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Letter: Ships should carry anti-aircraft guns to ward off pirates

I’ve written about the Somali pirates before, as I canceled a cruise that would go through that area, and I’m disgusted by the refusal of the shipping/cruise companies to mount World War II-type anti-aircraft guns on the stern, bow, aft and forward of amidship, starboard and port.

It’s incredible that the insurance companies fork over these millions of dollars to these crooks. In the end, we all pay for this nonsense.

Anti-aircraft guns, I think, have a long enough range to blast these pirates out of the water, before they can do any harm, at far less expense than the insurance payoff, and marine insurance companies should adjust their premiums for vessels that have this capability that pass thru the Gulf of Aden, off Somalia or even in the Indian Ocean.

I’m sure shipboard radar can alert a ship to blips that are approaching it. Battle stations can be ordered, the blips can be tracked, and on the first message from any one of those boats to surrender, the anti-aircraft guns open fire. That’ll give pirates something to think about.

It’s sad that cruise ships and freighters must have a military component, but there it is. These anti-aircraft guns must be mounted, and ships’ crews must be trained to use them, in addition to their normal duties, with a pay increase for their expertise and value.

David Werner, Missoula
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wes wrote on Dec 14, 2008 1:10 PM:

" If the somali pirates were smart, they would diversify thier business into insurance. Think of it, they would not need foriegn government assistance, they would create legitimate jobs and "repectability" without the need to take over a single ship. Just like that a new business is born and the ship get safe passage for a nominal insurance premium. Think of the repeat business! "

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