Posted by
crosspatch on Tuesday, April 14, 2009 2:42:53 AM
Merchant ships are crewed by civilian employees of transportation companies. They are not military or even paramilitary personnel. They are not under the command of military authorities or the President. At no time in our modern history have crews of merchant vessels been armed. Even during World War II, the crews of merchant vessels were not combatants. At that time the US Navy created a branch called The
United States Navy Armed Guard who served aboard merchant ships in a defensive role.
Maybe it is time to consider the reactivation of the Armed Guard to defend merchant shipping in areas where the risk of piracy is high. This could be done through the US Naval Reserve and the size adjusted according to need. We could protect any ship provided they fly the American flag while the Armed Guard was aboard. Their mission would be to protect the ship and crew from attack, provide surveillance of the shipping lanes, and coordinate a greater response when required to do so. They would be under the direct command of military authorities.
I believe this is a better alternative than simply arming the crews of merchant vessels. Armed crews are not under military command and their training and skills would vary widely from one shipping carrier to another. Activating the Armed Guard would put in place a standard level of training and a predictable level of expertise and response procedures in the area of operations.