Tom Hanks new film "Captain Philips"

[Tom Kirby]

Tom Hanks new film "Captain Philips looks to be a good movie for us all on this site. Its about Piracy on the Horn of Africa. But it got me thinking back to my time at sea. I never heard anything of Piracy in those days of the 1950's/60's. In my opinion, perhaps because we had bigger crews of 40 or more, and mostly British at that, unlike today's crews. We would have been more aggressive and difficult to control. the "Red Mist" would appear throughout the ship, just think back to some of the nutters you sailed with!, they could release their pressure valves ( go ahead make my day), Shackles, bottle screws, Marlin spikes and three by two timbers would be the order of the day. It would be like "The Shining" at sea .Are you ready lads?.

[Ivan Cloherty]

Tom, piracy was ripe in the 50/60's especially in the Malacca Straits and similar areas, we always had searchlights, aldis lamps and hoses ready

[John Albert Evans]

The nearest thing I saw to pirates were the Bum Boats at Port Said, Suez.

Having said that when I was on the San Fernando (Eagle Oil Shipping Co.) her sister ship, the San Flaviano was bombed and sank in Balikpapan by an American pilot on 28th March 1958.He was classed as a soldier of fortune and working for the people of the Celebese Islands (Rumoured to be CIA???) I sailed with a few of the crew later on other Eagle Tankers. I think the grandson of the wife of the First Officer who was pregnant and on board at the time of the bombing is a member of this site.

John Albert Evans

[John Albert Evans]

launch.jpg and two years later...san flaviano.jpg

I tried to uplooad these photos in my previous post but couldnt do it for some unknown reason.

John Albert Evans

[Captain Kong]

Hi Tom,
we had piracy in the 50s as Ivan says,
I had cause to despatch one off the Java coast in 1960, see my Spice Islands story in Seafaring Tales on the Swinging the lead thread.
We always had a Pirate Watch every night at anchor in those perfumed seas of the Spice Islands, and even in certain ports, we would heave on the anchor after slacking off all the ropes to pull her off the quay and raise the gangway and keep watches on deck continuously They came from land and sea.
In Padang in Sumatra we even had an air raid which sank some ships and one plane was shot down and a young American Pilot parachuted and landed by our ship. The Militias dragged him out and executed him by firing squad just by the ship. Not a little gruesome. A lot of everything went on in those islands.
Cheers
Brian.

.

[John Pruden]

there is a law suit going on in the states for$50.000.000 for endangering his crew?

[cappy]

had a good mate on the san Fernando around 58 59name of jenson out of shields a well known and liked shields lad always known as jenner ..............new him well a jos or sos at the time met up in Buenos areias......joined a shell tanker iiin 59 in shields and as we walked down to brighams dock he curled up with stomach pains and went home ....saw him 4or 5 months later and he was only half his weight and said it was ulcers .....but it was the big c .....a great mate never forgotten ....missed his funeral I was at sea ,,,,,went to early god bless him regards cappy

[Captain Kong]

The full story is on Wikipedia, google Maersk Alabama H ijackiing,
.
Trial[edit]

The surviving pirate, Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse, was held on the USS Bonhomme Richard and was eventually flown to the U.S. for trial. In a federal courtroom in New York City, prosecutors brought charges that included piracy, conspiracy to seize a ship by force, and conspiracy to commit hostage-taking.[33] Muse's lawyers asked that he be tried as a juvenile, alleging he was either 15 or 16 years old at the time of the hostage taking, but the court ruled Muse was not a juvenile and would be tried as an adult.[34][35] Muse later pled guilty to piracy charges and was handed a prison sentence of 33 years and nine months.[36][37]

Lawsuit[edit]

On 27 April 2009, Maersk Alabama crew member Richard E. Hicks filed a lawsuit against his employer, Waterman Steamship Corporation and Maersk Line, Ltd., for knowingly sending him into pirate-infested waters near Somalia. Houston attorney Brian Beckcom, who is representing Richard Hicks and eight other members of the crew, said that Captain Phillips knowingly and willingly put the crew in danger by ignoring reports of recent pirate attacks and disregarding warnings to remain at least 600 miles from the coast of Somalia.[38] The ship owners took no steps to provide appropriate levels of security and safety for their employees.

Cheers
Brian.

[Ivan Cloherty]

Hope we've answered your question about piracy in those days Tom, some were lucky not to be in those areas, worst times were when loaded and little freeboard and we had deck patrols even when transitting. In ballast not such a problem with the higher freeboard and better manouverability, their boats were small and fast but the big fast turning propeller always made them wary. Marlin spikes etc not much good against pistols, machetes and palangs and determined individuals who apparently had nothing to lose.

Some seamen were lucky not to transit those piracy areas, but I have sailed with men who never transited the Panama Canal, they were the unlucky ones, tramping had its advantages over the liner routes, you saw more of the world and the odd and dangerous spots but also the exotic

[j.sabourn]

I think Tom Hanks should be fined a days pay and forfeit a days pay for appearing in such a film. Wonder what sort of nautical advisors they got so as to appear authentic to the general public. Maybe they might try for the ex naval officer from the recent near disaster in the Solent. John Sabourn