USN Fires on Boat in Persian Gulf

[LongBlade]

The USNS Rappahannock fired shots from a .50 caliber machine gun because the operator of the small boat, whose nationality is unknown, ignored audible and visual signals to move away, two senior U.S. defense officials told Fox News.

The Rappahannock is a large, civilian operated oil tanker that fuels other Navy ships at sea.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/07/16/us-ship-kills-1-after-firing-at-boat-off-dubai-official-says

Hopefully one of the audible signals was The Police: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNIZofPB8ZM

[mirth]

I imagine the .50 cal fire also provided an audible signal.

[TheCommandTent]

It will be interesting to see how this develops. Who was in the boat, why didn't they listen etc.

[Mr. Bigglesworth]

Indian fishermen injured when their boat was shot at by a US Navy ship off the coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) say they received no warnings before they came under fire.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18874755

[Martok]

Damn.  Apparently someone is lying through their teeth. 

[LongBlade]

Damn.  Apparently someone is lying through their teeth.

Gee. I wonder who? The world's finest naval force or some dumbass fishermen?

[The Puss]

Gee. I wonder who? The world's finest naval force or some dumbass fishermen?

Are there any handbooks or college classes on how you achieve this level of perfection?

hu·mil·i·ty   
noun
the quality or condition of being humble;  modest opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc.

[LongBlade]

Gee. I wonder who? The world's finest naval force or some dumbass fishermen?

Are there any handbooks or college classes on how you achieve this level of perfection?

hu·mil·i·ty   
noun
the quality or condition of being humble;  modest opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc.

Fair enough.

FWIW, I think the crew of the ship was civilian.

[Jarhead0331]

Looks like Indian Fisherman are using some piss poor judgment and have a bizarre understanding of what actually constitutes a warning...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-18263365

An Indian court has given bail to two Italian marines charged with the murder of two Indian fishermen.

The Kerala High Court has ordered Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone to deposit their passports and barred them from leaving Kochi city.

The marines have also been ordered to deposit 10m rupees (£114,507; $178,110) each for their bail.

The duo are accused of shooting the two fishermen dead in February after allegedly mistaking them for pirates.

The marines were guarding an Italian oil tanker off India's south-western coast when the incident occurred.

They have been in jail for the past three months.

The jailing of the marines has resulted in a diplomatic row between India and Italy.

Italy agreed in April to pay 10m rupees (£117,013; 143,203 euros; $189,000) in compensation to each of the families of the two Indian fishermen.

In return, the families agreed to withdraw civil court cases against the marines.

However, the diplomatic row between the countries continued despite the compensation and talks between the two governments.
'Warning shots'

Italy said that the Indian fishing boat had behaved aggressively and ignored warning shots from their ship, the oil tanker MV Enrica Lexie.

But India said the fishermen, Selestian Valentine and Ajesh Pinky, had been unarmed.

Italy says the incident took place in international waters and that the men should be tried in Italy.

India initially said the event had occurred in its territorial waters and that the marines should therefore be tried under local laws.

It recently changed its position, saying that the incident had taken place in international waters and that the Kerala police had had no jurisdiction to detain the ship.

However, Kerala state officials have maintained the marines would be tried under Indian law.

[mirth]

Gee. I wonder who? The world's finest naval force or some dumbass fishermen?

Are there any handbooks or college classes on how you achieve this level of perfection?

Yep. It's called the United States Naval Academy ;)

[Jarhead0331]

More details...

http://security.blogs.cnn.com/2012/07/18/for-navy-crew-shooting-at-indian-fishermen-was-last-resort/?hpt=hp_t2

When Navy security personnel onboard USNS Rappahannock opened fire on a small boat near Dubai on Monday, killing one Indian fisherman and injuring three others, it was the final step in an effort to protect the ship without resorting to force.

The incident is not without controversy. One of the Indian fishermen onboard the small boat told Reuters they did not get any warnings before they were fired on.

"We were speeding up to try and go around them and then suddenly we got fired at," the injured fisherman said. The U.S. military is investigating the incident.

"We certainly regret the loss of life in this incident.... There were, in fact, warning measures that were taken based on what we know now. ," said Pentagon spokesman George Little.

