Protecting Boats from Attacks by Pirates - A Plan

Greetings all. I wrote this for a NZ magazine, to couple with an engine instalation article. On reflection the magazine said nobody in NZ is worried about pirates and only printed the engine instalation part. So, here is the article in the raw format. The idea is a plan for yachts transiting areas of caution. It's really food for thought.

Cheers

Scott

Anti Pirate plan and Engine Install

If your considering sailing in pirate waters the best single defense against pirate attack is massive horse power and an even larger propeller.

Nothing beats horse power and prop size when high powered tight maneuvers are needed. The prop needs to be large. A 19” for forty horse and 20” for fifty and a 22” for seventy horse power. This large prop would normally be considered a bit over size, but to motor at full speed directly into a seaway the large “grip” on the water is needed. If the yacht is install with a feathering prop the extra drag will not be an issue.

A large engine stuffed into a small engine space can add up to extra installation costs. The exhaust hose might have to be made larger. This means carpentry, larger exhaust through hull, and connections. The prop shaft may have to be enlarged. That means new cutlass bearing, coupling, and of course more time.

This anti-pirate plan also calls for a large autopilot that can be controlled from below decks and an engine control cable also mounted below decks. For example extra cables to control speed and the gearbox are mounted below decks. Sometimes on a small yacht this simply means having a quick way to disconnect the deck cable and take manual control of the engine from the relative safety below decks.

Again this is type installation is a bit more complication that a simple engine change. Still, for some the extra costs are minimal compared to the peace of mind of having a plan should the unlikely brush with a pirate boat happen to occur.

The Threat and Plan in action

The threat is a yacht is sailing along in a remote land far from services. Just the remote locations a yacht is meant to visit. Somehow the crew begin to feel threatened by a surrounding boat.

Maybe a big fish boat is has changed course and is coming up along your side. Perhaps a small ship has just slowed and is launching a skiff. A group of men stand on the deck observing your yacht. Opportunistic fish boat attack is a common form of pirate attack and the most easily prevented.

An opportunistic fish boat attack is when your offshore yacht comes across a smaller fish boat or cargo boat in a remote location. Maybe the catch was low, maybe basic criminals are working the fish/cargo industry simply as a place such people can find refuge, but the defining factor is the decision to pirate a yacht is made quickly and without much forethought.

This lack of a plan is the yachts single greatest asset. The pirate crew tend to be looking for easy pickings. To the yacht this means as long as you can make boarding difficult the pirates will often give up. Most times this situation revolves around an older, unkempt fish boat. This is another advantage for the well kept yacht.

Steps to preventing opportunistic boarding

Early detection
Early evasive maneuvers
Effective close quarters maneuvering

Step One-Early detection

The first step to preventing the pirate attack is early warning. To the yacht crew this means careful monitoring of the radar when in suspect waters. The larger and more powerful the yacht’s radar the better. A 4Kw transmitter with a 48 mile range is perfect. A 2 Kw transmitter with a 24 mile range is still a tremendous help.

Most opportunistic pirate attacks occur between midnight and five am. To the yacht crew this means pay extra attention to the radar during these hours.

Locate and track each target early on for course and speed. Pay particular attention to smaller targets. Look for any vessel that changes course to intercept. This is the crew’s warning an approaching vessel may have suspect intentions.

To efficiently track a vessel’s course and speed use a movable Electric Bearing Line, or set ‘trail’ to ten or even thirty minutes. Trail will show each vessels past echoes on the display making a change in course easy to detect.

Note the range the suspect vessel changed course. If they changed course shortly after 16 or 24 miles then you can assume you appeared on their radar at their maximum range and they have now changed course to intercept. If so it’s time to begin evasive actions.

Step Two-Early evasive action

Early evasive action gives the yacht two advantages. First you can verify if the suspect vessel is indeed perusing the yacht. Second by starting your maneuvers early the yacht gains time to open the gap between vessels.

