Indian Navy rescued a merchant vessel MV Lord Mountbatten, a Liberian registered ship, from piracy attempts in the Gulf of Aden recently.
“On Tuesday around 4.45 pm, the ship received a distress call from MV Lord Mountbatten, 230nm South-West of Salalah in the Gulf of Aden. The vessel had reported an incident of attempted piracy by two suspicious mother vessels along with 7-8 skiffs,” Navy Spokesperson Captain DK Sharma said.
INS Sharda which was 30nm at that time responded immediately. The ship was deployed for anti-piracy operations since April 6, 2017.
As soon as INS Sharda arrived at the location, three of the skiffs fled the area at high speed on sighting the warship.
“Navy’s MARCOS commandos with support of the armed helicopter from the ship investigated the dhows and their skiffs by conducting boat and search operations,” Captain Sharma added.
The commandos also fired shots from Light Machine Gun (LMG) on the helicopter following which the suspected pirates surrendered.
“The absence of any fishing gear on-board the dhows indicates piracy linked intentions,” Navy officials said.
One high calibre ALM rifle alone with one filled magazine was found hidden on-board on one of the dhows which were confiscated.
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