UPDATE V: Maersk Alabama attacked by pirates Maersk Alabama Situation: 1700 EDT Update http://www.maersklinelimited.com We want to respond to inquiries with the most recent information in a consistent manner. First of all, we would like to extend to the families of the crew and the captain of the Maersk Alabama our thoughts and prayers. As [...]

A friend alerted me to this crazy piece of technology.  Imagine a chart that can be manipulated like a giant ipod.  Sounds like they are doing some work with the British RNLI.  It also reminds me of the huge displays Tom Cruise used in “Minority Report”.  Maritime Charts on Surface from Rob Blackwell on Vimeo. Richard [...]

I saw a comment post on gcaptain that sparked my interest. It said “Time to bring back the Q ships”. While the entire world now engages in discussing how to stop piracy, I took a moment to research this, as I did not recall what exactly the Q ships were. Q ships where heavily armed merchant ships used in WWI and WWII with concealed weaponry that were designed to lure enemy subs into engaging them in a surface attack. Essentially decoy ships.

Here is the latest directly from Maersk:

Maersk Alabama Situation: 0600 EDT Update

Norfolk, Va., 9 April 2009: The current situation involving the Maersk Alabama has remained much the same throughout the night. The ship’s crewmembers have been accounted for and are safely aboard the vessel. However, the ship’s captain remains in the custody of the pirates, who departed in one of the ship’s encapsulated life boats on April 8.

The U.S. flagged M/V Maersk Alabama has been hijacked by pirates approximately 280 miles (450 kilometers) northeast of Eyl, a town in the northern Puntland region of Somalia. The ship reportedly has 21 U.S. citizens aboard and is the first U.S. flagged vessel to be hijacked by Somali pirates.