Somebody help me with this...

[reconeil]

Can't give you or others any sensible answers.

Though, and it being nightime & in the water & all, I figure that even if man in water was
spotted by Navy Personnel that it would be pretty-hard determining just whom exactly
that man actually was? Could have been a Somali Pirate bailing out of a VERY bad situation.

Still, I can't understand why Navy just doesn't hoist the little orange boat right out of the
water, and plop it right on their deck for much better or close-up negotiating.

SEALS certainly undetected could have disabled the little dingy & hooked-up whatever
ropes needed, for either towing or hoisting it aboard ship.

Betcha that some skid loads of supplies normally taken onboard weigh 2-3 times as much
as that little orange boat & its 5 people.

Neil

[Seascamp]

Fleet Marine Detachments are only on Aircraft Carriers and Fleet Flag ships, usually a Carrier or Frigate these days. Destroyers and the like have the Gunners Mates and those assigned to landing party fire teams and/or ship defense fire teams. During my tenure the weaponry was usually old tech like the BAR or M1 Garand or Remington 12 ga. Pump, the newest being the M14. Hopefully all that is up-to-date now.

The situation with the Captain is very heavy on the mind, very heavy, and gaud rot the bastards if the Distroyer Sailors had stand down orders and were held back. Given the green light they’d take care of business and smartly so. They know how to set up twin light mg positions in the prow of a motor launch and come in a blazing away. Seems like the days of rubber rifles and happy face badges are back to haunt us one more time.

Scamp

[SuperScout]

Lesse: the might of the United States of America, held at bay by a dozen of the scruvy-ridden navy of Somalia? Excuse me, but what if this had been a real emergency, with hundreds or thousands of lives at risk, instead of only one? Is our command center so paralized with fear and indecison that we can't handle this situation without a UN resolution, several committee hearings in congress, and a Rassmussen poll? If our Gutless Wonder would have spent more time read a good Tom Clancy novel rather than learning how to bow and suck up to a Saudi king, the situation would have been settled.

[phuloi]

"Clear And Present Danger" comes to mind...for more than one reason.

[Seascamp]

An Aside:

Destroyers can be changelings and in a few hours time the welders and fitters can set 50 cal mounts on rails, decks and up in the super structure/masts as needed. So one day looking like a sleek gray hound and the next looking like a porcupine a looking for close up trouble and damn aggressive about it. The 5 inch deck mount guns have a close up blind spot due to gun down stops; approximately 200 meters plus because of projectile prox fuses, so switching to the 50 cal porcupine mode is one way of getting up close and personal and making it stick, big time.

Scamp

[sn-e3]

I was on the ships landing party on a flrtcher class destroyer during vietnam we were all highly trained on the use of all our small arms up to the .50's so if things haven't did a complete 180 I would say some mamby pamby politico has put a dapper on saving the captian. PS with just a helo unrap a coupe squad's of seal's could be deployed to the destroyer. WE have to draw a line in the sea and kill anyone who dares cross it. My stance is the pirates bring in reinforcements thats a declaration of war and should be delt with as such. Sorry to the un armed hostages but if we don't act harshly the war is over before it starts.

[MORTARDUDE]

How exactly do these motley pirates threaten these big ships to be able to take them over ? With RPG'S near the bow line ? Don't the oil tankers have double sealed hulls ???

Larry

[reconeil]

All good questions & points brought up here, plus reality that a handful of pirates are
basically calling-the-shots and/or waltzing-around The Mightiest Navy on earth,....
and in no way disparaging The U.S. Navy. They do & react EXACTLY as Civilian
Politicians ORDER or PERMIT, which unfortunately & naively wish Everyone on Earth
Love USA,...no matter what or even loss of about 3,000 lives (re: "9/11").

You can bet-your-bippy that Iranians, North Koreans & all other World Terrorists are
watching & even more interested about just how long The Mightiest Nation on earth
can be waltzed-around by a handful of terrorists, more so than anyone else.

Knowing reaction times & just how long U.S. Military can foolishly be politically held
back from Protecting American Citizens & American Interests in general,...ARE obviously
Quite Valued Enemy Intelligence Assets,...since such Always give The Enemy THE EDGE.

Sad, but true. Regardless, wish The Captain best possible & hope Somalis not as stubborn
and more practical than: "His Barackness" & Clique, and/or as Brits recently called him.
Also hope America's New & Greatly Experienced (just jokin since only experienced at ACORN)
& Muslim raised GREATEST WARLORD in The World (NOT jokin) sensibly dictates less &
listens more to his Admirals & Generals (The People also). Sure couldn't hurt.

Neil