Pirates Opened Fire on TWO U.S. Navy Warships… Big Mistake

On March 18, 2006, about 25 miles off the coast of Somalia, a U.S. Navy boarding team from the destroyer USS Gonzalez moved in to check a suspicious 40-foot boat towing two speedboats. The men on board raised rocket-propelled grenade launchers and opened fire. What followed was a close-range fight between pirates and two of the most heavily armed warships in the world, the destroyer USS Gonzalez and the cruiser USS Cape St. George, where missiles and radar were almost useless and the battle came down to machine guns and nerve. This is the true story, minute by minute. New true military stories every week. Subscribe and join the Brigade. Chapters 0:00 Pirates on the radar 1:41 Who were these men? 3:50 Boarding team under fire 5:31 The crossfire problem 7:20 The plan 8:59 Why the big weapons couldn't help 10:56 Rules of engagement 12:38 The firefight 14:14 Surrender In honor of the crews of USS Gonzalez (DDG 66) and USS Cape St. George (CG 71), and of Sgt. Alfredo "Freddy" Gonzalez, USMC, Medal of Honor, Hue, 1968. Sources - U.S. Naval Forces Central Command / DVIDS, "US Navy Ships Return Fire on Suspected Pirates" (March 2006): https://www.dvidshub.net/news/5773/us-navy-ships-return-fire-suspected-pirates - Action of 18 March 2006: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_of_18_March_2006 - Voice of America, "US Navy Ships Return Fire on Suspected Pirates Off Somali Coast" (March 18, 2006): https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2006/03/mil-060318-voa01.htm - The Virginian-Pilot, Jack Dorsey, March 20, 2006 (Capt. James Yohe's account) - USS Gonzalez (DDG-66): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Gonzalez - USS Cape St. George (CG-71): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Cape_St._George Footage credits - U.S. Navy photos, March 18, 2006 (public domain, via Wikimedia Commons): burning pirate vessel, confiscated weapons, small-arms damage on USS Cape St. George - DVIDS / U.S. Navy (public domain): https://dvidshub.net/video/999736, https://dvidshub.net/video/858880, https://dvidshub.net/video/602485, https://dvidshub.net/video/1025373, https://dvidshub.net/video/855637, https://dvidshub.net/video/801718, https://dvidshub.net/video/406397, https://dvidshub.net/video/934266, https://dvidshub.net/video/95430, https://dvidshub.net/video/768914, https://dvidshub.net/video/147743, https://dvidshub.net/video/836211, https://dvidshub.net/video/753699 - More DVIDS b-roll (public domain): USS Vella Gulf counter-piracy, NATO Operation Allied Protector, USS Boxer counter-piracy, RHIB and VBSS operations, USS Carney CIC, USS Lassen and USS Mustin underway, general quarters drill, small boat attack drill, 25mm and CIWS live fire - U.S. Central Command / NAVCENT (official YouTube), U.S. Navy (official YouTube) - Map imagery: NASA Blue Marble (public domain) The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement. #usnavy #pirates #valorbrigade