The M/V St James Park, a UK flagged ship, was pirated Dec. 29 while transiting the Internationally Recognized Transit Corridor (IRTC) through the Gulf of Aden. After receiving a signal from the M/V St James Park's Ship Security Alert System (SSAS), USS Chosin (CG 65), operating as the flagship to Combined Task Force 151 (CTF 151), was able to confirm via bridge-to-bridge radio that pirates had taken control of the vessel. The M/V St James Park is the first vessel since July to be pirated in the IRTC. It has a crew of 26, including Filipinos, Russians, Georgians, Romanians, Bulgarians, Ukrainians, Polish, Indians and Turkish. There are no UK citizens on board.