What do you do when pirates attack?

[paulney]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.../ap_on_re_mi_ea/piracy

MUSCAT, Oman ? Ordered to get inside and stay down, Oregon tourist Clyde Thornburg heard the pirates' rifle shots hit the side of the luxury cruise liner ? "Pop! Pop! Pop!" ? then felt the ship speed up to escape.

The attack on the nearly 600-foot-long cruise ship in the dangerous waters between Yemen and Somalia was the latest evidence pirates have grown more brazen, viewing almost any vessel as a potential target ? even a large luxury liner with hundreds of tourists on board.
...

Lynne Pincini of Australia said she was heading to a friend's cabin when the order came to keep their heads down and stay inside.

"We heard the announcement, and of course we went straight out on the balcony to have a look," she said. "It was like a very large speedboat. It was running alongside the boat."

---

If I were captain, I'd have that lot walk the plank! Well, her husband anyway. And lock her up in my captain's cabin until the rest of the cruise (if she was hot). Otherwise - she'd walk the plank, too!

 

[AmdEmAll]

I'd look to see what was going on too, then duck down inside.

 

[OCGuy]

If they made a movie about it, I wonder what it would be rated.....?

 

[Ika]

"We had been reassured that they had these ghetto blasters that could go through them. And we could outrun anything that they had," Pincini said.

:laugh:

 

[jagec]

What does the size of the vessel or the number of TOURISTS inside have to do with the risk to the pirates?

If anything it would just be a bigger payout. Granted, those ships are a lot faster than merchant vessels, but I'm a little bit surprised that the pirates aren't faster still. Can't they buy or steal bigger outboards?

 

[IEC]

If they can't carry traditional weapons, arm them with pain beams or sonic weapons.

 

[apac]

Originally posted by: Ocguy31
If they made a movie about it, I wonder what it would be rated.....?

PG-THIRTEENNNNNNNNNNN!!!

 

[DrPizza]

I read this earlier today. How on earth is a cruise ship faster than a speed boat? How on earth does a cruise ship have any significant acceleration whatsoever?

 

[randay]

Aye, AVAST!

 

[PlasmaBomb]

REGATTA, INSIGNIA, NAUTICA
Built: 1998 and 2000 - Aker Yards, St. Nazaire, France
Tonnage: 30,277
Guest Capacity: 684 (Double Occupancy)
Length: 593.7 feet
Width: 83.5 feet
Draft: 19.5 feet
Cruising Speed: 18.5 knots
Propulsion: Diesel Electric
Restaurants: Four Open Seating Restaurants:

* The Grand Dining Room - Continental Cuisine
* Polo Grill - Steak House
* Toscana - Gourmet Italian
* Terrace Café - Casual Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Sounds nice... but it aint exactly quick. I wonder how much faster than 18.5 knots it can go...

 

[Rubycon]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
I read this earlier today. How on earth is a cruise ship faster than a speed boat? How on earth does a cruise ship have any significant acceleration whatsoever?

It's not a matter of speed but of displacement of water. I'll explain from experience (not from a pirate attack thank goodness but swamping of small boats alongside!) - if you want to take over with physics that's fine with me!

We displace about 93,000 tons. Even moving at 10 knots the bow wave is there and can deliver a KO punch to a small craft (to us a 70 foot yacht is tiny!). Follow too close and you can be broached with ease. WOT (pedal to the metal) with a gradual turn ramps up a bow wave with tremendous mass and kinetic energy. The idea is to use this as an advantage as even our 25.5 knot (29.33 mph) top speed can not outrun a small craft with a large outboard motor.

The bow wave keeps them far enough away once the speed gets high enough it becomes too rough (and dangerous) to attempt to board.

I have a video of a 53 foot USCG escort vessel alongside us leaving San Juan. The seas were somewhat confused and the skipper of the boat was definitely surprised that conditions caused him take lots of water over his bow! A small skiff following this closely would get flipped in a heartbeat. Without the bow wave the conditions experienced were a typical head chop of perhaps 3-5 feet which is very manageable at 16knots for that size boat.

EDIT:

The guests in the OP were just a little nuts! People tend to be curious but when the Master gives an order to take cover you definitely do NOT go out on a balcony for a peek!

