What gun for pirates?

Status
Not open for further replies.
These particular Somalian blaggarts (ooh I love pirate lingo!) could have been handled by just having the cruise ship's Maintenence Director throw the garbage overboard, somewhat accurately, in 75-100lb bagfulls. Direct hit, no more inflatable boat!

Actually, these latest seafaring lawbreakers harkened back humorous memories of the Greenpeace Armada we saw so much of in the '90s, going into the shipping channels after tankers and such.

Hmm, Greenpeace Navy vs. Somalian Pirates--finally the History Channel can have a live Pay-Per-View event..:evil:
 
I'm all in favor of arming cruise ships with Russin Naval Infantry troops.

They need the work, they aren't afraid to get 'dirty' and they have spiffy looking dress uniforms that won't offend the tourists.

Cuttoe and Hangar might have worked well in the vs. brigands of the high seas... but these days something with more punch is needed.

Can I get a BAR made in stainless?
 
Regarding Q ships and armed yachts, I would be in favor of using PT boats. Yeah, that kind... from all the way back in WW2. IIRC, they're 72' long and displace 2.5tons. Convert from three '42 Packard engines to twin diesel. Ma Duce forward, twin .50 right behind the
b
aft... IIRC, 4 torpedo tubes... you can bet I ain't talkin' about storing beer and comic books in two of 'em.
Click to expand...

The only problem with PT boats was the wood hulls, swap 'em with metal.

I think for arming a cruise ship a WWII 40mm AA turret would work quite nicley.
 
PT boats were built to be used, not mothballed. And IIRC they sank a lot more than they lost. I've heard of a 2.5ton BT boat taking about vessels 10X bigger. And picture those Somali pirates in inflatables up against a PT boat's superior armament.:D

Of course... if you want to bring a destroyer to a swordfight...
 
A .50 BMG fore and aft, and M60's on the side should deter most Pirates; a good out field usually deters the Pittsburg Pirates.:p

I like Dr. Rob's idea, also. Let the pros handle it.;)
 
First off, does anyone else find this rule a bit, uh, strange? Can you tell me why? :D
Metal Detectors: Guests are not permitted to use metal detectors on board because anything found on board would "belong" to Carnival Cruise Lines. We would then try to return the item to the guest.
Click to expand...

and...

I just read an AP article that said Carnival claims to hire Ghurkas for shipboard security, because they are known for their courage. Anyone ever see any Guhrkas on their cruises?

After all this you think I'M going to go on any cruise where I can't be armed? Not a chance. Oh, I'll man the Barret if that's ok...:p
 
In the FWIW department:

I've never been on any liner except Royal Caribbean, but I've been on a number of those. 10,000 tons displacement is quite a small ship. Not that it's the S.S. Minnow, or anything, but for reference, the smallest cruise ship I've personally been on displaces 74,000 tons. Not the same class at all.

I've also noticed that it takes huge amounts if cash, in currency from just about any country there is, just to be able to operate the casino, much less the pursar's office (where you have to settle up your bar tab). I'm not sure what kind of security they have (haven't felt the need to be nosy while onboard), but I'm equally sure it's there. I'm also equally sure that some of their security force is under cover as paying guests. I've seen the aftermath of a ruckus between a couple drunk guests and another couple of "drunk" guests... on the way back to my cabin, I happened to witness the "drunk" guys suddenly sober up and lapse into shop talk.

It's my unlearned opinion that whatever security they do have is in layers, and those layers do run deep.
 
sleepyhead said:
a cruise line that will allow passengers to bring their weapons on board. Anyone know of any?
Click to expand...
My sea kayak.

Personally speaking (not speaking for anyone but me here), I think cruise lines are a waste of time and money.

I'd much rather cruise the coast of BC in an Eddyline Falcon 18, with an 870P & 9mm well protected in a drybag in the storage bay, along side a dinner of jerky, potatoes & beans, than anything the Love Boat can offer.

Nem
 
carebear said:
(Nem) Hippy

:evil:
Click to expand...
Get past it. ;)

I just like the sound of silence, and the sound of the incoming tide lapping against the shoreline in a long boat that I paddle by myself along a quiet ocean coastline, with jellyfish floating just below..

Can you understand that? (Rhetorical question.) If you're like most Americans, then the answer is, of course no.

They don't understand the concept of "quiet coastline" because they're so stuck to the luxury of "the Love Boat".

Got a thing for the skipper, eh, Carebear?

:neener:
 
For various reasons I doubt that cruise lines will ever allow firearms to be on board their ships. Even for the noble reason of repelling pirates.

With that said how about these as as anti pirate medicine:

Both are streamlined and should blend in nicely with the contours of a modern day cruise ship.


Rob
 

Attachments

  • Ship gun firing.jpg
    Ship gun firing.jpg
    41.5 KB · Views: 95
  • ciws.jpg
    ciws.jpg
    42.2 KB · Views: 68
Nematocyst-870 said:
I just like the sound of silence, and the sound of the incoming tide lapping against the shoreline in a long boat that I paddle by myself along a quiet ocean coastline, with jellyfish floating just below..
Click to expand...
You are a wordsmith... Sounds like what I experience trout fishing... no boat or jellyfish (I hope) though
 
Edwardian transatlantic liners always had a locker of weapons for the crew in case of trouble...typically revolvers and perhaps rifles, as far as I know. (Probably Webleys on the Brit liners, I'd bet!)

Also...and this I find amusing, people really didn't have the irrational FEAR of guns then. In several accounts from passengers of the period, it was common for a 1st or 2nd class passenger to be lent an unloaded revolver for use in the improvised costumes people made for fancy-dress parties.

And nobody panicked upon seeing them.
 
ceetee said:
I've never been on any liner except Royal Caribbean, but I've been on a number of those. 10,000 tons displacement is quite a small ship. Not that it's the S.S. Minnow, or anything, but for reference, the smallest cruise ship I've personally been on displaces 74,000 tons. Not the same class at all.
Click to expand...

Seabourn liners are small, almost like uberluxury yachts, and VERY expensive. Typically one or more crew members per passenger for service, too.

Which was really stupid of these pirates, as a lot of the passengers likely own a politician or two to Get Things Done About It with.
 
Got a thing for the skipper, eh, Carebear?
Click to expand...

Nah, it's just that I doubt Isaac is going to be delivering complementary MaiTai's to the Lido Deck of your trumped-up pool toy.

Plus, I might pull off a Charo/"Julie, your Cruise Director" sandwich. :evil:
 
nfl1990 said:
Do you have .50 mounted on that?
Click to expand...
Two. One front, one rear. :D

Actually, I'm afraid it would make it a bit ... um, top heavy. Can't imagine doing an eskimo roll with a .50 mounted on it. :eek:

<warning: tangent with no relevance to this thread>

When I walked into the kayak store in Anacortes, WA to pick up my new kayak (a few years ago), I was greeted by somber faces all around.

When I asked why everyone was so somber, they told me that morning a man had been found in the harbor upside down in his kayak, drowned. Seems he was a novice, and when he put the tight-fitting neoprene spray skirt on the cockpit, he forgot to leave the pull strap out. He also had no knife to cut himself out.

He flipped over, couldn't get the neoprene skirt off, couldn't eskimo roll, and couldn't cut himself out. :what:

All the way home (6 hour drive), with my kayak on my truck, I thought about the way he died, imagining the horror of what his last minutes must have been like.

Since then, I've always triple checked:
"Pull strap out? Check.
Pull strap out? Check.
Pull strap out? Check."
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

J
  • Locked
Pirates firing machine guns tried to board a U.S. Cruise Ship
2
Replies
47
Views
2K
Stevie-Ray
Stevie-Ray
N
  • Locked
Cruise Ship uses Sonic blast on pirates!!
2 3
Replies
52
Views
3K
c_yeager
C
R
  • Locked
Guns on ships are't enough to stop a pirate attack
2 3
Replies
50
Views
2K
Average Joe
A
SSN Vet
  • Locked
Pirate surprise!
2 3 4 5
Replies
100
Views
5K
gym
G
R
  • Locked
More pirates, arghhhhhhhh
2
Replies
37
Views
2K
nfl1990
N
Back
Top