The crew of Indian Navy ship ‘Sharda’ prevented a piracy attack in the Gulf of Aden on May 16.
According to the Indian Navy, the Sukanya-class patrol vessel received a distress call from Liberian-registered bulk carrier MV Lord Mountbatten which reported an attempted piracy attack 230 nautical miles South-West of Salalah.
Two suspicious mother vessels with 7-8 skiffs were involved in the attack.
INS Sharda arrived at the scene some two hours after receiving the distress call, detecting two dows and five skiffs. Three skiffs fled the area after noticing the warship, the Indian Navy said.
The Indian Navy investigated the dhows and their skiffs by conducting board and search operations. The absence of any fishing gear onboard the two dhows/ remaining five skiffs indicated malicious intent and possible piracy-linked intentions. One high calibre AKM rifle alongwith one filled magazine (28 rounds) was found hidden onboard one of the dhows.
The navy said it seized all weapons and ammunition to prevent future illegal misuse.