Maritime Security Patrol Area

"I have just come home from Port Said, after successfully commanding a slow speed laden bulk carrier through the Gulf of Aden. We followed the courses through the MSPA (Maritime Security Patrol Area) corridor, which is patrolled by naval fleet. It was a very tense 40-hour passage. We witnessed an attempted attack just 10 miles behind us, one successful hijacking and another two attempts just close." --Captain Vinayak Anant Marathe, India (2008)

^[1]

The Maritime Security Patrol Area (MSPA) is specified patrol zone in the Gulf of Aden. Its borders are unmarked, but are a narrow, rectangular corridor between Somalia and Yemen, within the northern sector of the gulf. The MSPA was established 22 August 2008 by the Combined Task Force 150, (CTF-150) a multinational, coalition naval task force in order to deter de-stabilizing activities, including piracy within this maritime geographical area. The establishment of the MSPA was directed by the Commander, United States Naval Central Command.^{[2][3][4][5][6]}

See also

• Piracy in Somalia

References

1. ^ "CAPT VINAYAK ANANT MARATHE, INDIA". bbc.co.uk. 18 November 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7736170.stm. Retrieved 2008-12-05. 
2. ^ "Maritime Security Patrol Area (MSPA) in the Gulf of Aden Established". newsletterscience.com. http://www.newsletterscience.com/marex/readmore.cgi?issue_id=320&article_id=3469&l=%3C. Retrieved 2008-11-30. 
3. ^ "Coalition warships set up Maritime Security Patrol area in the Gulf of Aden". icc-ccs.org. 26 August 2008. http://www.icc-ccs.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=163:coalition-warships-set-up-maritime-security-patrol-area-in-the-gulf-of-aden&catid=60:news. Retrieved 2008-11-30. 
4. ^ "Combined Task Force 150 Thwarts Criminal Activities". cusnc.navy.mil. September 22, 2008. http://www.cusnc.navy.mil/articles/2008/115.html. Retrieved 2008-11-30. 
5. ^ "Gulf of Aden Martime Security Zone". eaglespeak.us. August 31, 2008. http://www.eaglespeak.us/2008/08/gulf-of-aden-martime-security-zone.html. Retrieved 2008-12-04. 
6. ^ "Piracy - Somalia and Gulf of Aden". simsl.com. November 2008. http://www.simsl.com/PiracySomaliaGulfAden1108.html. Retrieved 2008-12-04. 

External links

• Map of the Area
• The Cost of Doing Business on the Open Sea by Richard Pollak, The Nation, April 22 2009