In February, the sailing vessel Quest was hijacked by pirates 240 nautical miles off the coast of Oman in the Indian Ocean. The yacht’s crew of four Americans were taken hostage. The pirates were finally captured by US forces but not before they killed … Continue reading
Tag Archives: pirates
It has long been predicted and now it has happened – a pirate attack has set fire to a loaded oil tanker. On Wednesday morning, pirates operating in the Gulf of Aden attacked the Suezmax tanker, Brillante Virtuoso, firing a rocket propelled grenade into the deck … Continue reading
Recently we posted about joint-operations by the Indian Navy and Coast Guard which since last Novemeber have succeeded in capturing 120 pirates in the Indian Ocean as well as taking several pirate “mother ships” and freeing the hostage held aboard. On reader commented: Good on … Continue reading
We have been posting a lot about piracy and kidnapping recently. Today is a reminder about how little things change over the centuries. Somewhere around the year 400 AD, a lad of 16, named Maewyn Succat, was kidnapped by pirates from his home in Britain … Continue reading
Last Friday, the Indian Navy picked up as distress call from the container ship MV Vancouver Bridge, which was under attack by pirates in the Indian Ocean, about 600 nautical miles off the Indian coast. When spotted by an Indian patrol … Continue reading
This week the Maersk Alabama was attacked by pirates for the third time in the last two years. In April of 2009, pirates boarded the Maersk containership and took her captain, Richard Phillips, hostage. He was later rescued when Navy sharpshooters … Continue reading
Piracy in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean can be wildly profitable and is relatively risk free. If a pirate is caught by any of the multinational naval task force, chances are that they will simply let the … Continue reading
Commandos from the USS Bulkeley boarded the Japanese owned tanker MV Guanabara on Sunday after the crew reported that the ship was under attack by pirates. The commandos captured four pirates aboard the ship without firing a shot. The crew had withdrawn … Continue reading
Danish authorities are reporting that Somali pirates have hijacked a Danish sailboat with four adults and three children aboard. Danish family’s sailboat hijacked in Indian Ocean The Danish Foreign Ministry said the ship sent a distress signal on Thursday. On board was a … Continue reading
Why did the pirates kill their for American hostages aboard the sailing yacht Quest? We may never know. Naval officers are speculating that the close approach of the destroyer USS Sterett may have panicked some of the pirates. The Sterett reportedly drew closer … Continue reading
The US Central Command announced this morning that four Americans aboard the hijacked sailing vessel Quest were shot and killed by pirates at approximately 1 a.m. EST today. The victims were Jean and Scott Adam, the owners of the yacht, and Phyllis … Continue reading
We are learning more about the hijacked SV Quest, seized by pirates off Oman last Friday. The sailing yacht, reportedly with Americans Scott and Jean Adam, Phyllis Macay and Bob Riggle aboard, had been sailing with the Oz-Med section of … Continue reading
Four Americans on the S/V Quest were seized by pirates this afternoon 240 nautical miles off the coast of Oman in the Indian Ocean. Jean and Scott Adam, owners of the S/V Quest, have been sailing around the world … Continue reading
Last week the Danish warship Esbern Snare captured a hijacked fishing vessel and freed two Yemeni hostages. In addition to 16 pirates aboard the ship, the Danes found rocket launchers, assault rifles, ammunition, large quantities of fuel and two skiffs. … Continue reading
Yesterday, the Italian-owned Aframax tanker MV Savina Caylyn was hijacked by pirates approximately 670 nautical miles East of Socotra Island in the Indian Ocean. Today, the Greek-owned VLCC MV Irene SL was hijacked approximately 350 nautical miles South East of … Continue reading
This story is a few days old, but remains strange and disturbing. The Dutch coaster Leopard, carrying a cargo of weapons, was reported to have been hijacked by pirates in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Oman last week, but when a Turkish naval … Continue reading
Today is the first day back to work for many after a bit of time off for the holidays. And how has the New Year begun? More or less the same as the last year which just ended. On … Continue reading
Well planned passive resistance proved to be an effective tactic for the crew of the MV Lugela this weekend. Earlier this month we posted about the hijacking and subsequent recapture of the M/V Magellan Star from Somali pirates by US Marine commandos, after … Continue reading
More details on the capture of the M/V Magellan Star. The crew and the ship management company kept their heads and their sense of humor when the ship was boarded by Somali pirates on Wednesday. When the pirates boarded the ship, … Continue reading
Twenty-four U.S. Marines from the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s Maritime Raid Force stormed the German-owned containership M/V Magellan Star today, capturing the pirates that had seized control of the ship in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Somalia. No … Continue reading