Cruise ship 'used sonic weapon'
MAHE, Seychelles (AP) -- The crew of a cruise ship attacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia used a sonic weapon to help ward off the attackers, the Miami-based Seabourn Cruise Line said Monday.
Armed pirates approach the Seabourn Spirit, in a photo taken by British passenger Norman Fisher.
The device blasts earsplitting noise in a directed beam.
The Seabourn Spirit escaped Saturday's attack also by shifting to high speed and changing course, the cruise line said.
The sonic device, known as a Long Range Acoustic Device, or LRAD, is a so-called "non-lethal weapon" developed for the military after the 2000 attack on the USS Cole in Yemen as a way to keep operators of small boats from approaching U.S. warships.
Makers of the device compare its shrill tone to that of smoke detectors, only much louder.
The pirates who attacked the Seabourn Spirit grinned as they aimed grenade-launchers and machine guns at the deck and staterooms, some passengers said Monday, recounting the ordeal after safely docking in this Indian Ocean archipelago.
Here's the rest of the story. I'm going to start carrying a bullhorn in my purse for all those pirates I meet on the street, except on September 19 when I'm supposed to talk like a pirate.
2 comments:
Arrrrgh, Avast ye scurvy dogs!
The thing I find utterly WIERD about this is that that photo is taken by a guy on the cruise ship, presumably before the defensive measures had succeeded. I'd have been hiding, not pointing cameras at them!
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