Your first move is to change course away from the incoming vessel about 15-20 degrees. Notice your course change is just enough to begin opening the intercept gap, but not the typical “Early and Bold” course change we would use in a typical “collision avoidance” maneuver. This is because we don’t want to alert the opposing vessel we are beginning our evasive maneuvers.

If at night attempt to keep the same aspect (color) light toward the suspect vessel before and after your course change.

If the engine is not running we start it now and begin picking up speed. A nice slow acceleration. We don’t want to advertise our intent by a large black cloud of diesel exhaust smoke. We still don’t want the other vessel to notice we changed course, but if they are tracking us they WILL notice our course change follow us that same 15 degrees.

Remember when you changed course all other vessels on the radar will show a new relative course. All the trails will also change direction. Don’t mistake this for pursuit, this is just the radar showing your vessel’s course change. We are looking for a course change that comes five to ten minutes after your course change. This second intercept course change by the ‘pirate’ vessel tells the helm it’s time to wake the crew.

Step 3 Maneuvering

At this point the “Anti Pirate” engine installation comes into play. It’s time to begin accelerating away from the perusing vessel. Attempt to open the gap or at least maintain the gap between vessels. Your ability to maintain this gap will tell you a lot about the opposing vessel.

Attempt to turn directly into the wind and motor hard. Most dilapidated fish/cargo boats just can not keep up with a narrow high horse power yacht pushing into a sea way. For an old wooden fish boat to motor quickly directly into the wind they begin to pound. Old wooden boats don’t do well pounding, but a yacht should take the beating without difficulty.

In the unlikely event the perusing vessel gets close enough for you to see his bow begin altering course from dead on the wind to a few degrees to one side or the other. Aim for a course that makes the perusing vessel pound. This will unlikely be the same course that makes the yacht pound.

Watch the vessel’s lights or if by day his bow motion. Change course into the seas bit by bit till you see his maximum bow motion. This may even be a comfortable motion for the yacht as each boat handles a specific seaway differently.

By now the ‘pirates’ should be having a rough and difficult ride.

If they continue to close till you have visual contact with the crew the next step is to be talking into a microphone or sat phone. Even if you can’t raise anyone just the perception that you are discussing the situation with outsiders may help dissuade your molesters. Take photos from your yacht preferably with a flash so there is no doubt a series of photos has been taken of the opposing vessel.

Most pirates know modern yachts can transmit photos of their vessel through our sophisticated electronics. Remember the ‘pirate’ vessel has not violated any laws at this point. If they think they can be easily identified they will probably turn away and look for easier pickings.

If this scenario were happening at night you might shine a blinding bright spotlight at the vessel during any deck work thus obscuring a sail change. You might also extinguish all lights on your vessel just before you make your next course change. The opposing vessel may not have radar and this may give you another option to open the gap between vessels gaining valuable time.

If the scenario progresses and the yacht were closed with the next step is to prevent boarding. A typical boarding may mean the fish boat tries to ram, or drive right up onto the yacht’s stern where the pirates can jump aboard.

The extra engine horse power of the “Anti Pirate Engine Install” will allow your yacht to make sharp turns keeping the pursuing boat just far enough away to prevent the boarding. Pay careful attention to what direction the fish boat can make a tighter turn. Each boat is different, but prop walk will help or hinder every turn.

Know your boat’s tighter turn direction and try to identify the ‘pirate’ vessel’s turn rate. Attempt to stay on the best turn side. A stalemate is better than capture any day and buys time for rescue or his rundown boat to suffer equipment failure.

If the perusing vessel is right behind you turn sideways to the sea during a large wave set. The yachts low center of gravity allows it to quickly recover from a deep roll, but the pursuing vessel may take an exceedingly deep roll causing them to break off the assault.

Don’t be afraid of reverse. An 80 foot fish boat might take five or seven seconds to change from forward to reverse. For a yacht a big prop reverse and a quick helm maneuver might send your yacht driving in the opposite direction before the perusing vessel even engages his breaks.

In this scenario the boaties are relying on a big auto pilot with a remote set on manual steering. With this simple steering control and one inside engine control the crew has complete boat control while remaining below secured in a pre determinated “safe” zone.

