Cruise Ship Piracy Incident Leads to Client Worries
The Nov. 30 pirate attack on Oceania Cruises’ Nautica in the Gulf of Aden near Somalia is spurring concerned phone calls from clients. “Clients are calling asking about the pirate incident and what cruise lines are doing to prevent these kinds of things,” said Bill Knight, president of All Cruise Travel in San Jose, Calif. “They’re even calling if they’re booked to sail in Europe and other parts of the world.”
He said one client cancelled a $45,000 booking that is scheduled to sail through the Gulf of Aden in May. “Travel is discretionary –if you don’t feel comfortable you don’t have to go,” Knight noted. The Gulf of Aden is generally transited when ships sail the Suez Canal and Red Sea between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
Incidentally, Knight had clients on the Nautica during the pirate attack. The California couple related their experience with Knight in an email, which he shared with Travel Pulse. “Well, this has been an unusual voyage so far,” they wrote. “We just cleared the Gulf of Aden, between Somalia and Yemen, where we came under attack by several speed boats with rifles.
Meanwhile, Cruise Lines International Association addressed the piracy issue with the following statement: “While piracy involving cruise ships at sea is extraordinarily rare, the Cruise Lines International Association and its members take this issue very seriously and are in close consultation with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and others to ensure the safety of their passengers and crew. Fortunately, in the recent incident involving Oceania Nautica, due to crew alertness and security protocols executed by its trained and professional crew, the Oceania Nautica kept the incident involving two small boats from escalating into a more serious situation. As Oceania has stated, no one was hurt and the ship has maintained its voyage.
“CLIA members that have ships scheduled to traverse the Gulf of Aden operate within the prescribed Maritime Safety Protection Area, which is patrolled by international anti-piracy task forces. They also follow international guidelines concerning regular contact with military forces patrolling the gulf, speed, maneuvering, and enhanced lookouts. All CLIA members have thorough security protocols in place, including anti-piracy measures that help to ensure the safety of their passengers and crew while they enjoy a cruise vacation.”
Among the IMO recommendations are extreme maneuvers of the ship, which can cause “bow waves” and “wash” that can make it difficult for pirates to attach poles or grappling irons to a ship. In addition, water hoses with pressure of 80 pounds per square inch can repulse attackers.
Other cruise lines have ships scheduled to sail through the Gulf of Aden in upcoming months. Silversea has such a cruise, from Dubai to Athens, scheduled for March. “We’re monitoring the situation, but no changes are planned at this time,” Silversea spokesman Brad Ball said.
