![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Not-so Jolly Roger
Apr. 8th, 2009 09:10 amSo, CNN tells me that a US-flagged merchant ship, the Maersk Alabama, was captured by Somali pirates. This latest attack comes despite 27 ships deployed to the region.
Piracy is the naval equivalent of guerrilla warfare. Defeating it requires either convoy escort, armed merchantmen, or aggressive hunter-killer operations. We're not doing any of the above.
Part of why we're not doing what needs to be done is political. There is a reluctance to just shoot pirates, and merchant ships don't want to arm themselves.
The other part of the problem is that many navies, such as ours, are structured for fleet-on-fleet combat. Looking through Defense Secretary Gates budget proposal, I think some of that is going to change.
Piracy is the naval equivalent of guerrilla warfare. Defeating it requires either convoy escort, armed merchantmen, or aggressive hunter-killer operations. We're not doing any of the above.
Part of why we're not doing what needs to be done is political. There is a reluctance to just shoot pirates, and merchant ships don't want to arm themselves.
The other part of the problem is that many navies, such as ours, are structured for fleet-on-fleet combat. Looking through Defense Secretary Gates budget proposal, I think some of that is going to change.
