I do not know who this company is and what their rules of engagement were, so if anyone has anything to add, feel free to do so in the comments. Warning shots were ordered first, but as the attackers kept coming, then the defenders had to open up and repel the attack. Also notice that ‘two’ skiffs attacked, and this seems to be the common tactic of pirates–or to work in pairs. Good on these security contractors and it looks like their defenses and planning worked. –Matt

Edit: 5/08/2012 It looks like the folks at Lloyd’s List were able to get some information about this video. The ship was an Eagle Bulk Shipping vessel, and the security force was Trident Group. Here is a statement from the owner of Trident Group about this incident.

In an emailed statement to Lloyd’s List, Trident president Tom Rothrauff said: “This action came 72 hours following another attack by this exact same pirate action group against this very same vessel. Further, the same PAG had attacked a tanker in the week prior, so this was a killer PAG. Our team acted with poise, and used every rule for the use of force as prescribed by the US Coast Guard in PSA 3-09.

“The skiff was identified as carrying RPG’s and AK 47’s. The team was compelled to wait before they initiated warning shots until the master gave permission to the team to release repelling force. When the warning shots were fired, it just so happened that the skiff opened up on our team at the exact same time.”