Cruise lines turn to sonic weapon against pirates NOV 8, 2005
9-30-2008
FPI - PIRATES ARE CURRENTLY HIJACKING CARGO SHIPS CARRYING TANKS AND WEAPONS. WHY AREN’T THESE CARGO SHIPS EQUIPPED WITH SONIC WEAPONS? I SMELL A CONSPIRACY AND UNTRUTHS BEING TOLD.
Passengers travelling on luxury cruise liners usually expect to be looked after by their ship’s crew.
Yet pirates who tried to hijack a liner off the coast of Somalia met something a little more sophisticated than a warning shot across the bow.
The crew of the Seabourn Spirit quickly changed course and headed out into open water to evade the attackers in small boats who had raked the vessel with rockets and automatic weapons fire.
They also deployed a military-grade sonic weapon.
The long range acoustic device, or LRAD, is a high-tech loudhailer capable of causing permanent damage to hearing from a distance of more than 300 metres (984ft).