Comments on: The Future of Piracy (Updated)

By: The Glittering Eye » Blog Archive » Piracy in the Gulf of Aden

The Glittering Eye » Blog Archive » Piracy in the Gulf of Aden — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:09:17 +0000

[...] The Future of Piracy [...]

By: Casco Bay Boaters Blog » » Somali Pirates Wielding an Ecological Weapon

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 05:41:16 +0000

[...] Schuler has a good summary called the "Future of Piracy" where he calls for international military action, and the AFP wire has updates but BBC has [...]

By: fester

fester — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 18:24:38 +0000

Right now we are hitting a cost/benefit problem --- what is the cost of delayed deliveries, increased insurance and ransom versus the costs of convoying such as slower speeds (a convoy moves at the speed of the slowest ship), more idling time as a convoy takes time to assemble and less efficient port utilization as traffic does not enter and leave in a steady stream but instead in spikes so that port facilities are either used at peak capacity OR barely used at all.

During WWII, it was estimated that convoying cost the British roughly 15% to 20% of their annual tonnage import rates. That drop was much smaller than the projected import tonnage losses of not running convoys and letting the U-boats have free reign on unescorted merchies, but convoys are very expensive.

By: DC Loser

DC Loser — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:28:53 +0000

This problem is not unlike the u-boat problem. What's needed is to start convoy operations in that area. A couple of armed escorts and a helo flying cover over a convoy will take care of the pirate threat.

By: Barry

Barry — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:11:51 +0000

"Are we not patrolling the area heavily already? This has been going on for a while."

Posted by Anderson

IIRC a couple of weeks ago a high-ranking US Navy official made comments which boiled down to "you're all on your own; the USN doesn't do piddling sh*t like that".

As for patrols, this is where one puts armed parties on ships (quietly, in the middle of the ocean), and sinks pirate ships upon their attacks.

By: James M.

James M. — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:46:20 +0000

As I recall this was the mandate of the U.S. Navy when they first come into existence. They were there to control piracy on the open seas against U.S. vessels. So we have adapted over the years away from this type of mandate and now we are seeing the consequences. Pirates are just as much as a threat to national security as a terrorist. They both are seeking targets of opportunity and both need to be dealt with accordingly.

By: fester

fester — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:05:03 +0000

And as far as the Saudis, Iranians, Quataris, Omanis etc escorting their own shipping with their own navies, none of those navies have significant deep water/out of area capacity. Most of their ships are optimized for relatively protected waters such as the Gulf and the Red Sea and are relatively small. Fast patrol boats and light attack craft can not function effectively in the middle of the Indian Ocean. They don't have the endurance, sensor reach or the spare parts to stay at sea and be effective long enough to make it worthwhile.

By: Dave Schuler

Dave Schuler — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 12:45:38 +0000

I think the short answer to the question of why we don't escort vessels in troublesome areas is that we don't have enough vessels of the right size and type to do so. Our military is largely oriented to near-peer warfare rather than retail law enforcement and peacekeeping.

By: Brett

Brett — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 11:30:21 +0000

Why can't we provide some escorts? It's not like it would take a lot of ships to deter these pirates.

By: John Burgess

John Burgess — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 04:23:43 +0000

Reuters is reporting that the tanker has been released: Hijacked Saudi Tanker Reported Freed Jeffrey Baker: The area being patrolled is over one million square miles. The boats involved in the attacks are small, mostly wooden, and don't show up in either satellite or radar surveillance.

By: Jeffrey W. Baker

Jeffrey W. Baker — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 04:10:34 +0000

We have 11 carrier groups. Why can't we prevent this type of thing?

By: Anderson

Anderson — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 03:37:04 +0000

If the Saudi navy isn’t up to the task, the world’s great navies may be called on once again.

Are we not patrolling the area heavily already? This has been going on for a while.

By: John Burgess

John Burgess — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 03:35:00 +0000

There's still piracy in the Malacca Straits and the Gulf of Siam, but that's lessened of late. Not sure why.

There is also piracy off the coast of Florida, where drug runners take over small boats (usually pleasure boats, yachts, and sport fishing vessels), kill those aboard and then use the boats to enter ports while attracting less attention. I know of several people killed this way over the past few years.