A South African yachtsman, who escaped capture by pirates when he refused to cooperate with them, was safely taken on board an EU NAVFOR warship yesterday.
His yacht had been located by the EU NAVFOR warship FS FLOREAL on 6 November when it was discovered to be sailing suspiciously close to shore. Despite numerous unsuccessful attempts to contact the yacht, including a flypast by the ship’s helicopter, no answer was received and the French warship launched her boarding team to investigate further.
Upon approaching, the team came under fire from the yacht and a Mayday call was recieved making it clear that pirates were on board and that the crew of three were under their control.
The FS FLOREAL remained in the vicinity of the pirated vessel. The yacht eventually ran aground near the shore during the early morning of 7 November. As a result of the grounding, the pirates attempted to remove the three crewmembers ashore. The South African skipper of the yacht refused to leave his vessel and the pirates left with the remaining two crewmembers as hostages.
Once the pirates had left the yacht, the skipper was rescued by the EU NAVFOR warship FS FLOREAL. He is confirmed as being safe and is currently on board another EU NAVFOR warship.
The whereabouts of the other crew members is currently unknown, despite a comprehensive search by an EU NAVFOR helicopter.
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 African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). EU NAVFOR also protects vulnerable vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, deters and disrupts piracy. In addition, EU NAVFOR monitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia.
His yacht had been located by the EU NAVFOR warship FS FLOREAL on 6 November when it was discovered to be sailing suspiciously close to shore. Despite numerous unsuccessful attempts to contact the yacht, including a flypast by the ship’s helicopter, no answer was received and the French warship launched her boarding team to investigate further.
Upon approaching, the team came under fire from the yacht and a Mayday call was recieved making it clear that pirates were on board and that the crew of three were under their control.
The FS FLOREAL remained in the vicinity of the pirated vessel. The yacht eventually ran aground near the shore during the early morning of 7 November. As a result of the grounding, the pirates attempted to remove the three crewmembers ashore. The South African skipper of the yacht refused to leave his vessel and the pirates left with the remaining two crewmembers as hostages.
Once the pirates had left the yacht, the skipper was rescued by the EU NAVFOR warship FS FLOREAL. He is confirmed as being safe and is currently on board another EU NAVFOR warship.
The whereabouts of the other crew members is currently unknown, despite a comprehensive search by an EU NAVFOR helicopter.
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 African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). EU NAVFOR also protects vulnerable vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, deters and disrupts piracy. In addition, EU NAVFOR monitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia.