Atlantic Council

From Allied Maritime Command Headquarters Northwood:  NATO flagship HDMS ESBERN SNARE, in cooperation with international counter-piracy forces successfully disrupted multiple piracy attacks on Panamanian flagged MV Caribbean Carrier and Norwegian flagged Hoegh Oslo who were transiting in the Gulf of Aden. MV Caribbean Carrier was transiting in the International Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC) in the Gulf of Aden when she reported being under attack from pirates firing at her. US warship Winston Churchill working for combined coalition forces and Danish Warship ESBERN SNARE, the flagship of NATO’s counter-piracy mission, responded to the call for help. After the pirates broke off the attack a Spanish Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) working for EU Naval Forces located and tracked the pirate skiff and observed the pirates now trying to attack another ship, MV Hoegh Oslo. After ESBERN SNARE’s helicopter arriving on scene, the pirate skiff broke off the attack and tried to escape towards Somalia.

The evading pirate skiff refused to stop so the Danish Navy helicopter fired warning shots which compelled the pirates to surrender. When the boarding team from ESBERN SNARE subsequently investigated the skiff, they found spent and unused ammunition, knives and other piracy related paraphernalia onboard.

“The nature of the counter-piracy mission down here is challenging. We stay poised and sharp, because in an instant, we have to be ready to react to a call for help”, Captain Carsten Fjord-Larsen, Commanding Officer of HDMS ESBERN SNARE said. “NATO warships are ready, day and night to employ the full extent of our assets to ensure the safety of the merchant ships”.  (photo: NATO)