Following his posting as Commander of the UK Counter-Piracy Task Group, Captain Gerry Northwood, Royal Navy, has written in The Times newspaper about how concerted efforts are helping reduce attacks on merchant vessels. Captain Northwood writes: “Eleven pirates on board with automatic weapons and ro
President John Evans Atta Mills yesterday commissioned four new vessels for the Ghana Navy, the first in 32 years, and underscored the need for the country to secure its maritime domain for its future socio-economic development. He said the nation’s maritime environment abounded in diverse resources
From its port in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, and travelling through the Red Sea into the area of operation off the Coast of Somalia, the FGS BERLIN joins the multi-national EU NAVFOR off the Horn of Africa , 17 February 2012. The FGS BERLIN is a class 702 combat supply ship, capable of refuelling and re
The Navy’s winter clampdown on piracy in the Indian Ocean – which has just ended – has been its most successful crackdown on the scourge to date. But the senior officer who led the four-month operation against the pirates says despite a series of successes by RFA Fort Victoria, and other allied vess
A team of 12 troops from Uganda, part of the African Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), received vessel protection training from French and Ukrainian specialists in Mombasa. The training is the second in an ongoing scheme and part of the comprehensive approach to improve AMISOM capabilities, in this case
The first 13 days of January were busy ones for NATO’s counter piracy task force; they successfully stopped and disrupted three separate pirate groups from launching attacks on legitimate maritime traffic. In the first incident on Friday 6th January the USS CARNEY acting on intelligence from other c
Guided-missile frigate USS Simpson (FFG 56) and senior staff members from U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa concluded a three-day port visit of training, band engagements, and senior staff talks in Casablanca, Feb. 2. During the visit, Simpson conducted visit, board, search and seizure training with R
Fourteen suspected pirates captured by a Royal Navy task force will face justice in the Seychelles. The suspects, arrested earlier this month by RFA Fort Victoria on a hijacked dhow, were handed over to local authorities when the supply ship visited the islands at the weekend. RFA Fort Victoria – pa
On 27 January 2012, the Spanish Chief of Defense, Admiral Fernando García Sánchez, visited the EU NAVFOR Flagship, ESPS PATIÑO alongside in Djibouti, accompanied by the Spanish Chief of the Navy, Admiral Manuel Rebollo, Chief of the Air Force, General Jose Jimenez Ruiz, Commander of the Joint Comman
Pacific Fleet (PF) seventh task unit participating in anti-piracy campaign in the Gulf of Aden has successfully escorted first merchant convoy through safety corridor and on Jan 22 started to form the next one, PF spokesman Capt 1 rank Roman Martov told RIA Novosti. The seventh anti-piracy unit cons
EU NAVFOR warship FGS LUEBECK re-located an Indian registered dhow which had been used as pirate mother-ship involved in the attack on M/V FLINTSTONE early the same day. A Dutch Vessel Protection Detachment (VPD) stationed on the Dutch-registered civilian fall-pipe vessel had repelled the attack fol
On 17 January 2012, following coordination with a Danish Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft operating on a search mission for pirate ships, the Spanish Combat Supply Ship SPS PATIÑO, Flagship of Operation ATALANTA, assisted an Iranian flagged dhow which had run out of fuel off the Somali Co
It has been confirmed that the Spanish judicial authorities will prosecute the six Somali suspected pirates, who attacked the EU NAVFOR Flagship, the SPS PATINO on 12 January. Following receipt of the evidence package, the Spanish Audiencia Naciona has confirmed it will undertake judicial proceeding
At first light on 12 January 2012, having just completed the escort of a World Food Programme ship carrying food-aid into Somalia and while operating close to the Somali port of Mogadishu, the EU NAVFOR Flagship, the ESPS PATINO, was approached by one skiff with a group of suspected pirates onboard.
