Busting up Somali pirate attacks one ship at a time
Shipping security consultant says 9 times out of 10 pirates turn tail when they see armed guards on the boats. But the war against piracy isn't entirely over.
Shipping security consultant says 9 times out of 10 pirates turn tail when they see armed guards on the boats. But the war against piracy isn't entirely over.
When they speed up to a lumbering ship, the main thing Somalian pirates do not want to see are armed guards. With fewer ships now being boarded in the Indian Ocean, security analysts are giving credit to the hiring of private guards who quickly display their defensive weapons on the deck of a ship as it gets scoped out by potential attackers in pirate skiffs.
David C., a former British Marine commando who fought in Iraq and Sierra Leone, talked with the Monitor out his new job as a private security team leader for shipping that runs in sensitive waters off the Somalia coast. The interview was conducted for a Monitor Focus story on progress in dealing with piracy, found here.聽
鈥淢r. C.,鈥� who could not offer his last name, outlines the recent changes onboard ships, the new protocol for warning and chasing away pirates, and a concern about the future:
The worry felt by security companies according to David C is that people think piracy has been beaten and that it is time to relax. But he argues "the guys are still there waiting."