Tag: anti piracy measures

The keynote presentation was the SOS SaveOurSeafarers Campaign The World Maritime University's (WMU) International Conference on Piracy at Sea (ICOPAS) attracted a good international gathering of over 400 people this week in Malmo, Sweden.The keynote presentation on the second day was on the subject of the industry's SOS SaveOurSeafarers campaign. Bill Box, Secretary of the campaign's Steering Group gave delegates some background to SOS and an update of what it has achieved in its first 7 months.There were some useful insights offered from the hijacking in 2008 of the general cargo ship CEC Future which stayed under pirate control for 71 days. Gary Porter, Corporate Security Manager of Clipper Ferries/Ro-Ro, shared the lessons learned from this incident:Piracy is an industry - money is what counts.Information sharing is crucial.Prepare for the unexpected - a flexible approach is important.Prepare for the mental tiredness of all those involved.Prior preparation prevents poor performance.Cdr Martin Ewence, Maritime Security Advisor to EUNAVFOR, talked of the need for flexibility in dealing with the piracy scourge, so that naval forces and shipping interests can adapt to changing pirate tactics. It is vital that ship operators work on accordance with the latest Best Management Practice (BMP4), he stressed, adding ...

Attacks have dropped significantly over the last month The joint anti-piracy patrols undertaken by Benin and Nigeria are bearing fruit, as attacks have dropped significantly over the last month, according to Benin's Chief of Defence Staff."Currently there is an ongoing naval operation in our seas, so as to deter pirates from operating in our territorial waters. I think this has so far been successful, as there has been no more attacks, apart from some minor incidents here and there," said Benin's Chief of Defence Staff Boni Mathew.Mathew said the joint operation with Nigeria had also succeeded in ensuring safety along the borders of both countries and had helped curb such crimes and weapons smuggling.Operation Fire for Fire was designed to stop smuggling and piracy off the coasts of both nations. Armed speedboats are patrolling the waters off Benin and Nigeria, but AFP reports that the joint patrols were also to include a radar-equipped ship with a helicopter.The joint anti-piracy patrols will last six months, by which time Benin should be able to monitor its own waters.In August Benin's President Boni Yayi called for a regional summit on the issue of piracy. At the meeting in early August, Nigeria's President Goodluck ...

International Conference on Piracy at Sea (Icopas) The international community should act now and "not 20 years from now" to end the spiralling problem of piracy at sea, especially off Somalia, an international conference said.In a draft declaration, the three-day International Conference on Piracy at Sea (Icopas) described the the humanitarian and economic costs of piracy as "unacceptable"."Political will, effort co-ordination are needed to address the root causes and to deter and defeat piracy," said the declaration, calling on the United Nations to create a "Maritime Enforcement Mandate" within Somalia's economic zone to protect Somali and international interests."The reality is that a few hundred ... are being held against their will in Somalia and a few other parts of the world," said conference chair Maximo Mejia of the World Maritime University"Something needs to be done about the situation today, not 20 years from now, not 30 years from now," he added, speaking at the close of the three-day conference in the southern town of Malmoe.This year there have been a record 352 pirate attacks worldwide, according to a report this week by the International Maritime Bureau (IMB).Somali pirates, who have created an industry based on hijackings and ransom payments in ...

Anti Piracy Survey and Real Life Feedback Apostolos Belokas, Founder & Managing Editor of Safety4sea.com, is giving a presentation regarding an anti-piracy survey, during the 2nd Annual Safety4Sea Forum, Session 5The 2nd Safety4Sea Forum, a PRO BONO event, successfully completed on 5th of October 2011 in Athens, covering a wide range in QHSE issues.The event has been attended by over 340 delegates at the venue representing more than 170 companies, plus more than 100 persons watching live streaming. The event organized by IBS Marine Consulting Group and sponsored by Aspida Maritime Security, Dorian Hellas, Transmar Shipping and Lloyd's Register and supported by BIMCO, Intermanager, SaveOurSeafarers campaign, Steamship Mutual, Green Award, Cardiff University, ELNAVI, NAFTIKA XRONIKA, Tanker Operator, Shipmanagement International and Marintech NewsFor more information about the Forum visithttp://www.safety4sea.com/forum/2For more information about Safety4Sea visit the official site http://www.safety4sea.com

Anti Piracy Insurance : Evolution and trends George Theodosakis, co-founder of Faros Marine Services, is giving a presentation regarding the evolution and trends of Anti Piracy Insurance , during the 2nd Annual Safety4Sea Forum, Session 5The 2nd Safety4Sea Forum, a PRO BONO event, successfully completed on 5th of October 2011 in Athens, covering a wide range in QHSE issues.The event has been attended by over 340 delegates at the venue representing more than 170 companies, plus more than 100 persons watching live streaming. The event organized by IBS Marine Consulting Group and sponsored by Aspida Maritime Security, Dorian Hellas, Transmar Shipping and Lloyd's Register and supported by BIMCO, Intermanager, SaveOurSeafarers campaign, Steamship Mutual, Green Award, Cardiff University, ELNAVI, NAFTIKA XRONIKA, Tanker Operator, Shipmanagement International and Marintech NewsFor more information about the Forum visithttp://www.safety4sea.com/forum/2For more information about Safety4Sea visit the official site http://www.safety4sea.com

