Captain Philips testifies before congress about his thoughts on how to deal with piracy. Watch it here. –Matt
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Crime: Drug-Sub Culture
“You ever try to build something in your backyard? They’re building these in the jungles.”
This is a building snowmobiles concept, and very innovative. I give them high marks for working the problem and coming up with something like this, but it is still criminal.
Perhaps the counter to something like this could be the good ol’ Letter of Marque? I have talked about it before for land operations, and this problem is a prime opportunity to use the LoM for a sea based operation. We would have to break out all the old U-Boat hunting ‘lessons learned’ from WW2 for this one. I also think this would be an excellent task for a private naval company, and this stuff along with the piracy deal, could keep companies very busy. –Matt
——————————————————————-
Drug-Sub Culture
By DAVID KUSHNER
April 26, 2009
THE CRAFT FIRST surfaced like something out of a science-fiction movie. It was November 2006, and a Coast Guard cutter spotted a strange blur on the ocean 100 miles off Costa Rica. As the cutter approached, what appeared to be three snorkels poking up out of the water became visible. Then something even more surprising was discovered attached to the air pipes: a homemade submarine carrying four men, an AK-47 and three tons of cocaine.
Today, the 49-foot-long vessel bakes on concrete blocks outside the office of Rear Adm. Joseph Nimmich in Key West, Fla. Here, at the Joint Interagency Task Force South, Nimmich commands drug-interdiction efforts in the waters south of the United States. Steely-eyed, gray-haired and dressed in a blue jumpsuit, he showed me the homemade sub one hot February afternoon like a hunter flaunting his catch. “We had rumors and indicators of this for a very long period beforehand,” he told me, which is why they nicknamed it Bigfoot.
Comments Off on Crime: Drug-Sub Culture
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Maritime Security: Italian Cruise Ship Fires on Somali Pirates
Good for these guys, I guess, but I still have some issues with this. The security force only had pistols to defend this boat with, and that is not good. They had to wait for the pirates to get close to be effective, and that is a terrible security plan. Especially if you are dealing with folks with machine guns and RPG’s. You must give the security force weapons that will help to keep the pirates away from the boat, as well as give them weapons that will be effective up close in case the pirates board. To arm a security force with only pistols is a joke, and as far as I am concerned, these guys were very lucky.
The other point I think needs mentioning, is how far these guys were from Somalia out in the open water.
Saturday’s attack occurred about 200 miles north of the Seychelles, and about 500 miles (800 kilometers) east of Somalia, according to the anti-piracy flotilla headquarters of the Maritime Security Center Horn of Africa.
Lt. Nathan Christensen, a spokesman for the U.S. Navy 5th Fleet, noted that the distance from the Somalia coast was a sign of the pirates’ increasing skill.
“It’s not unheard of to have attacks off the coast of the Seychelles, we’ve even had some in the past month,” he said. “But at the same time, it is a sign that they are moving further and further off the Somali coast,” demonstrating a “definite shift in their tactical capabilities.”
Obviously they are using a mother ship for these kinds of operations and they are getting better and better at this stuff. They are also trying to hit boats in areas where people least expect it or areas where a navy is not, which is smart as well. Armed security on the boat is vital, but just giving them pistols is unacceptable. Give them what they need to properly defend a boat, set up coordination with the navies for quick reaction force or even with other boats that are armed, and get serious about defending these ships. –Matt
——————————————————————
Italian Cruise Ship Fires on Somali Pirates
Sunday , April 26, 2009 AP
ROME —
An Italian cruise ship with 1,500 people on board fended off a pirate attack far off the coast of Somalia when its Israeli private security forces exchanged fire with the bandits and drove them away, the commander said Sunday.
Cmdr. Ciro Pinto told Italian state radio that six men in a small white speed boat approached the Msc Melody and opened fire Saturday night, but retreated after the Israeli security officers aboard the cruise ship returned fire.
“It felt like we were in war,” Pinto said.
Comments Off on Maritime Security: Italian Cruise Ship Fires on Somali Pirates
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Maritime Security: Petraeus-Shippers Should Consider Armed Guards
“It’s tough to be on the end of a water hose if the other guy is on the end of an RPG. So you’ve got to think your way through that calculation as well.”
I wonder if Petraeus reads FJ? LOL So maybe now the shipping industry might finally adjust their thinking on such things? –Matt
—————————————————————–
Petraeus: Shippers should consider armed guards
By LARA JAKES, Associated Press Writer Lara Jakes, Associated Press Writer Fri Apr 24
WASHINGTON – The global shipping industry should consider placing armed guards on its boats to ward off pirates who have become increasingly violent, the U.S. military commander who oversees the African coastline said Friday.
Gen. David Petraeus, who came to the Capitol to talk about a wide variety of issues, told a House committee Friday that just trying to outrun or block pirates from boarding cargo ships isn’t enough to deter sea bandits off the Somali coast who are becoming more aggressive. The Pentagon is starting to study how to better protect merchant shipping, but hasn’t yet come up with a formal plan.
The shipping industry has resisted arming their boats, which would deny them port in some nations.
In response to questions from a House Appropriations subcommittee, Petraeus said defensive preparations short of armed guards “can work. You can have water hoses and others that can make it more difficult.”
But in a wry tone, he added: “It’s tough to be on the end of a water hose if the other guy is on the end of an RPG. So you’ve got to think your way through that calculation as well.”
An RPG is a rocket-propelled grenade launcher.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Maritime Security: Congressman’s Plan to Fend Off Pirates
“a free-market solution to make the high seas safer for cargo ships.”
This should be the theme of Feral Jundi, although I would rework it to apply to the big three–piracy, drugs, and terrorism. I really like this idea, and it is an ‘out of the box/building snowmobiles’ solution that has actually been implemented in the past with great success. Applying a free market solution to not just make the seas safer, but the world safer, is the kind of concept that could be a game changer in these endless wars we are fighting.
The other point I wanted to make, is nothing else seems to be working that great in the war on drugs, terror, or piracy. Why not try it out, and really give it a go? Wars are extremely expensive, and the Letter of Marque might be the solution to actually save some money. Things to think about, as these wars drag on. –Matt
Edit: Watch Ron Paul’s Youtube Talk about the Subject Here
——————————————————————
Ron Paul’s plan to fend off pirates
By: Erika Lovley
April 15, 2009 04:16 AM EST
A little-known congressional power could help the federal government keep the Somali pirates in check — and possibly do it for a discount price.
Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and a growing number of national security experts are calling on Congress to consider using letters of marque and reprisal, a power written into the Constitution that allows the United States to hire private citizens to keep international waters safe.
Used heavily during the Revolution and the War of 1812, letters of marque serve as official warrants from the government, allowing privateers to seize or destroy enemies, their loot and their vessels in exchange for bounty money.
The letters also require would-be thrill seekers to post a bond promising to abide by international rules of war.
In a YouTube video earlier this week, Paul suggested lawmakers consider issuing letters, which could relieve American naval ships from being the nation’s primary pirate responders — a free-market solution to make the high seas safer for cargo ships.
Comments Off on Maritime Security: Congressman’s Plan to Fend Off Pirates