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Navy May Need Adjustments to Fight War Against Maritime Piracy
Date: April 16, 2009
By Navy SEALs Blog by usnavysealstore.com
Aside from that the Navy SEALs did one heck of a good job last Easter Sunday, another important fact has been thrust into the limelight -- something that proponents of reforms in the Navy have been lobbying for.
An article in an online news site features an article that alludes to the adjustments that might need to be made in the Navy’s structure as a result of last week’s encounter with pirates. The situation was touted as an irregularity – owing largely to the fact that even if SEALs and other Special Forces operatives have the obvious skills to handle such situations, piracy is not something that they deal with on a regular basis.
Apparently, even equipment and vehicle-wise, the Navy is not yet as capable as it could be. It has been likened to the need for the U.S. Army to focus on non-traditional guerrilla warfare in Iraq and Afghanistan. In this case, there may be a need for the Navy to build capabilities to handle close-encounter coastal operations in addition to the traditional capabilities that they have in the high seas.
Just three weeks ago, we did a feature on the M80 Stiletto, a perfect solution that is only waiting for problems to solve that is more in keeping with its wide range of capabilities. The M80 Stiletto is a ship that is best suited for littoral operations in rough seas, and for now, it has been relegated to the primarily coastal operation of running after drug smugglers.
Naval reformers believe that the Navy should build capabilities surrounding littoral combat ships such as the new USS Coronado and prepare itself for coastal operations at an entirely different level than that of the coast guard. This might very well lead to ships like the Stiletto being used for special ops purposes that can best take advantage of its unique features. Then, we don’t need a giant like the USS Bainbridge to do a stand-off with a lifeboat.