Thanks MUCH Lee. Seems that you solved this mystery for us...you also help explain why Navy Public Affairs was tongue tied when it came to describing the unit involved in this rescue....
Remember my post
here??? In it I asked if perhaps a new Special Ops Unit had been created and wondered why they were keeping it so hush hush....
Well the answer to that question is
here.
When they climbed aboard Saturday with a rickety ladder made from
welded scrap, the four Somalis suspected of trying to hijack a massive
Japanese oil tanker probably figured their plan would go off without a
hitch: They'd round up the crew, take control of the tanker, and do with
it as they pleased.
Instead, they ended up in the custody of the Norfolk-based Navy ship
Bulkeley, after what local sailors described Tuesday as a botched
attempt at piracy.
In phone interviews from the Indian Ocean, Bulkeley crew members
provided new details about their involvement in freeing the Japanese
vessel and arresting the Somalis. They said the Somalis were never able
to gain access to their prospective hostages, who had barricaded
themselves in the tanker's control room.
Ultimately the Somalis surrendered, and they remain on the Bulkeley,
where they are being kept under 24-hour watch, said Cmdr. Chris
DeGregory, the Bulkeley's top officer.
"For us, it couldn't have gone better," DeGregory said. "Our training paid off."
While he said it’s not yet clear what will happen to the suspected
pirates next, the Japanese press is reporting that the country’s
government plans to bring them to Japan for prosecution. American
officials couldn’t immediately confirm that.
The ordeal began Saturday afternoon when the Bulkeley, a
guided-missile destroyer with a crew of about 300, received a distress
call from the Japanese tanker, the Guanabara, about 300 nautical miles
off the coast of Oman.
The Bulkeley left Norfolk in January for a roughly six-month
deployment as part of an international anti-piracy task force. It was
one of four U.S. Navy ships that tried last month to free four Americans
who were taken hostage by Somali pirates off East Africa; the hostages
were later shot and killed.
When the Guanabara's distress call went out, the Bulkeley was the
closest available responder. It reached the Guanabara around 9 p.m. that
night.
DeGregory said the Bulkeley was able to make contact with the
tanker's crew by both radio and satellite phone, and they were able to
describe the situation: There were 24 of them, from a variety of
nations, against four Somalis armed with automatic rifles.
As soon as the Somalis boarded the tanker, the crew members had
barricaded themselves in the control room, and so far, the Somalis
hadn't been able to get in.
"That's the best thing they could have done," DeGregory said.
He said the Bulkeley stayed in contact with the tanker crew
throughout the night, as the Somalis continued to try to break in. The
next morning, a Turkish warship arrived, and both the Turks and the
Americans sent up helicopters.
The Bulkeley also began playing loud, pre-recorded messages in Somali urging the pirates to surrender.
Finally, around 9 a.m., the Somalis laid down their weapons, gathered
at the Guanabara's bow and began waving pieces of white cloth.
That's when the Bulkeley's boarding team went to work.
In two small boats, the team's 19 members headed for the tanker, then
climbed aboard near the stern, said Ensign Michael Seymour, the team
leader.
Jameson Siegrist, a 24-year-old second - class petty officer, was the first one up.
"It was definitely one of the most intense moments of my life," Siegrist said. "Definitely an adrenaline rush."
As the rest of the team made it on deck, the sailors approached the
Somalis, ordering them to keep their hands up and then lie down.
"They were very compliant," Seymour said.
With the four Somalis secured, the Bulkeley team proceeded to search
the Guanabara to make sure no others were hiding below decks. Once they
cleared the tanker, its crew emerged.
"You could tell they were very happy to see us," Seymour said. "You could see the relief on their faces."
He said the Somalis had used a makeshift ladder made from welded
scrap to board the Guanabara. The Somalis' original vessel wasn't found.
The Somalis remain on the deck of the Bulkeley, Seymour said, adding
that they are being fed rice and beans and kept out of the weather.
The Japanese press is reporting that the country is making
arrangements with the U.S. Navy for the suspected pirates to be brought
to Oman, where a Japanese team will pick them up and take them to Japan
for prosecution.
Japan’s plans come in response to a request from the United States, the newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun reported today.
Corinne Reilly, (757) 446-2949, corinne.reilly@pilotonline.com
A Destroyer crew...A well trained crew...But not certified "Special Ops" capable crew...Did what the FBI Negotiators and an undisclosed team of snake eaters failed to do...they pulled off a text book rescue of a hijacked ship.
Don't get me wrong. The pirates that seized the missionaries were brutal and it might well have been a no win situation...but they had individuals whose primary mission and focus was battling pirates. This crew not only have anti-piracy missions but the other 100's of other tasks that a crew has to perform not only during wartime but on a daily basis.
Extremely well done Squids! And believe you me...I say Squid with nothing but respect.
