GOOD GRIEF! What a complete BOOB!
[B]The strange case of an anti-piracy vessel[/B]
Capt. Max Hardberger
May 7, 2013
The story of an anti-piracy vessel on its way from England to an unknown destination gets more bizarre with every news account.
Now under detention in Spain, the Defender began life as a 127’ fast-attack craft built in England for the Sultan of Oman. The current owner, a self-proclaimed ex-Royal Navy officer named Chris Enmarsh, has registered the ominous-looking craft (complete with two cannons) as a British pleasure craft. That registration raised a red flag when the vessel stopped in Los Cristianos, Canary Islands, for repairs, and the Spanish authorities promptly detained the Defender.
Enmarsh may have brought some of his troubles on himself with conflicting stories about where the vessel was headed and what it was intended to do. He told the Spanish authorities that the vessel was en route to Senegal so he could “discuss” its use in preventing illegal fishing in Senegalese waters. However, he had previously told the Maldon (UK) Chronicle that the vessel was on its way to protect oil platforms in-transit off the coast of Somalia.
“One look at her,” he told the Chronicle, “should be enough to send [Somali pirates] looking for easier targets.” That may be, but the Spanish authorities weren’t buying it. In fact, Enmarsh’s comments to the Chronicle were self-contradictory. He said the vessel “will be manned by handpicked ex-Royal Marine commandos and run as a professional naval ship,” and added that it was “strictly a business venture.”
His naval experience notwithstanding, Enmarsh seems unaware that a vessel cannot be both a naval (i.e., government) vessel and a “business venture” vessel, or that neither can be registered as a pleasure yacht.
And to add fuel to the fire, he told the Chronicle that the vessel would be manned by ex-Royal Marine commandos, but told reporters in Spain on April 29 that only he and one other crewman had served in the armed forces.
As for the cannons onboard, he told reporters that they were “for show only and totally unusable,” which would indicate that he has little regard for his potential adversaries. Somebody should tell him that the Somali pirates, who are sophisticated enough to have ransom brokers in the UK and communicate via Facebook, are certainly capable of reading such admissions and acting accordingly.
In any event, his claim that the vessel’s mission is to scare away evildoers by appearance alone is questionable, if not laughable.
Regardless of Enmarsh’s conflicting stories and apparent intentions, any effort to deter piracy and illegal fishing — whichever he plans to do — is laudable, but one can only wish that he could show a bit more sense in achieving it.
Btw, doesn’t the guy know that piracy off of Somalia is waning and it is Nigeria that is the new hotspot? FOOL!
Still, I’d love to own a vessel like that and use it for some huntin on the high seas! Yeah, I’m talkin to you Paul Watson…you phat phucking phugly pharce!