The incident lasted just three minutes, according to a Central Command document obtained by CNN's Security Clearance. The document illustrates how the incident escalated in a quick succession of steps.

In Navy parlance, the USNS Rappahannock is an "underway replenishment oiler," meaning it can supply warships while they are sailing at sea.

Notice it's USNS not USS, which means it is owned by the military, but it's not a warship. It has a civilian commander or "master" and a mostly civilian crew. The only Navy sailors onboard are the security detail protecting it.

The Navy's security strategy has changed drastically since October 2000 when a small boat packed with explosives pulled up beside the USS Cole and blew up, killing 17 American Sailors and nearly sinking the destroyer.

"It's constantly on your mind," said retired Vice Adm. Pete Daly, who was in charge of a destroyer squadron when the Cole was attacked. "I would say that the Navy, as a result of the Cole, significantly reevaluated what the Navy calls the waterborne threat."

Daly said the Navy was caught off guard by the Cole attack.

"When a ship was in a harbor, we thought we were doing a very good job of the landward threat. You had gates and guards and barbed wire. But from the seaward side, not as much as we should have."

As for Monday's incident, the Department of Defense said it appears the Rappahannock's crew acted properly.

"Based on what we know now, a series of warning measures were issued to the oncoming vessel. Those warnings were not heeded. And the vessel was fired upon," Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said Tuesday.

The small boat first got the attention of the Rappahannock when it was about five nautical miles away, according to the military document. When it was about 1,200 yards from the Navy ship's starboard side (point #2 on diagram) it turned toward the Rappahannock and the ship responded by beginning the series of warning measures.

"The Navy ship will never start at direct lethal fire. There's a whole rules of engagement that occurs that has different levels," Daly said.

Daly spelled out how those warning measures work, starting with nonlethal means such as radio calls using common civilian channels, loudspeaker announcements, and flares and lights to get attention.

In the case of the Rappahannock incident, within a minute of the boat approaching, the security team "initiated first level of defensive, nonlethal warning procedures," according to the military document. The vessel was closing in and was within 900 yards but "ignored the warning and continued toward" the Navy ship.

Daly said the next level is to fire warning shots, shooting into the water ahead of the encroaching boat but without putting the boat or passengers in danger. The Rappahannock security team initiated a "next level of defensive, nonlethal procedures" one minute later, but those were ignored by the approaching boat that was just 150 yards away, according to the Central Command document.

At this point, according to Daly, the crew will fire. This occurred when the boat was just 100 yards from the Rappahannock (point #5 on the diagram), with a .50-caliber machine gun. The intent of the direct fire is not to harm people, it is to stop the approaching boat, Daly said.

But the Navy acknowledges when it opens fire on another vessel, there is a risk people could get hurt or killed. Daly said that's why direct fire is the action of last resort.

"This is a very deliberate and responsible graduated response," Daly said.

Because this was a civilian crew other than the security team, it would not have been the master of the Rappahannock who ordered the security team to open fire on the approaching boat.

In this case, the senior Naval officer leading the security team would have given the order to fire, explained Daly.

After Rappahannock opened fire, the boat "slowed for the first time and turned to port, passing astern of the Rappahannock. The Navy crew then re-initiated nonlethal procedures with the boat, which was within 90 yards of the naval vessel. The boat then stopped and the Rappahannock "goes to full speed to separate from the vessel.

Unfortunately, this kind of incident may happen again as the Navy sends more ships into the crowded Persian Gulf that is rife with tension.

When a ship's underway, coming in or out of harbors or in narrow passages" you risk having close encounters, Daly said.

[mirth]

If that diagram accurately depicts what happened, then that fishing boat crew was pretty dumb.

[Jarhead0331]

If that diagram accurately depicts what happened, then that fishing boat crew was pretty dumb.

Well, I'm sure nobody on the fishing boat was a neurosurgeon.

[mirth]

If that diagram accurately depicts what happened, then that fishing boat crew was pretty dumb.

Well, I'm sure nobody on the fishing boat was a neurosurgeon.

I don' think you need to be a genius to know not to overtake, then turn in and head, at a high rate of speed, directly for a US Navy ship.

[Jarhead0331]

I don' think you need to be a genius to know not to overtake, then turn in and head, at a high rate of speed, directly for a US Navy ship.

You'd be surprised.