The Gun Line MkIII

Inspired by Lex’s post: “Not Ready To Play Nice…”

It starts the same old way…

A freighter, American – flagged, 17,000 ton, her reliable engines chugging along at a solid 15 knots, engaged in legal commerce along the coast of Africa.  Her crew is aware of the dangers posed in these waters, and are in a heightened state of alert.  She is unarmed.  The nearest allied warship is five hours away…

She enters an area known for pirates, and, as if on cue, her radar operator sees the signature of a large ship, and the smaller returns of several high speed vessels, all headed her way.  The captain is called to the bridge, and he recognizes the signs.   He orders the radio shack to issue a request for assistance.

The four speedboats approach, carrying young men who brandish AK-47s and RPG-7 grenade launchers.  They are pirates, bent on hijacking this ship.  In light of recent events, their intentions are unknown, but deductive reasoning infers that they will not treat the unarmed crew with any degree of civility if they are successful.

Too far away to be of any assistance, the nearest allied warship changes course, opens up her engines, and heads towards the scene at flank speed.

The pirates are drawing closer, their sights set on the freighter, which has opened up her own engines and changed course.  The pirates’ boats move at over 30 knots – they will intercept the freighter long before the warship can provide assistance.  There is no other help available, there is no aircraft carrier within range to provide air support.  The freighter is on its own…  Except for a single U.S. Navy P-3C Orion, which is monitoring and recording the event, and has established positive identification of the pirates, for all of the good it can do.

As the pirates approach, however, another set of radar signatures appears, flying over the waves at just under 50 knots.  They are en route from what was thoughts to be another freighter operating further out to see, making the regular coastal run up and own the coast.  Two blips, inbound.

The freighter’s radio operator receives a query over the airwaves, and the captain affirms his request for assistance.

The unknown radio operator then contacts the Orion, who confirms that the pirates have been positively identified, and their intentions are 99.99% clear.

The Orion vectors the newcomers to the freighter.  They use the freighter’s bulk for cover, and will reach the ship a few minutes before the pirates.  As they approach, the bridge crew can barely make out the black shapes, but the Orion, high above, has made another positive identificatioin, and confirms this with a radio query.

Two Shaldag class patrol boats, each mounting a Oerlikon 20 mm cannon on her foredeck, a 20mm cannon on her afterdeck, .50 caliber heavy machine guns on her sides, and a gyro stabilized TOW-2B launcher.  Each boats contains GPS and night/IR optics, as well as a few other surprise.  The Stars and Stripes fly from their sterns.

They split, one traveling across the bow of the freighter, the other passes behind, and they angle in towards the five speedboats, approaching head on, at high speed, with leathal intent.  Targets are identified, risk-ranked, and assigned.

The pirates are nonplussed at their arrival, and one of the younger members of the pirate crew launches an ill-aimed rocket at the nearest black boat.

The Rules of Engagement have been satisfied:  The pirates fired first…

The two patrol boats conduct a coordinated attack, firing their TOW missiles.  The anti-armor weapons prove just as effective against the largest of the two pirate vessels, each flying over their targets and punching an Explosively Formed Projectile straight down, punching through their prey and breaking their backs.

The 400 millimeter cannons rake the remaining boats, and the commander of the two boat element sees that the pirates’ boats have taken too much damage to proceed, as they now bob helplessly in the water, their engines disabled and their hulls perforated.  The pirates are beginning to abandon their vessels, leaping into the sea.  He instructs his element to orbit the three remaining boats, having recorded the entire engagement for the After Action Report he will be required to submit.  He orders his people to keep an eye on the pirates, but to not engage if possible.

The freighter is safely away, out of danger, and the allied warship arrives on the scene, and begins to conduct rescue operations.

The situation contained, the two black boats signal to the warship, bid it farewell, and speed back where they came from.

They fly American colors, but not the colors of the United States Navy.  They are American-flagged private contractors, operating under a letter of Marque and Reprisal from the Congress of the United States.  They are funded through fees paid by a conglomeration of shipping companies, and they operate under a strict ROE, and an even stricter reporting requirement.  They will submit recording of their activities to a number of maritime regulatory agencies, both domestic and international, by an incorruptible overwatch agency.  They are based off of a converted freighter, a counterpart to the pirates’ own “mother ships”.  They are only allowed to function if a merchant vessel requests their services, and then only if all established parameters are met.

Why not?

(And if they’re hiring, do they need an extra hand to man the guns?  I’m pretty good with a .50 cal…)