Canadian navy encounters pirates off Somalia

As reported earlier, the Canadian frigate HMCS Ville de Québec was dispatched to take up station off the northeast coast of Africa, tasked with providing security assistance to vessels carrying United Nations humanitarian relief to Somalia. Their deployment is beginning to prove anything but routine.

Three days ago, the frigate and he crew were in the Kenyan port of Mombasa preparing to leave for Somalia with the merchant vessel MV Abdul Rahman and its cargo of food aid. The frigate's captain, Commander Chris Dickinson met with local officials to discuss the journey and the threats that loomed not far away.

Cmdr Chris Dickinson meeting with Kenyan officials aboard HMCS Ville de Québec, August 18

(source: DND)

MV Abdul Rahman (r.) loading cargo in Mombasa, August 18 (source: DND)

The need to safeguard the delivery of humanitarian aid to Somali by sea has been discussed here frequently. Merchant vessels provide the most efficient means of moving tonnes of food aid between Somalia and Mombasa, which is the key port for storing UN assistance. The problem, of course is that this humanitarian aid has to be delivered through waters that have become the most dangerous as a result of piracy. And the last few days have shown that the threat is as prevalent as ever.

Since the beginning of the week, Somali pirates have managed to hijack four merchant ships, operated by firms from Malaysia, Iran, Japan and Germany. Prior to making port in Mombasa, HMCS Ville de Québec saw at least two of the hijacked vessels on her radar while sailing south from the Red Sea (having sailed over the Atlantic, across the Mediterranean and through the Suez Canal from her home port of Halifax). In an interview with Chris Lambie of the Halifax Chronicle-Herald made prior to heading to Somalia with the Abdul Rahman, Cmdr. Dickinson said that "On our radar...we had two vessels that we knew had been taken by pirates." He added that, "So the threat is real. It’s almost eerie coming down that coast and seeing a radar contact with a name on it...and knowing that those vessels are held by pirates."

With the threat assessment as high as the current temperature in that region (35 degrees Celsius with enough humidity to make it seem closer to 50 degrees), the crew of the Canadian warship knows the next few weeks will not be easy as they make runs up and down the East African coast. But the stakes are high for the Somali people, something each of the Canadian sailors is aware of. Perhaps it was put best by 22 year-old Ordinary Seaman Matthew Bergmann, who told Lambie that, "Just one ship is enough to feed a million people. If you can do that in one sail, that’s awesome."

HMCS Ville de Québec (top) with MV Abdul Rahman (Source: DND)
Note how heavily laden the freighter is, with seas washing over her starboard quarter.

Canada and piracy

After a very long absence caused by various travels and more work on my new book about piracy, yours truly has returned. Many thanks to those who have written me and I hope to be able to update you on some of what I've been privy to these last few months.

By sheer coincidence, I'm back on the same day that the Canadian government has announced the dispatching of a naval frigate to the waters off the Horn of Africa, in order to help safeguard the delivery of United Nations food aid to Somalia, aid which has been targeted by pirates in recent years.

The Canadian Navy will be sending the HMCS Ville de Québec to the region because, in the words of Canadian Defence Minister Peter MacKay, "Food supplies are urgently needed in Somalia but deteriorating security has made delivery difficult by land and sea."

HMCS Ville de Québec (DND photo)

MacKay went on to add that, "Canada is stepping up to the plate by tasking Ville de Québec with the role of escorting World Food Programme ships to ensure their safe arrival at designated ports."

Canada is a major contributor to the UN World Food Programme, so the threat of pirate attacks on vessels carrying that aid represents a clear security issue. About a year ago I interviewed Rear-Admiral Dean McFadden, then commander of Canada's Maritime Forces Atlantic and Joint Task Force Atlantic about the issue of piracy and he was unequivocal in his views on the issue:

"Why should Canadians be concerned about piracy? Because it truly does affect all of us, even if we think otherwise. When aid that has been donated by the people of Canada is intercepted by pirates in, say, Somalia, that's an issue. That aid is vital to the lives of people in the region and if they go hungry, if they become angry, if instability is allowed to continue as a result of those actions, it will become something important here.

"As the make-up of the population in Canada changes, as more people arrive from areas of the world where piracy exists, those immigrants will have an impact on government policy - by taking part in our democratic process and making their voices heard and asking that we do something about these maritime criminals. So what has been an external issue will become a domestic issue."

HMCS Ville de Québec is expected to spend about a month in the region before returning to her homeport of Halifax. On May 2 of this year, RAdm McFadden was replaced as commander of Canada's Atlantic Fleet by Rear-Admiral P.A. Maddison.

Asian inter-governmental piracy information

It's got a cumbersome name and lies well below the public's knowledge, but the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) has developed a site that offers information on recent events in the region that compliments sources such as the IMB and ONI. Well worth a look here.

Somali pirates attack supertanker, hijack fishing vessel

A mere week after the hijacking the French cruise vessel Le Ponant, pirate attacks have resumed off the Somali coast. Early Monday morning, the Japanese tanker Takayama was sailing in the Gulf of Aden when it was approached by several small boats. Shots were fired at the VLCC, including what appears to be at least one rocket-propelled grenade, with the tanker sustaining some damage. The 332-metre long ship, with a crew of 23, was able to avoid being boarded by the pirates. The ship was en route to Saudi Arabia in ballast - it was not carrying any cargo. It's reported that a German frigate responded to the tanker's Mayday call, though the pirates had left the area by the time it was able to arrive. The tanker's owners, NYK Line, have posted a brief note about the incident here.

