Somali Pirates: Anti-Pirate Task Force Routines

Nice report on the daily doings of part of CTF-151, the anti-pirate task force bobbing around in patrolling the Gulf of Aden from Navy Times:

The group’s Seahawks and ScanEagle unmanned aerial vehicles do the bulk of the patrolling and surveillance, Cox said, investigating reports about boats that could be carrying hijackers. Although pirates and fishermen off Somalia use almost identical types of vessels, Cox said his pilots can make educated guesses about a boat based on its contents.

“Mostly it’s the weapons,” he said. “If you see certain types of weapons” — rocket-propelled grenades, for example — “that’s just not what your typical fisherman carries. If you see fishing gear, that’s not what your typical pirate carries. Also, ladders — there’re not too many pirates who use ladders for fishing.”

More on Scan Eagle info here. H-60H info here.