Extract
Sneaking in on or under the waves.
The utility of naval special operations forces was dramatically demonstrated following the seizure of Captain Richard Philips, skipper of the MV Maersk Alabama container ship and his liberation by US Navy Sea Air Land (Seal) team members on 12 April 2009. Philips made his escape when three snipers from Seal Team Six killed three of the four pirates who were holding him captive on the vessel's lifeboat.
The MV Maersk Alabama had of course been hijacked by Somali pirates en route to Mombasa, Kenya. The Seal team had fired the shots from the USS Bainbridge, an Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyer, that ended the tense stand-off between the navy and the pirates. The hijacking of the Maersk Alabama was reportedly the first seizure of an American-flagged vessel since the Second Barbary War of 1815. The seizure and the subsequent rescue of Captain Philips underscored just how dangerous the waters around the Horn of Africa are for merchant shipping where pirates can operate with impunity from the lawless state of Somalia. Moreover, it also indicates the demand for naval special operations forces capable of bringing their co...See the full content of this document
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