Modern Piracy

[MrFun]

So exactly how do today's pirates in speed boats much smaller than the larger ships they attack successfully hijack such large ships?

I just can't see it - it would be a lot like a poodle beating up a German shepherd.

[OneFootInTheGrave]

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/01/world/africa/01pirates.html?hp

[Patroklos]

It isn't a fight, they just threaten them with an RPG/machine gun and the merchants let them onboard.

[BeBMan]

Sid Meier's Pirates V will deal with the subject

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Patroklos
It isn't a fight, they just threaten them with an RPG/machine gun and the merchants let them onboard.

Because a machine gun can puncture holes in a super-sized ship??

[MrFun]

Originally posted by OneFootInTheGrave
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/01/wo...irates.html?hp

I need one million dollars for myself so I do not go hungry. Where's my money?

[Patroklos]

Because a machine gun can puncture holes in a super-sized ship??

It sure can, most hulls these days are on the order of .3" thick, modern warships don't even have armor. A .50cal can easily penetrate 1" of normal steel plate. On most ships (from my boarding days) if you really wanted to get it to stop you just unload the .50 cal on the spaces under the stacks where the engine should be and puncture the boilers/turbines.

You have to rememeber complete diference in potency of weapons these days, the concentration of fire power that can be wielded by a singe person now compared to the 1700's means a lot.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Patroklos


It sure can, most hulls these days are on the order of .3" thick, modern warships don't even have armor. A .50call can easily penetrate 1" of steel plate. On most ships (from my boarding days) if you really wanted to get it to stop you just unload the .50 cal on the spaces under the stacks where the engine should be and puncture the boilers/turbines.

You have to rememeber complete diference in potency of weapons these days, the concentration of fire power that can be wielded by a singe person now compared to the 1700's means a lot.

Damn. I didn't realize modern warships are floating eggshells!!

[BeBMan]

Originally posted by MrFun



Because a machine gun can puncture holes in a super-sized ship??

Concentrated MG fire - I'd assume yes, unless we speak about old armoured battleships....but I'd say modern merchant or cruise vessels can take damage. And off course from the RPGs esp. And there's also the crew that could suffer from MG fire....

ahhh...too late

[Patroklos]

With the potential penetrating power of missiles these days armor lost in the weapons race as far as the naval side goes. We do have Kevlar sheeting surrounding sensative internal spaces like CIC to help contain shrapnel, but thats it. It is far more cost effective (and combat effective) to invest in shooting down missiles via SM2 or RAM or ESSM or CIWS than to cover every inch of the hull in armor.

The odd thing about this is that as modern warships shed armor so to did the modern missile shed their armor defeating abilities. An Iowa battleship would shug off an Exocet like a mosquito bite. By the same token a WWII destroyer would shug off a machine gun wielding speed boat, but now that speed boat could do major damage (if it got that close).

Its just a trade off really, but I am an advocate of adding limited waterline armor and more effective point defenses to our new classes of warships.

[MrFun]

interesting stuff, Patty

[OzzyKP]

Now we all know how to defeat the world's top navies.

[Wernazuma III]

Pirate ships have always been smaller but faster than their targets. To me it seems that the critical point for most pirate activities is boarding the ship, not threatening to sink it while attacking.
In combat, pirates simply don't face serious resistance on the hijacked vessel if crew members are not suicidal. I wonder how long it takes that ships in that area hire more mercenaries to protect themselve.

[Patroklos]

Now we all know how to defeat the world's top navies.

There has been a lot of movement on the point defense front. A fully armed Arliegh Burke class Flight IIA on deployment now has for surface defense:

1 5"/54 caliber gun (with KEAT)
1 or 2 CIWS Block 1B (this version can attack surface targets)
2 25mm chain guns
8 (or 16 if double mounted) 50.cals
2 M60s
2 automatic grenade launchers

Plus whatever the watchstanders themselves have wich will amount to a few M16s/M14s and grenade launchers.

As for anti-missile defense the Phalanx is just getting better and better. We also have now have the Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) and though still limited in numbers the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM), both capable of taking out multiple mach missiles like the SS-N-22 Sunburn. (technically the 5" can shoot down missiles as well). NULKA is coming online now as well and is supposedly quite effective.

[OzzyKP]

I keep hearing about small boats from small countries surprising everyone during naval war games.