It will support maritime schools in performing relevant training In response to still pressing piracy threat off the coast of Somaila, Transas has developed an Anti-Piracy solution that will support maritime schools in performing relevant training.The Transas Anti-Piracy package consists of a mothership, a smaller mothership and four fastboats with different speeds. The look of all vessels is typically 'pirate': badly maintained and rusty. The fastboats have four different visual states that can be triggered during running exercise to increase the threat by escalation levels from 'fisher' to 'agressive pirate' state.The training goal is to help trainees understand what effect their avoidance maneuvers would have and practice in resolution of potential hostile targets, evasion techniques, communication, making contact and engaging.During an exercise, trainees learn how to detect a hostile pirate vessel using ECDIS, radar plotting, AIS information, visual sightings (by fuel barrels on deck, weapons, type and number of crewmembers etc.) and by comparison of target data with known behavioural patterns of pirate vessels.Evasion for merchant ships techniques include avoidance of contacts with potentially hostile vessels or keeping out of range of known hostile vessel's weapons using course and speed changes. Finally, preparations, best angle of approach and practicing of ...

Anti-piracy efforts could spur three-way cooperation The United States said that anti-piracy efforts could spur three-way cooperation with India and China, insisting that it seeks stronger relations with both rising Asian powers. In a speech on US regional strategy, a senior official hailed democratic India as a positive force in Asia but insisted that Washington also sought to work with China, whose ties with the United States are often uneasy.Robert Blake, the assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia, noted that naval power by Britain in the 19th century and the United States in the 20th century had helped ensure global commerce. "Perhaps it will be the cooperation of the American, Indian and Chinese navies that ensure global commercial routes are protected and enhanced in the 21st century," Blake said. "It is for this very reason that eliminating the scourge of piracy could be a natural way for the United States, India and China to begin to cooperate at sea," Blake said at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies.India and China -- along with developed nations such as Japan -- have been stepping up their response to piracy emanating from lawless Somalia which in recent years ...

Joint naval patrols in an effort to combat the threat of pirates Nigeria and its West African neighbour, Benin, have begun joint naval patrols in an effort to combat the threat of pirates.The Gulf of Guinea has this year seen a marked increase in the number of attacks in its waters.Last month, a group of London-based insurers rated part of its coast in the same high-risk category as Somalia.The International Maritime Bureau says there have so far been 19 attacks off Benin's coast this year.According to the bureau, which monitors such attacks, none were recorded off the same coast in 2010.Emmanual Ogbor, head of Nigeria's western naval command, says that the reason for the increase is clear.He says tough action from his ships has forced the pirates into areas where they can operate freely.The joint patrols will initially last for six months and involve six Nigerian ships and helicopters with the Beninois initially contributing two vessels.Although the joint operation is being dressed up an equal partnership, this is all about Nigeria helping out its neighbour to the west.A spokesman from Benin's navy said the attacks had scared ships away and deeply affected the country's economy.Source: BBC News

Maritime Piracy Humanitarian Response Program A programme to help seafarers and families cope with the physical and mental trauma caused by torture and abuse at the hands of pirates launches today in London, England.Pirates are routinely using extreme brutality and the threat of death against seafarers and their relatives. The new Maritime Piracy Humanitarian Response Programme (MPHRP) is intended to help those seafarers and their families cope with the resulting pain and anguish.Funded by the ITF (International Transport Workers' Federation) Seafarers' Trust charity and The TK Foundation, and chaired by Peter Swift, formerly MD of industry body INTERTANKO, the new programme speaks for an alliance of shipowners, trade unions, managers, manning agents, insurers and welfare associations representing the entire shipping industry, from crews to owners.Its mission is to aid seafarers who have been or may be subject to pirate attack. Somali-based pirates now regularly treat hostage seafarers with extreme violence in order to put pressure on their families and/or employers to expedite their ransom demands. This includes phoning family members and making the seafarer plead for his life while he is abused and threatened with death, and filming this and posting it online for relatives to see.Peter Swift, MPHRP chair, ...

Anti-piracy mission to supress piracy A new Russian naval task force will arrive on Wednesday in the Gulf of Aden to continue the ongoing anti-piracy mission off the Somali coast, a Defense Ministry spokesman said.The task force from the Pacific Fleet includes the Udaloy class Admiral Panteleyev missile destroyer, the Butoma supply tanker and the Fotiy Krylov salvage tugboat."The ships are sailing in the Indian Ocean at present. The crew is healthy, and the equipment and armaments are in order," the official said.The previous Russian task force led by the Udaloy class Severomorsk destroyer from the Northern Fleet concluded its anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden in mid-September and set sail for its home base in northern Russia.The task force stayed in the area from June 17 and has successfully escorted eleven convoys consisting of 38 commercial vessels from various countries along the shipping routes in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea.The Russian Navy has maintained a presence off the Somali coast since October 2008, with warships operating on a rotating basis.Admiral Panteleyev carried out its previous anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden from late April to early June, 2009.Source: RIA Novosti