German Navy Thwarts Pirate Attack on Cruise Ship

According to German newspaper Deutsche Welle, The German Navy warded off a suspected piracy attack on a German cruise ship in the Gulf of Aden, a spokesman for the mission has confirmed . Germany has troops in the area to combat piracy.

Armed guards plan to tackle piracy

Vulnerable cargo ships off the coast of Somalia may be given armed guards by an EU task force being sent to combat the huge surge in piracy there. The British naval commander in charge of the operation, vice admiral Philip Jones, said the EU’s warship flotilla would seek to place “vessel-protection detachments” on board some [...]

Cruise Lines react to threats of piracy

Luxury cruise operators are the latest industry to react to threats of piracy off the coast of Somalia and other unrest in South Asia. At least one luxury cruise line has altered their scheduled itinerary, and another has taken the step of evacuating passengers from it’s ships prior to transiting the gulf of Aden and [...]

Piracy Update: Pirates attack Cruise Liner MS Nautica

The Associated Press is reporting that the MS Nautica, an Oceanic Cruise Lines passenger liner, was en route from Egypt to Oman when two small vessels in the Gulf of Aden attacked it Sunday (Nov. 30, 2008). The ship’s Captain observed the approach of the attackers at approximately 1,000 yards and increased speed. The attacking [...]

U.S. Ship repels pirate attack

While the world’s attention has been focused on the drama aboard the MV Faina (And it’s 21 member crew) off Somalia’s Indian Ocean coast, there have been some other developments in the area which may point a much more sophisticated plot. On September 23rd, a Navy security team aboard the fleet oiler John Lenthall kept [...]

WEAPONS TIGHT: Boyd’s Loop and a critical weakness in Naval Force Protection

Current U.S. Navy waterborne Force Protection doctrine, as promulgated in NWP 3.10 Naval Coastal Warfare relies heavily on the concept of a layered defense-in-depth concept provided by three distinct zones around the asset being protected. These are the assessment, warning, and threat zones, concentric rings around the asset which alter the level of threat and [...]