Captain Phillips – Great film but genuine concern??

Last night I watched one of my favourite films again – Captain Phillips. The film is based on the true story of the 2009 Maersk Alabama hijacking, an incident during which merchant mariner Captain Richard Phillips was taken hostage by pirates in the Indian Ocean. The route was to sail through the Gulf of Aden to Mombasa, round the Horn of Africa, but this means you have sail along the coast of Somalia, a known haven for pirates.  In 2009, British holidaymakers on a round-the-world cruise came under attack from pirates on Fred Olsen’s Balmoral.  The cruise ship was forced to zigzag to evade the pirates as they gave chase in two small craft in the notoriously dangerous waters off Somalia.The attack was only averted by the intervention of a U.S. Navy ship which escorted the cruise vessel through the perilous Gulf of Aden.   In 2008 the Oceania Nautica was fired at during its 32-day voyage from Rome to Singapore.  The ship was approached by two small skiffs which fired several shots, no one was harmed and no damage was sustained…..but very worrying if you were onboard!
I’m just intrigued by the topic,  I’m not in anyway trying to scare anyone, just interested in your thoughts.  Are there certain itineraries you want to do whatever the risk. Does the risk of pirates put you off?  In reality the interception of a cruise ship is quite rare. The Gulf of Aden is patrolled by anti-piracy forces, also the size of cruise ships means that it can be difficult to board them from smaller vessels. When threatened, some liners possess long-range acoustic devices, which emit high frequency noise, to deter potential attackers. I must underline that cruising is one of the safer ways to travel. Of course most cruise lines have switched routes to avoid pirates, with so many cruise itineraries to choose from, avoiding pirate-infested waters is easy.  There are some stunning itineraries out there and the cruise lines first priority is of course your safety and lets be honest whats going here at the moment is anywhere safe?

Great film, interesting topic – let me know your thoughts or have you been on a ship in this area?

Take care everyone in this mad mad world

Haydn