This safe zone is the area of your yacht where you have the best visibility to the outside while keeping your crew concealed from the “threat” vessel. Having a remote, cable controlled auto pilot helm control the crew can move from window to window observing and reacting to the other vessel.

The final phase of our unlikely scenario is if the yacht were boarded. The crew secures the hatches and remain below. The remote helm and engine controls continue to molest the pirates by swinging the boat round wildly. If the main is up and the boom left loose it can be used to cause confusion on deck. Can you imagine trying to board a vessel at speed with a flogging mainsail and out of control boom?

For this plan to function all the yacht gear has to be big, robust and up to the challenge. The engine needs to be able to produce the high horse power and the prop has to efficiently change that horse power to thrust in forward and reverse. The steering system needs to be able to handle full speed hard over turns. Luckily all these upgrades not only make the vessel safer, and often more comfortable they also make the vessel more valuable.

Pirate attacks against yachts are rare in most parts of the world, but occasionally when we have to transit suspect areas it’s good to have a plan should the unlikely occur.

Example of Anti Pirate Engine Installation

The owner of this Passport 40 sailing yacht (40ft on deck, fin keel, skeg hung rudder of 15 tons) was departing Panama into the Caribbean. He planned to sail both the Columbian and Venezuelan coasts. Both are know as Mecca’s for yacht piracy.

The owner told me “After thirty years in law enforcement I can tell you there is no substitute for horse power when you need it most”.

Horse power is what was installed. We removed a oil soaked 30hp Perkins and 18” prop. In it’s place was installed a new turbo charged 75hp Yanmar coupled to an enlarged prop shaft and a 23” Max prop with a line cutter.

The line cutter may be important if the yacht were to tangle with a fish net or disabling lines were laid ahead in her course. By simply changing from forward to reverse most yachts will cut themselves free.

This is a classic anti pirate package. It starts with jamming a 75hp turbo Yanmar in place of the old 30hp Perkins. A 3” exhaust system and enlarged prop shaft coupled to a 23” Max prop ensure a good ‘grip’ on the water.

Strangely the most expensive aspect of the engine installation was the new exhaust system. The old 2” water lock exhaust was built into the keel. It had to be cut loose from the extra thick fiberglass.

New 3” inserts were made and installed into the keel.

The larger hose had to be fed through the cabinetry.

Along with a new 3” bronze through hull

The oversized Max prop was backed by a robust line cutter should the yacht tangle with a fish net or other yacht disabling gear.

On the first sea trial the yacht could reach hull speed in as little as three boat lengths. Her ability to come to a complete stop from full speed was in less than two boat lengths. Pretty good response times.

With this engine upgrade and a powerful auto pilot the owner could safely steer the yacht from below with precision and speed. The elderly crew felt comfortable transiting the pirate zone and of course suffered no problems.

Other anti pirate tips that have been used successfully to cruise pirate strewn waters

Some vessels have mounted a blue flashing light they can activate in an attempt to make their vessel appear as a military or police boat. Earthrace used blue LED’s mounted on each wing when transiting between Palau and Singapore. Still others report a blinking crew strobe has a similar effect.
One yachtie keeps a tape recorder handy at his navigation station. When he hears a military boat in the area conducting boardings or inspections he records the transmission. His plan is to play the appropriate recording into his VHF if he were under threat making the pirate vessel think the military was close at hand.
One broke yachtie went so far as to collect disused radio antennas. He mounted them all over his yacht in an attempt to appear like “communications central”.
Motion sensors that turn on deck lights at the approach of another vessel can be very effective.
A motion activated spotlight mounted low in the cabin shining up and out the main hatch can be effective to blind anyone coming down the hatch.

About the author-Scott Fratcher spent three years working in and around Panama where he met many pirate victims from transiting the South American coast. The suggestions in this article come from those interviews.
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Scott Fratcher
Marine Engineer
RYA Yachtmaster 200 ton sail/power/ocean/commercial
yachtwork.com