A Voyage Through Pirate-Infested Waters Off Somalia

Graphic: Route taken by the GasChem Antartic through pirate-infested waters.

Anarchy at Sea: A Voyage through Pirate-Infested Waters -- Spiegel Online

While the European naval mission Atalanta avoids definitive contact with the pirates who plague the waters around the Horn of Africa, shipping companies are protecting their vessels with armed private security personnel. SPIEGEL joined one such ship as it ran the pirate gauntlet on the world's most important trade route.

A cardboard carton the size of a shoebox bobs about in the Red Sea waves. As James Roles observes it through a telescope, a shot rings out. "Not bad," he says, "but you're a little bit short. Go ahead and aim it a little higher."

Kevin McGregor sets his rifle's telescopic sights on the box and pulls the trigger once again. Roles is satisfied. It's a hit. He's ready.

Read more ....

My Comment: When a tanker transporting oil worth $100 million must pass through these waters, it probably is a prudent move to have armed security ob board. But for most ships .... operating on razor thin margins .... hiring security is not a viable option.