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ShipSentinel · 20-11-2008, 07:31

My company is currently looking for opportunities to apply out behavior analysis system to tackle piracy. The system analyzes other ships around you based on radar images and rises alarm if anything suspious is detected so people would enough time to respond. Baically it is an automatic early warning system , pirates would not even have a chance to get on the ship without being noticed under cover of darkness. Because I am new to this kind of application.
I am wondering if this is a what people need to prevent piracy. Any comments would be highly appreciated.

Laurent.

AnchorageGuy · 20-11-2008, 07:51

Laurent, Maybe a good idea for larger vessels but we already have such a system aboard. It is called a good pair of eyes on watch, which is always operational when under way. When at anchor, which is when most issues occur with cruisers, the radar is seldom on.

SilentOption · 20-11-2008, 08:07

The mixed nationality crews on these ships aren't going to put up a fight any way. The pirates are arriving with automatic weapons.
The crew might be able to thwart them for a short time with a fire hose but if I was the pirates I'd just put climbers up in several locations.
One armed bad guy on deck and the fight is over. I think most of these commercial crews are taking the best course of action to stay alive. Submit and let the owners sort it out. Resistance without arms will like as not result in nothing but your death.

Little Otter · 20-11-2008, 19:36

laurnet, its a good idea but as Silent said, sadly most of these crews have no arms to fight back with so it would be futile although it would be easier to give the warships in the area a message and then try to stall till the ships get there.

Minggat · 20-11-2008, 20:13

I'm confused. He's talking about an early warning system. Not an armed defense system. Early warning may mean less confrontation. Not necessarily more. Maybe not so applicable on pleasure yachts. What on earth can be wrong with a commercial crew getting an electronic heads up?

**GordMay** · 20-11-2008, 23:44

French Navy first to offer 'Close Support Protection’ system.

The European Union (EU) has initiated a ‘Close Support Protection’ system for vessels transiting the Gulf of Aden. The French navy will be the first to offer this service.

The French Navy is able to provide protection teams onboard two merchant vessels at a time. Only two vessels will have the protection teams onboard upon request. The rest of the ships intending to follow this ‘group of protected vessels‘ can do so without the protection teams onboard. The presence of the warships will deter pirates from attacking any vessels in the group. Vessels can also call the nearby warships for assistance when attacked by pirates.

Civilian vessels willing to benefit from such escorts have to make contact 10 days before slot.

Inquiries regarding exact time and date of departure, please contact:
French Force commander staff for Indian Ocean
Tel: 00 33 4 94 02 89 49
E-mail: alindien@free.fr

For more details goto:
Alert to all ships transiting the Gulf of Aden

**GordMay** · 20-11-2008, 23:46

From the International Maritime Bureau

Advice to Masters:
goto
Advice to Masters

In the event of attack:

1. Increase Speed
2. Commence evasive manoeuvres and use bow wave and stern wash to prevent the small boats approaching close to the ship
3. Idnentify the mother vessel and move away from it (if there is one)
4. Steam away from land
5. Head into the sea and swell: this makes it more difficult for boats to come alongside

* In the event of pirates boarding and gaining control of the bridge it is essential to try to keep calm and follow the instructions of the pirates in order to avoid physical confrontation. The master should at all times endeavor to keep the vessel in command to prevent collision / grounding etc.

ShipSentinel · 21-11-2008, 07:46

Thank you all for your information, as what Minggat said it is just a Warning system, it would tell you someone acting strangly, or trying to approach you in dark night while you are sleeping. It has nothing to do with weapon or self defense. It just gives you time to make a decision.

**David M** · 21-11-2008, 07:54

Ship Sentinel,
Interesting idea of having a little more time to make a decision...but what decision? What are your alternatives? Once you are detected by pirates, there is nothing you can do about it anyways. I don't know if it is better to know your life if going to be threatened one minute from now or three minutes from now.

What can a small yacht do against 40 knot armed pirate boats?...you obviously cannot outrun them. Once you get detected by them visually or by radar, then there is nothing you can do unless you have a military escort to defend you.

For now, I think the idea of running convoys daily or twice daily with military protection is the best idea. It seems very cost effective. The difference in insurance rates would be enormous. Eventually the pirates will give up because they are no longer successful at what they do. They will eventually figure out that if they start their ways again, all this will do is start the military convoys again. Convoys are what we did in WW2 against German U-boats. Its certainly not a new idea.

Little Otter · 30-11-2008, 18:25

David if you think there is nothing you can do you are wrong there are lots of things you can do, make a maltave cocktail with engine fuel, ram them, chase them in circles, shoot them with flares, throw rope at their props, call for help, pretend to surrender then pull away while they are boarding and squish them into red jelly, make them over shoot you by stopping suddenly, throw anything loose at them to tangle them up, there are manhy more but I won't go into anymore detail.

SilentOption · 30-11-2008, 18:51

Overshooting, Flaming cocktails, ramming, squishing the pirates as they jump aboard?
I have a little experience with boarding boats at sea underway that don't want to be boarded. There's no squishing or out maneuvering of throwing stuff. The only way they are overshooting your boat that's making 6 or 8 knots is if they are still doing 40 knots when they pull alongside. I'd say chances of that is nil.
Modern pirates have standoff weapons. You resist and they are going stay just far enough away to make sure they can get your attention.
Your best chance of survival is to submit and give up as little as possible but enough to make them leave. The odds of survival will go way up if you do that. Odds of you not surviving after trying to harm them will be real good.
Calling for help is a good idea.
Fouling their props will just delay the inevitable for a short time.

Little Otter · 30-11-2008, 19:07

well if they can't go anywhere then if you stay low the chances of you getting out of range safley is good.

SilentOption · 30-11-2008, 19:22

Lets say you can foul their props and it takes them 15 minutes to untangle the mess. If you are making 8 knots you will get approximately 2nm away. When they get underway at 40 knots they will be alongside in about a minute and a half and pissed.
I spent 24 years in SEAL Team and I think its normal to think about all the things we would do if.....but if any of us are where the at sea piracy is going on we are likely on our very slow sailboats possibly with loved ones or loved one, and probably not armed based on all the discussions here about carrying weapons.
Sometimes its better to go with the odds and again just based on what I have been reading the odds of survival are much better if you submit and let them take what they want and go. And survival is the "most important" thing in my mind.
If you happen to have a chance encounter though please post the results and exactly what you did to foil the attack.