KIRO Radio
By DAN RESTIONE
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
He says on the one hand, the fact that this attack occurred hundreds of miles from the coast is evidence that the pirates are using the money from selling stolen cargo or ransoms to equip themselves with bigger guns, better boats, and more sophisticated technology. "They're already using state of the art GPS and satellite information to track their targets, now they have ships seaworthy enough to operate far from the coast," Sweeney said on the Dave Ross show on Wednesday. "That hugely expands their operating range... which in turn means the danger areas that need patrolling have become so large that the military ships in the area have a nearly impossible job. It's like finding a needle in a haystack."
Sweeney also said this incident is further proof that while the pirates are better armed than before- their prey remain almost helpless. "What they'll do is track a ship and match its speed, often during daylight hours, they attack from several sides at once. You can see them coming, but most of the crews are unarmed and without military training. We're civilians, hired to move people and cargo. We're trying to fight them off with fire hoses and axes while they're shooting assault rifles and rocket- propelled-grenades at us." He points out that the pirates know most shipping companies don't carry arms over fear of complications with countries like England and Canada which have strict restrictions on the private ownership of firearms, and they count on target ships being poorly defended. Cases in point, according to Sweeney, Israeli shipping boats are seldom attacked because all crew members are armed and trained.
In his mind, the answer lies in a three pronged effort: First, there must be a political solution to the lawlessness in Somalia which allows pirates near free- reign. Second- the military presence in the danger zone must be stepped up so that patrols can keep up with the pirates' longer range. Lastly, Sweeney thinks all boats should either carry armed military staff or have armed and trained crew members. "At the very least, companies afraid to have guns on board should beef up the ship's defenses with electrical fencing or a directional super amplifier that sends high decibel signals so loud it blows out eardrums if you get too close, " Sweeney said," I don't understand why they're letting these boats go out there almost naked to attack."
Source: kiroradio, April 08, 2009