The Capricorn is one of 133 yachts to sail near the Horn of Africa so far this year — and one of three to get attacked by Somali pirates:
In February, four Americans were killed after pirates hijacked their yacht, the Quest, off Oman. That same month pirates seized seven Danes, including three teenagers, from their yacht ING.
The attack on the Capricorn had a happy ending:
It was high morning in the middle of the Arabian sea, more than 600 miles (960km) from land, when the pirates struck the Capricorn.
The Somali marauders opened fire on the 22m (72ft) yacht, then clambered aboard as the Dutch captain and engineer took refuge in the engine room.
Meanwhile, a team of armed Ukrainian guards on a 42m former naval vessel hired as an escort returned fire, then came alongside the Capricorn. A guard jumped aboard and raised his weapon, and the pirates fled aboard their skiff.
The boats suffered only minor damage and the crew were uninjured.
“They were, of course, in a bit of shock,” said Thomas Jakobsson, chief of operations for Naval Guards, the Cardiff-based company that supplied the escort ship.
“If you’re not used to having people shoot at you — and I guess even if you are — it’s always an unpleasant experience.”
The experts compare sailing around the Horn of Africa to bicycle-camping in Afghanistan. It’s not a good idea.