Pirates Kill American Hostages on SV Quest

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

Update ; Hijacked SV Quest Split from Group; Now Trailed by US Navy

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

Pirates Capture Four Americans on Yacht in Indian Ocean

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

Pirates Hijack Two Tankers in Two Days – MV Savina Caylyn & MV Irene SL

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

Beginning the New Year – A Sinking, Pirate Hijacking, Round the World Race and Smoke-Free Subs

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

MV Lugela Hijacked then Freed off Somalia after Crew Retreats to Engine Room

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

US Marines Recapture M/V Magellan Star from Somali Pirates

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

MV Moscow University – Why Anti-Piracy Efforts off Somalia Are Doomed to Fail

Two news stories, days apart demonstrate, at least to me, why the current efforts to combat piracy off the coast of Somalia are doomed to fail.  We posted previously how the tanker MV Moscow University was recaptured from pirates by … Continue reading

NATO Destroyer Sinks Pirate Mother Ship off Somalia but Lets Pirates Go

In the ongoing somewhat surreal operation against piracy off Somalia,  the HDMS Absalon, a Danish destroyer, sank a pirate “mother ship” but allowed the pirates to return to shore.   The official goal appears to be to “disrupt” rather than stop pirate activities. … Continue reading

UK Government says “Don’t Pay Ransom and Don’t Arm your Ships”

Last week we posted about the International Chamber of Shipping’s concern that governments are not doing enough to combat piracy. Now the British government, after long opposing the payment of ransoms to free hijacked ships is also trying to discourage the … Continue reading