 

[DrPizza]

I've been looking at a bunch of stats for different cruise ships. The fastest I've found has a maximum speed of 28 knots; that's only 32mph. My jon boat with a 15hp motor in it (and only me with a few fishing poles) can go almost that fast. My family fishing/ski boat can easily hit 45-50mph; and it's anything but a speed boat.

Again, how on earth can a cruise ship outrun a speed boat?? Or, are the authors of those articles not checking all their facts. Speed boat? Either the pirates decided it wasn't going to work, else they weren't in a speed boat.

 

[Rubycon]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
I've been looking at a bunch of stats for different cruise ships. The fastest I've found has a maximum speed of 28 knots; that's only 32mph. My jon boat with a 15hp motor in it (and only me with a few fishing poles) can go almost that fast. My family fishing/ski boat can easily hit 45-50mph; and it's anything but a speed boat.

Again, how on earth can a cruise ship outrun a speed boat?? Or, are the authors of those articles not checking all their facts. Speed boat? Either the pirates decided it wasn't going to work, else they weren't in a speed boat.

See my post above. It's conditional outrunning.

 

[Born2bwire]

Reminds me of the last tornado siren I had. I go down to the basement of the apartment and some people walk out to the third floor balcony to watch.

 

[MadAmos]

What do you think the odds are of someone in a small boat running flat out or close to it, in the open ocean in close proximity to a large cruise ship being able to through a grapple and reach the deck..... It seems to me that it would be impossible or as close to it as you could get at least in the real world... in the movies that is a different show. :shocked: Besides from the pictures I have seen most of the pirate boats are hardly a speed boat in the op's linked article it looks like an aluminum boat with an outboard and not trimmed worth a hoot, if it makes 20 knots on the open water I would be very!!! surprised :Q

 

[DrPizza]

Thanks Rubycon, that makes a lot of sense. The writers of the few articles I read simply got their facts wrong. They had some people quoted as saying something to the effect of "we then felt the cruise ship accelerating and we outran the pirates." i.e they interviewed idiots. Next time, they need to interview you!

 

[paulney]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
They had some people quoted as saying something to the effect of "we then felt the cruise ship accelerating and we outran the pirates." i.e they interviewed idiots.

Yes, we're gonna have to go right to ludicrous speed!

 

[Boo Boo]

and we all know Aussies arent the brightest light in the sky

 

[herkulease]

I don't understand why cruise ships keep heading into this area. are they stupid or something. didn't they just hijack a tanker a few weeks ago. gee likes take tourist there. If theya re gonna do that why not have a small army on board with guns. disguise them as other vacationers if you have to.

 

[RocksteadyDotNet]

Originally posted by: Boo Boo
and we all know Aussies arent the brightest light in the sky

Yeah, at least we're smarter than Americans though.

Text

 

[Born2bwire]

Originally posted by: RocksteadyDotNet

Originally posted by: Boo Boo
and we all know Aussies arent the brightest light in the sky

Yeah, at least we're smarter than Americans though.

Text

18 Australia 98
18 Denmark 98
18 France 98
18 Norway 98
18 United States 98

/facepalm

 

[IEC]

Originally posted by: Born2bwire

Originally posted by: RocksteadyDotNet

Originally posted by: Boo Boo
and we all know Aussies arent the brightest light in the sky

Yeah, at least we're smarter than Americans though.

Text

18 Australia 98
18 Denmark 98
18 France 98
18 Norway 98
18 United States 98

/facepalm

Hahaha

 

[Xylitol]

Originally posted by: RocksteadyDotNet

Originally posted by: Boo Boo
and we all know Aussies arent the brightest light in the sky

Yeah, at least we're smarter than Americans though.

Text

too bad that's an average. we got the smarts and the retards all in one

 

[Black88GTA]

Why the hell would anyone book (or operate) a pleasure cruise in the waters off the Somalian coast in the first place?

 

[SearchMaster]

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner

Originally posted by: Born2bwire

Originally posted by: RocksteadyDotNet

Originally posted by: Boo Boo
and we all know Aussies arent the brightest light in the sky

Yeah, at least we're smarter than Americans though.

Text

18 Australia 98
18 Denmark 98
18 France 98
18 Norway 98
18 United States 98

/facepalm

Hahaha

Ooops, Australia just dropped to 97.9 with his last post.