Tag: EUNAVFOR

Crew of 8 people On the 13 February, the Yemeni Fishing Vessel ALFARDOUS was believed to have been pirated close to Socotra Island in the Gulf of Aden.The vessel has a reported crew of 8, nationalities presently not known. There is no further information on the condition of the crew.EUNAVFOR is monitoring the situation.There are now at least 31 vessels and 694 hostages being held by pirates off the coast of Somalia. A list of FV ALFARDOUS and other pirated vessels can be found here.Source: EU NAVFOR

Optimizes action and facilitates information sharing The meeting took place on board the Spanish Flagship CANARIAS, sailing in the Gulf of Aden. Rear Admiral Zhang was accompanied by his Chief of Staff and six more officers.During the next months, Chinese ships will remain in Indian Ocean with the main aim to escort merchant vessels transiting between Red Sea and Horn of Africa, thereby contributing to the safety of those mariners transiting the area.This was a good opportunity for EU NAVFOR to exchange information and maintain mutual understanding and knowledge with one of partners in the fight against piracy.Coordination between the different actors operating in the Horn of Africa is of paramount importance in order to optimize their action and facilitate information sharing. This is especially important given the size of the operational area and the coordination of a large number of ships from many different countries.Source: EU NAVFOR

The vessel has a crew of 23 On the afternoon of 12 February, the MV SININ is believed to have been pirated approximately 350 nautical miles East of Masirah (Oman) in the North Arabian Sea.The vessel, which has a crew of 23 (13 Iranian and 10 Indian nationals), sent out a distress signal, saying she was under attack, late afternoon on Saturday to which an aircraft from the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) immediately responded. The aircraft photographed 2 suspected pirate skiffs on board the vessel. There has been no communication with the ship since the distress signal was sent and the MV SININ has now changed course towards the Somali coast. There is no information on the condition of the crew.The MV SININ is a Maltese flagged and owned Bulk Carrier. She has a deadweight of 52,466 tonnes and was on route to Singapore from Fujairah (UAE) when she was attacked. The ship was not registered with MSC(HOA) and was not reporting to UKMTO. EUNAVFOR is monitoring the situation.Source: EU NAVFOR

Schedule March 2011 In March 2011 the Government of Japan (GOJ) will provide escort operations by Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF) for vessels in accordance with the schedule below. Please note that due to an increase in piracy activity, the easternmost rendezvous point "C" has been moved further eastwards.Westbound convoys, rendezvous point "C": 14 55 N - 054 38 E: 09 March, 1500Z 14 March, 1500Z 23 March, 0500Z 31 March, 0500ZEastbound convoys, rendezvous point "A": 11 50 N - 045 00 E: 04 March, 1500Z 12 March, 0500Z 20 March, 1500Z 28 March, 1500ZConvoy speed The base speed is 12 knots.Joining instructions Application for JMSDF escort operation must be made directly to the GOJ, which is a separate procedure from the application to MSCHOA. Merchant vessels that wish to apply for JMSDF escort operation should visit http://www.mlit.go.jp/en/maritime/maritime_fr2_000000.html and follow the application procedure.Source: EU NAVFOR

Crew of 25 people At approximately 1000Z on 9 February, theVery Large Crude Carrier MV IRENE SL was pirated approximately 350 nautical miles South East of Muscat in the North Arabian Sea.The MV IRENE SL has a dead weight of 319,247 tonnes and is Greek flagged and owned. The vessel was on its way to Suez from Fujairah when it was attacked. At present there is no further information on the attack. She has a crew of 25 (7 Greek, 1 Georgian and 17 Filipinos). There is presently no communication with the vessel and no information regarding the condition of the crew.The MV IRENE SL wasnotregistered with MSC(HOA), butwas reporting to UKMTO. EUNAVFOR are continuing to monitor the situation.Source: EU NAVFOR

52,163 tonnes and a crew of 24 Filipinos In the early hours of Monday 17 January, the bulk carrier MV EAGLE was attacked and pirated by a single skiff, with pirates firing small arms and a Rocket Propelled Grenade before boarding the vessel.The attack occurred in the Gulf of Aden, 490 nautical miles South West of Salaam, Oman. There has been no contact with the ship since the attack.The MV EAGLE which is Cypriot flagged and Greek owned, has a deadweight of 52,163 tonnes and a crew of 24 Filipinos and was on passage from Aqabar (Jordon) to Paradip (India) when it was attacked. There is no information concerning the condition of the crew. EUNAVFOR is monitoring the situation.Source: EU NAVFOR

Mozambican fishing vessel pirated The Mozambican flagged Fishing Vessel VEGA 5, which was previously reported missing by her owner, is now confirmed as being pirated in the waters between Mozambique and Madagascar.On 31 December, the vessel was spotted near the Mozambique coast, approximately 200 nautical miles South West of the Comoros Islands, heading north. The vessel was towing what looked to be a pirate attack skiff and did not respond to any calls. There has been no further communication with the vessel. The FV VEGA 5 has a displacement of 140 tonnes and a length of 24 meters. The nationalities of the 14 crew members are unknown.Source: EU NAVFOR

MV BLIDA pirated in the Indian Ocean In the afternoon of 1 January, the MV BLIDA was pirated approximately 150 nautical miles South East of the port of Salalah, Oman.The20,586tonneBulk CarrierisAlgerianflagged and owned. The vesselwas on her way toDaresSalaam, TanzaniafromSalalahinOmanat the time of the attack. No further details of the attack are known at this stage.MV Blidahas a crew of27(Algerian, Ukrainian and Philippino) and is carrying a cargo ofClinker.MV BLIDA was registered with MSC(HOA) but had not reported to UKMTO.There are now 28 vessels and 654 hostages being held by pirates off the coast of Somalia.Source: EU NAVFOR