Cargo ship’s crews must be ready to fight

Bob Jack, North Las Vegas

Sunday, April 19, 2009 | 2:05 a.m.

This is in response to the Somali pirate hijackings. Recent events have brought directly home to America the dangerous and difficult nature of Somali pirate hijackings. The United States faces a very troubling situation — this is now a third front in the war on terror. The question is just how should this nation respond to these hijackings in the long term.

Owners of cargo ships that operate in these troubled waters must equip and train their crews with weapons to defend against pirate takeovers. Now, the ships and crews are the sole basis for the ransoms that pirates demand.

If violent responses to these takeovers lead to crew deaths or ship and cargo destruction, pirates are limited in their ability to demand ransoms. This will change the paradigm of these operations entirely. Warfare will then replace acts of piracy.

The long-term solution appears to be remaking these cargo ships, and their crews, into combat units that are able to defend themselves against pirate attacks. This would increase the overall level of risk to both owners and crews.

Either private military contractors would have to accompany these shipments or the crew members’ skills would have to change significantly. Based on current prospects, the level of violence can be expected to increase significantly.