EU NAVFOR Warship Apprehends Pirate Skiff

Early the morning of Tuesday, August 3, the MV Bow Saga sent a distress call that she was under attack from pirates in the middle of the Gulf of Aden. An EU NAVFOR unit close by sent her helicopter to assist and stopped the attack.

The Norwegian Chemical tanker MV Bow Saga was proceeding through the transit corridor in the middle of the Gulf of Aden when it came under attack. A pirate skiff with seven people on board shot at the bridge, damaging the windows. Bow Saga adopted Best Management Practice and was conducting counter measures with evasive maneuvering and the deployment of water hoses to prevent attempts to climb up onto the ship.

EU NAVFOR heard her distress call and ordered the closest warship, the Spanish frigate SPS Victoria to react to the incident. Victoria already had her helicopter in the air and was able to intervene only ten minutes after the call. The pirates stopped the attack and tried to flee. After warning shots, first from the helicopter and then from the warship Victoria, the pirates eventually stopped. The skiff was searched by a boarding team from Victoria and weapons were subsequently found.