Should ships be armed to combat pirates?

[1958Bassman]

A Sniper on the pitching/rolling deck of a ship???? Ummmm ....

Remember the Maersk Alabama? The Somali pirates took the ship's captain and were on their boat when the US snipers performed a coordinated shot from the deck of their ship, taking out three of the pirates and ending the situation. They used the Barrett .50 cal sniper rifle.

 

[NoiseNinja]

I would vote for arming the ship (if the poll had not been closed), although I'm generally against guns (you'll have to be careful who you permit having guns). But when sailing in dangerous waters, like near Somalia, I think they should have a change to defend them self.

 

[burk48237]

Since this is an international problem why not deal with it internationally? We should charge a fee to all nations that use cargo shipping thru the UN (flagging nations and port nations). It could be based on the tonnage they transport or recieve. This would fund s place a small armed contingent and maybe a couple of M-2 (.50 cal) machine guns on the bow of every ship that frequents these waters. Three or four well trained men per ship would be enough. We could also set up a UN based backup force stationed in the area.

 

[NWB]

There are already contracting companies hiring marksman, snipers and small security forces to get flown onto ships while they are in high threat areas. Pays pretty good too.

This seems like the most logical approach to the problem.

 

[skychief]

Remember the Maersk Alabama? The Somali pirates took the ship's captain and were on their boat when the US snipers performed a coordinated shot from the deck of their ship, taking out three of the pirates and ending the situation. They used the Barrett .50 cal sniper rifle.

Could that sniper haven taken out 14 Somali pirates in a speedboat coming toward him at 20 kts? At best, he might take out 1 or 2, but a lone sniper cannot prevent an entire crew of Somali pirates from boarding his vessel.

Thats why I suggested in an earlier post a couple of GAU-8/A guns (30mm , 4200 rounds/min) mounted port & starboard would stop any pirate attack.

You dont need a sharpshooter to fire it; if you get the "spray" even close to the the target, it (the target) becomes vapor. So any crewmember could operate it.

 

[Craig_S]

They used the Barrett .50 cal sniper rifle.

Put a couple Barrets on the big boat. Aim them at the little boat. Make the little boat go away. The Barret, done correctly, will take out the boat the pirates are on.

 

[nickbass79]

Could that sniper haven taken out 14 Somali pirates in a speedboat coming toward him at 20 kts? At best, he might take out 1 or 2, but a lone sniper cannot prevent an entire crew of Somali pirates from boarding his vessel.

Thats why I suggested in an earlier post a couple of GAU-8/A guns (30mm , 4200 rounds/min) mounted port & starboard would stop any pirate attack.

You dont need a sharpshooter to fire it; if you get the "spray" even close to the the target, it (the target) becomes vapor. So any crewmember could operate it.

Believe me, I like to be FULLY prepared and having a 30mm would do the trick, but you would then have a permanent weapon on board and that gets into a legal matter, especially when docking at any customs port.

A marksman or sniper doesn't have to shoot anyone, just stop/or deter the boat from a distance. Minimal weapons, minimal personnel, minimal cost to the vessel. You can also drop off and pick up the personnel instead of paying someone for a full 3-8 months of their time.

I personally wouldn't use a Barret. They have a 4 minute of angle minimum capability, not including the shooters capability. That means for every minute of angle, it is 1 inch at 100m, so, 1000m would be 40 inches. Not very precise, but very capable if target impact is achieved. A .338 Lapua is incredibly accurate with almost the same effect on target.

I have friends that are doing this right now. An old commander is heading up the security firm. The guys are being dropped off while in the high risk areas, then picked up and moving to another client.

Most pirates are not trained, and NOT looking for a battle, especially when they are on a little boat and the advantage goes to the big boat with better equipped and trained security. A few rounds send turn them away to a softer target.

Just my opinion/experience on the matter

 

[sandmangeck]

One word. Two Syllables. Napalm. The pirates will go away.

 

[nickbass79]

One word. Two Syllables. Napalm. The pirates will go away.

Funny thought. Big merchant ships spewing 360 fire and burning their way through the trade routes.

 

[skychief]

Believe me, I like to be FULLY prepared and having a 30mm would do the trick, but you would then have a permanent weapon on board and that gets into a legal matter, especially when docking at any customs port.

I hadn't considered this. Some waivers would need to be issued to "interested" commercial shipping companies (regardless of flag). Kinda like a CCW permit.

 

[nickbass79]

I hadn't considered this. Some waivers would need to be issued to "interested" commercial shipping companies (regardless of flag). Kinda like a CCW permit.

That, and there are international laws that prohibit any firearms on international merchant ships. I think companies can get around it by hiring an outside firm for security, and this is becoming more prevalent with the pirate epidemic.

 

[Pacman]

Keep politics out of it, folks.