PIRATES THWARTED

GULF OF ADEN

On the morning of 3 June 2008, just after Canadian Commodore Bob Davidson assumed command of Combined Task Force 150 from French Rear Admiral Jean-Louis Kérignard, one of Canada’s Sea King helicopters, embarked on HMCS Calgary, intervened in an ongoing piracy attack on a commercial vessel transiting the Gulf of Aden, approximately 65 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia.

The frigate Calgary, one of three Canadian warships currently assigned to Operation ALTAIR, Canada’s maritime contribution to the campaign against terrorism, was operating in the area when a broken call for assistance was heard from a vessel apparently under attack by small arms fire.

Calgary immediately altered course and increased speed to close the scene. Her airborne Sea King was promptly redirected towards the area and tasked to gather information on the situation. The helicopter’s arrival in the vicinity of the attack did not go unnoticed by the perpetrators. Two small boats, commonly referred to as skiffs, were observed in the area and appeared to be armed.

“I am convinced that the presence of our aircraft drove them away from the traffic lanes and prevented any further attack today on merchant shipping in the area,” said Commander Kelly Larkin, Commanding Officer of the multi-purpose frigate. “We continued to monitor those two skiffs and their crew as they were heading back towards Somalia territorial waters.”

Ships assigned to this crucial operation deploy to the North Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Oman, the Gulf of Aden, and parts of the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, where they work alongside many allied and regional nations, building security and stability by monitoring shipping, and countering terrorist activity.

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