Millionaire’s Private Navy Ready to Take on Somali Pirates
05.08.2013 at 01:14am
Millionaire’s Private Navy Ready to Take on Somali Pirates – Mike Schuler at gCaptain.
A new British private navy will soon begin plying the Indian Ocean to help support the fight against Somali pirates.
The UK’s Sunday Times reported yesterday that the new navy, founded by companies led by the commodity giant Glencore International Plc (GLEN), will protect its first convoy of oil tankers and bulk carriers from Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean in late March or April, according to their interview with Glencore Chairman, Simon Murray…
This seems like a bad idea. Demand for this type of service has fallen as pirate attacks have decreased dramatically. A recent article quoted a UN official saying there has been no successful attack in over a year (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/03/somali-pirate-hijacking). However, they may resume once EU naval forces depart the region.
My main concern is that the force described in this article does not seem sufficient for the mission. Many pirates were operating in a similar configuration with a mother ship and fast attack boats but were better financed due to their many ransom payments and experienced in their missions. It seems that the author of this concept is making an assumption that British sailors are inherently better and should have no problems defeating an equal sized force. Even with advanced intel, communications, and weapons it will be hard to defeat a force that is battle hardened in its own backyard and has greater motivation to fight. In the end I fear this new anti-piracy company is going to need rescue or ransom.