Portuguese Navy thwarts Somali pirate attack on cargo ship
The Portugal News Online
A NATO statement said the Portuguese warship responded to a request for assistance from the unidentified cargo vessel that was being chased by a pirate launch about 100 nautical miles north of the port of Boosaaso.
A Spanish maritime patrol aircraft and helicopter from the Alvares Cabral joined the operation and the pirate boat was boarded at around 11.20 local time by Portuguese Marines.
Aircrew in the Portuguese Navy helicopter reported seeing weapons and other equipment thrown overboard by the pirates as the Marines neared, added the NATO statement.
The pirates were identified by the Portuguese boarding party then released and the Alvares Cabral returned to its routine patrol in the Gulf of Aden, Lisbon military sources said.
Portugal took command of NATO’s Ocean Shield mission November 9 and leads it until January 25, 2010.
In a related story, Navy Captain Gonçalves Alexandre received an award on Monday for “exceptional bravery at sea” in London in the name of the crew of the Portuguese frigate Corte-Real for services rendered in NATO’s fight against piracy off Somalia.
The honour is bestowed by the United Nation’s International Maritime Organisation (IMO).
The Corte-Real’s 192-member crew helped stave off several prate attacks and aided international shipping off Somalia as part of the NATO fleet, currently under Portuguese command, last summer.