for 10 years. I have conducted ship attacks like this in training. It is a very dangerous undertaking. Just imagine holding a 30ft fiberglass boat next to a ship for 2 min, while the ship is actively tring to evade you. We only used our oldest boats for this because the amount of damage they substained when the ship got the better of us. However, it is possible to get a SEAL team aboard a ship in less than 90 seconds.
The ship was lucky that it did not happen at night. The outcome may have been very different. Sounds like the cruise line could make a wise investment by hiring some ex-spec op guys to provide security. I know a few that would work cheap if geetin the same VIP treatment was part of the deal.
This ship was pretty far off shore from what I understand... how on Earth did these "pirates" find it? Were they just out joyriding and stumbled across it?
Aaaarrrggh! You throw some lines up the sides me hearty, and board her from the port and starboard!
By staying far away from Somolia.
One reads of piracy from time to time. Does anyone know if such incidents have increased over, say the last 25 years?
It is a known fact that standard scruffy pirates have been attacking passing yachts (round the world sailboats) for years here, with simple robbery/looting/plundering as their goal. Until proven otherwise, that is what we KNOW as opposed to what we might like to SUSPECT.
Even a sailboat is "Fort Knox" to locals who live on less than $500 per year, total. One pair of binoculars or a GPS is a month's "salary."
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