9 minutes of fame
On Saturday 25th October at 19:45, our SBS special forces were called upon to take control of the Nave Andromeda, a 42,000 ton tanker that had been seized by 7 stowaways.
The SBS, has had several names since its creation in 1940. Royal Marines Boom Patrol Detachment, Special Boat Section, Special Boat Squadron and finally renamed to Special Boat Service.
Nicknamed Shakies, the SBS is akin to the US Navy Seals and specialises in maritime operations. Selection for the SBS is open to all UK forces personnel and they share a common selection process with the SAS (and the 90% failure rate). Unsurprisingly, SBS applicants are predominantly Royal Marines and the unit has around 200 operators in 4 squadrons; C,X, M and Z. The SBS has a wide variety of specialisms including support of amphibious operations, operating small boats, canoeing, diving, underwater demolitions and beach reconnaissance. Like all SF units, their activities are rarely officially acknowledged and many of their operations that have directly protected the UK may never become public.
The stowaways became aggressive and began a stand-off with the 22 crew members who retreated into the ‘citadel’. Many merchant ships now have safe rooms where the crew can lock themselves in if the ship is subject to pirate attacks or hijacking attempts. There is fresh water and food for a few days, access to communications equipment and an independent power supply. It is reported that in this case, the captain managed remained in control, locked in the bridge with the chief engineer locked in the engine room.
The master put out a mayday call around 0900 on Sunday morning requesting immediate assistance as stowaways had surrounded the ship’s bridge and he was attempting to keep them calm. This was received by the coastguard and passed to Hampshire Police. The tanker zig-zagged slowly off the south coast of the Isle of Wight and by the afternoon the Police had formally requested military assistance. An exclusion zone was enforced around the vessel which was monitored by coastguard helicopters and RLNI boats through the afternoon.
The RN deployed 16 members of the Special Boat Service (SBS), carried in two Merlin helicopters, supported by two Wildcat helicopters and the frigate, HMS Richmond. The Merlins Mk4s of 845 and 846 NAS have capacity for up to 24 fully laden troops but two aircraft provides a back-up and allowed the SBS to land in separate parts of the ship to surround the suspects. The MI Wildcats may be used to provide top cover or troop insertion/extraction for Special Forces. A 43 Commando Maritime Sniper Team (MST) or SBS Sniper is usually embarked for these operations.
The action to recover the ship began after dark at around 1945. The master was clearly acting under instructions and turned the ship onto a westerly heading into the wind to assist the helicopters in the hover. Observers on the Isle of Wight also saw the deck floodlighting extinguished. The four helicopters arrived over the ship, the noise, downdraft and blinding searchlights are a useful way to disorientate the adversary and the SBS quickly descended from the two Merlin’s by rope onto the deck. Snipers in the back of the Wildcats provided covering fire, should it have been needed.
The stowaways were apparently quickly apprehended and gave up without resistance, caught in a pincer movement by the small SBS teams in a single group, together on the central part of the upper deck. Once the ship was secured, the suspects were handed over to police and the SBS quickly withdrew. In all the operation had taken just 9 minutes with no injury or loss of life. The ship is now safely docked in Southampton and is subject to a police investigation. How the stowaways boarded the ship, when the crew was first aware of them and the actions of the French authorities will be of interest. The seven men have been detained at Police stations in Hampshire, arrested on suspicion of seizing or exercising control of a ship by use of threats. (Under the provisions of the hijacking section of the 1990 Aviation and Maritime Security Act). This is an offence that can carry a prison-term, potentially up to life sentence.
This is the second time the SBS has been called upon to take control away from stowaways. The first was an incident that occurred in the Thames Estuary in Dec 2018. An SBS team descended on the MV Grande Tema in the Thames Estuary after stowaways threatened the crew. The prompt response by authorities to in these events helps provide reassurance to merchant crews and the shipping industry that help will be close at hand, especially in UK waters. Despite another good result, merchant shipping remains a vulnerability. A more professional terrorist group that took control of a vessel could pose a much more serious threat to UK ports, waters or overseas interests. Maritime security demands 24-hour readiness, vigilance and preparedness from the Royal Navy.
I’m sure you will all join me in congratulating the SBS for their exceptional professionalism.
A special thank you goes to “Save our Royal Navy” who gave permission to use information on their website. A much more detailed description of the events of the action can be found on their website HERE
