From ABC News:
Somali pirates may be terrorizing the waters off of East Africa, but maybe they should pick their targets a little more carefully and stop targeting European warships.
Earlier today, some Somali pirates got a little too greedy and attacked the Spanish warship serving as the flagship for the European Union’s fleet of ships carrying out a counter-piracy mission off of Somalia.
Needless to say, it wasn’t a fair fight.
At first light Thursday, the Spanish warship ESPS Patino had just completed escorting a ship carrying food aid into the Somali capital of Mogadishu. In addition to a counter-piracy effort, the EU’s main mission is to escort freighters carrying food from the World Food Programme.
That’s when a skiff carrying six pirates sped towards the warship and the pirates began to fire their light-caliber weapons at the ship in an attemp to board it.
The Patino’s crew immediately began to fire back in self-defense and launched the ship’s helicopter.
The pirates realized they were outgunned and broke away from the attack, but eventually surrendered to the helicopter. But only after first throwing their weapons, ladder and fuel barrels overboard. …
Hmm, somehow this appears to be something closer to Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean that any real life pirate tale. I must wonder at what sort of logic convinces six people to attack a warship with light weapons!
Obviously a successful pirateis a smarter pirate. Too bad they all aren’t this dumb.
Not as dumb as you think. About 4 years ago, Somali pirates were able to hijack a Ukrainian ship that had 33 tanks on board.