Takayama (photo: NYK Line)

The day before, a Spanish fishing vessel was hijacked while working the waters off the Horn of Africa. The Playa de Bakio was reported to have been fishing for tuna about 250 miles out when she was boarded by pirates armed with heavy weapons. The ship and its crew of 26 are supposed to be heading for the Somali port of Gaan, and Spain has dispatched a warship to the region in response. According to media reports, the fishing vessel's captain, Amadeo Alvarez, was able to tell Spanish national radio, "I am the captain of the boat...We are all well and there is no problem, for the moment there is no problem." Capt. Alvarez was then interrupted by someone claiming to be a member of a 'Somalia militia' who said the incident could be resolved if their demands were met. Those demands? In the words of the pirate spokesman: "It's a question of money."

Playa de Bakio may have been fishing illegally, though this is a bit difficult to ascertain when you are dealing with a 'failed state' like Somalia. Dozens of European and Asian fishing vessels work the waters of Somalia each year, many of which pay fees to warlords to assure their safety. It's possible that this Spanish boat's owners opted to forgo the payments - de facto bribes - and increase their profit margin. Regardless, the issue of overfishing in the waters off the Horn of Africa may soon become an international issue as more attention is paid to acts of piracy in the region.

There is also a report that a third vessel was attacked over the weekend, a cargo ship that had left Dubai sometime earlier, but information on this incident remains sketchy.

Attacking a ship like the Takayama, a vessel that is a thousand feet long, may seem ludicrous to some, but it's not so much the size of the vessel that's important to the pirates. It's how many crew members they will have to overwhelm. Two dozen mariners can quickly be subdued, as the crew of Playa de Bakio discovered.

See also recent postings about both incidents on Eaglespeak's blog.

Canadian Navy assumes leadership role in Arabian Sea

The navy destroyer HMCS Iroquois departed from Halifax yesterday (Saturday, April 19) on the first leg of a six-month deployment that will see Canada assume command of Combined Task Force 150 (CTF150) in the Arabian Sea. After meeting up with the frigate HMCS Calgary and the supply vessel HMCS Protecteur in the Caribbean, the trio of warships will head for the waters off the Horn of Africa, where piracy has been making headlines of late.

CTF150 will be commanded by Commodore Bob Davidson and comprise the Canadian contingent as well as seven other warships from the United States, Britain, France, the Netherlands, Denmark and Pakistan, about 2,500 personnel in all. Along with responding to any potential acts of piracy in the area, the task force provides support to coalition forces - on land, at sea and in the air - that are dealing with security and anti-terrorism issues, as well as working with regional allies.

Malaccan Strait piracy eliminated in 2007?

Earlier this week, the deputy chief of the Royal Malaysian Air Force, Lt-Gen Bashir Abu Bakar, said that the Strait of Malacca was pirate-free last year. According to the general, joint efforts by Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia to patrol the Strait with maritime elements and aircraft has been effective in a dramatic decline in pirate incidents in those waters.

"From January to late December 2007, we recorded zero percent pirate attacks in the Malacca Straits and also recorded a reduction in pirate attacks in the waterways of Sabah and Sarawak (on Borneo Island)," he told Bernama. "Maritime and air patrols carried out with Indonesia and Singapore through the 'Eyes in the Sky' programme introduced two years ago have worked in reducing acts of violence and robbery in the straits," he added.

However, I would caution that even the IMB's office in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur recorded two pirate incidents in the Strait last year, so one can not really say 'zero'. And, it should be noted, not all attacks - actual or attempted - are reported.

As well, my own research last year along the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia revealed a striking number of attacks on fishing villages, with the thefts of boats and motors and intimidation of local fishermen being rampant. While these do not garner the attention that comes from attacks on commercial vessels, they still constitute a security issue in the region that has yet to be fully addressed. One can hope that having effectively dealt with pirate assaults on merchant vessels, the authorities will now turn their attention to the remaining criminal elements operating throughout the Strait.

Great Lakes photo essay

Recently returned from a couple of weeks sailing with the crew of the M/V Paul R. Tregurtha, longest vessel on the Great Lakes, as she set out on the first voyage of the new shipping season. Headed out of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, bound for Duluth/Superior and then St. Clair (near Detroit). Conditions on the lakes were somewhat extreme, with two and three feet of ice stopping the Tregurtha dead in her tracks several times, until icebreakers could arrive to assist. Cold, icy, tough work for the crew, and a reminder that working on the Great Lakes is no pleasure cruise. Some images from the trip:

The ice-strengthened bow of the Tregurtha

Entering Lake Michigan from Sturgeon Bay

Capt. Timothy Dayton and helmsman Mark Salgy

Icebreaking tug Erika Kobasic clearing a lead

Ice track aft of Tregurtha, Lake Michigan

Second Mate Steve Nevin, entering Poe Lock upbound, Sault Ste Marie

First Mate Daniel Culligan

Clearing deck ice, Lake Superior

Inside No. 2 hold

Deckhand Daniel Prevost and Second Mate Steve Nevin, leaving Duluth/Superior

Capt. Timothy Dayton and Chief Engineer Lorne Warczinsky

USCGC Mackinaw and CCGS Samuel Risley clearing tracks in Whitefish Bay

Sunset on Lake Superior