MV Delmas Nacala and FV Reiman beat off sustained pirate attacks on the evening of March 31st, the attacks being conducted by two separate Pirate Action Groups (PAG), Eu Navfor Public Affairs Office reported.
The attack on the MV Delmas, Antigua and Bermuda flagged 22525-dwt ships, came in the early evening of March 31st some 600 n. miles east of the Seychelles. Two attack skiffs were identified by the ship, which started maneuvering and increased speed. The pirate boats pursued the Delmas and opened small arms, RPG fire. Delman resisted with appropriate counter maneuvers and increased speed. All the crew are reported safe and well.
The same evening, roughly 600 n. miles to the North West of the Delmas attack, a separate Pirate Action Group assaulted the FV Reiman. Reiman, a Taiwan-flagged merchant ship, with Indonesian and Taiwanese nationals crew, spotted a mother boat which began an assault shooting small arms fire. The Reiman also applied speed and maneuver tactics to evade and drive off this attack. In this case the crew were safe and well although one crew member has an injury to his leg.
EU NAVFOR Somalia – Operation ATALANTA’s main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the ‘World Food Program’ (WFP) and vessels of AMISOM, and to protect vulnerable ships in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean and to deter and disrupt piracy. EU NAVFOR also monitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia.