Indian Navy: Anti-Piracy Operations

Kunal Biswas

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CAPTURE OF PIRATED SHIP MV ALONDRA RAINBOW IN A JOINT OPERATION BY THE COAST GUARD AND NAVY









In a swift and planned operation on 16 Nov 1999 the Indian Coast Guard and Navy carried out an unprecedented feat of successfully capturing a pirated ship MV Alondra Rainbow hijacked from South China Sea.

On 22 Oct, 1999 the Japanese owned tanker, Alondra Rainbow, with a crew of 15 Filipinos and 2 Japanese, carrying a cargo of 7000 tonnes of aluminium ingots sailed from the port of Kuala Tanjong in Indonesia. The ship was bound for Miike in Japan. En route, the ship was attacked and forcibly boarded by masked pirates armed with fire arms. The crew were blind folded and cast adrift on an open life raft left to the mercy of elements. By sheer providence, these men were picked up, after eleven gruelling days at sea by a Thai fishing vessel and taken to Phuket.

The Piracy Reporting Centre(PRC), Kuala Lumpur flashed a message on 27 Oct 1999 regarding the missing vessel, suspected to be a victim of piracy. The Coast Guard Headquarters, anticipating the vessel's likely transit route through Indian Ocean, alerted the various CG commands and units to increase vigil for the vessel. It was also suspected that the vessel would have changed its colour, name and flag and hence units were to be prepared for the changed identity. (In fact, the vessel when apprehended later had a changed name of Mega Rama, flying the Belize flag and a total colour transformation.)

On 13 Nov 1999, the Piracy Reporting Centre, reported sighting by a ship MV Al Shuhada of a vessel of similar description to Alondra Rainbow, 66 miles South West of Cape Comorin doing a North Westerly Course. Indian Coast Guard Ship Tarabai was promptly deployed from Kochi and a surveillance aircraft sortie launched from Coast Guard Air Station Daman. ICGS Tarabai located the suspect vessel on the night of 14 Nov 1999. On being challenged by the ICG ship and despite several warnings to stop, the suspect vessel ignored the calls, and altered course seawards and increased speed.


By day break of 15 Nov more ICG assets were fast closing on the scene of action. ICG Dornier was overhead the suspect at 0630 hrs on 15 Nov. In day light, visual inspection further confirmed the suspect's resemblance to Alondra Rainbow. Further warning shots evoked a radio response from the vessel, claiming that she was Mega Rama with Indonesian crew headed for Port Fujira and would not stop as she had to make timely ETA at next Port. Prompt verification was sought from appropriate authorities and it was established that particulars given by the ship was fake. By 16 Nov 1999, more surface forces, ICGS Veera and Annie Besant and a Naval Warship INS Prahar closed in on the fleeing vessel which was eventually forced to stop after INS Prahar engaged the ship with her armament. A Coast Guard Boarding team then embarked the ship to check the documents, cargo and identity of the men on board. The identity of the vessel being MV Alondra Rainbow was established beyond doubt. A fire on board was extinguished by the boarding team. There was also an attempt to scuttle the ship as the team noticed substantial water ingress in the Engine Room possibly due to opening of Sea Chest valves and this situation needed to be rectified expeditiously. INS Gomati and INS Delhi provided assistance for Deflooding and Damage Control. Naval Divers carried out under water repairs on the ship. The ship's condition was made stable and thereafter ICGS Veera took the ship under tow and proceeded for Mumbai port where she arrived with her catch on 21 Nov 1999 and handed over the vessel along with the arrested personnel to the Shore Authorities.


JOINT OPERATION BY THE COAST GUARD AND NAVY
 

Kunal Biswas

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West of Mumbai, a merchant ship MV BBC Orinoco with a crew of 14 (5 Ukraine and 9 Philippino) reported being attacked by pirates. The crew locked themselves in the ships Engine room and the Steering compartment and communicated with their agents, UK MTO Dubai, on e-mail. Dubai, in turn, intimated the Indian Navy for assistance.
On receipt of this information, the Indian Navy promptly detached one of its missile corvettes, INS Veer, to intercept the distressed vessel and also sailed a destroyer INS Delhi with a team of Marine Commandos (MARCOS) embarked. One of the Navy's long range maritime ratrol aircraft (Ilyushin-38) was extensively deployed for aerial surveillance. The Indian Coast Guard, too, responded with alacrity adjusting all routine deployments to keep one or more Dornier aircraft on hot standby, besides asking their ships on assigned mission to be also on stand-by.

At daybreak, the naval forces, which had arrived at the scene, commenced their actions. MARCOS slithered onto the merchant ship from a Sea King helicopter and took the crew, who were locked in compartments, to safety, while the helicopter provided air borne fire support. The merchantman was boarded by naval personnel and a thorough search is currently in progress. The ship will set course for its destination once the boarding party reports all clear. Although no pirates remain onboard, implements such as crow bar, knives etc., were found aboard the ship.

MV BBC Orinoco is a General Cargo Carrier and is registered in Antigua and Barbuda.
Livefist: PHOTOS: Indian Navy Foils Pirates, Again
 

W.G.Ewald

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The Bofors 40 mm gun is an anti-aircraft autocannon designed by the Swedish defence firm Bofors Defence. It was one of the most popular medium-weight anti-aircraft systems during World War II, used by most of the western Allies as well as by the Axis powers. The cannon remains in service as of 2012, making it one of the longest-serving artillery pieces of all time. It is often referred to simply as the Bofors gun.[1] Bofors itself was acquired in September 2000 by United Defense Industries, but since March 2005 has been a part of BAE Systems AB.
Bofors 40 mm/L60. This example includes the British-designed Stiffkey Sight, being operated by the aimer standing to the right of the loader (turned sideways). It operates the trapeze seen above the sights, moving the sights to adjust for lead.
 

Manish Khan

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From the straits times:
Singapore takes over command of multi-national counter-piracy task force
yq-ctf151-28062018.jpg

This is the fifth time that the SAF will be leading CTF 151 since it was set up in 2009. It is also the 11th SAF deployment to contribute to multinational anti-piracy efforts in the Gulf of Aden.

Since 2009, Singapore has deployed over 1,400 military personnel, five ships, one maritime patrol aircraft, four SAF command teams, five task groups and one air detachment.

Said RADM Saw Shi Tat, leader of SAF's command team, during the ceremony: "As a maritime nation, Singapore's economic lifeline and success are inextricably linked to the security and uninhibited flow of seaborne trade, making it essential for Singapore to contribute towards safeguarding these shipping lanes."

RADM Saw added that he is honoured to serve alongside a team of staff from 11 other countries and sees the varied expertise as "the key strength of our team". They come from various countries such as South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Australia, and United Kingdom.

For Major Sing Geok Wei, it is her second time being deployed in this mission. This year, she is the Deployment Planning Cell Lead, who works with the national representatives from different countries to plan counter-piracy exercises and operations out at sea.

"We might have come from different parts of the world with cultural, religious, languages differences, but we have a common mission to ensure the maritime security in the region," said Maj Sing, 34.

She shared that going on the mission might mean being unable to see her younger brother and sister for more than a year, as they are pursuing an internship in Beijing and studies in the United States respectively.

However, her family are very supportive of her decision to contribute to the peace and security of the region.

She sees the importance of Singapore in contributing to this mission. "Everyone big or small can contribute to the security of the world," Maj Sing added.

Maj Sing said the expected temperature during this period can go beyond 50 degrees.

Despite the heat, she has shared a part of Singapore with the other international crew members by letting them taste her mum's homemade chilli.

"A Brazilian and a Japanese, both intelligence officers, found it very spicy," she added.
 

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