Choice Travel Texas

I can already tell this is a blogpost I am not looking forward to writing. It’s been bouncing around in my brain ever since I read about the topic months ago on Jim Walker’s Cruise Law News blog. Mr. Walker is a Miami-based lawyer who specializes in suing the cruise lines on behalf of mistreated passengers, and his posts about terrorism, terrorists, and <sigh> terrorists on cruise ships fill me with concern.  Let me say first, though, that I wouldn’t even be writing this or referring to Mr. Walker if I didn’t find that his blog absolutely exudes credibility.  Sometimes, like in this case, I wish I could consider it “sensational,” and therefore, not worthy of note.  Alas, I can’t.

Already, the cruise lines are concerned that bad things can happen to passengers when they visit ports that are boiling with unrest. For example, stops in Egypt have been canceled by Royal Caribbean Celebrity, and Azamara. All three brands are owned by parent company Royal Caribbean. Princess Cruises will, however, continue stopping in Egypt unless something changes. Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth has canceled its Egyptian stops, as has Holland America, and Oceania is considering – but has not yet decided – to do the same.

Not counting the current unrest, it’s been known for some time (several months at least) that terrorists have been planning, or at least were planning, to board and hijack a cruise ship (particularly one with a high American passenger count), make demands of the U.S. Government to release terrorist prisoners, all the while dressing up American passengers in orange Guantanamo-style jumpsuits and executing them on a predetermined schedule, on videotape. The executions (certain to be visually unpleasant) will be broadcast shortly thereafter. The reports I have seen discuss these plans in the past tense, as though they were considered and discarded. Do you really believe that? Do terrorists typically become discouraged over a slight setback – or even a huge setback? No, I don’t think so.

One small bright note is the news that, at least for merchant ships, piracy attacks have dropped significantly. SeaJobhunt.com  reports that since June 26, there has been no pirate activity in the hotspots where this is most often found – the Gulf of Aden, the Gulf of Arabia, or the Somali basin. The reduction in attacks has been attributed to proactive helicopter gunship attacks, more visible use of arms aboard merchant ships, naval patrols by nearby countries, and, of course, the bad weather of monsoon season.

Despite this, as many as 191 crew from up to 14 merchant vessels and fishing boats are still being held.

One might wonder if the increased likelihood of an attack of terrorists on a cruise ship could also be attributed to the reduction in the ability of pirates to attack merchant ships. I don’t think so, because, while there may be some correlation between the two, Somali pirates (for example) that target freighters typically have a much different agenda than Jihadi terrorists looking for Americans to terrorize and kill. Somali pirates seem to want money, goods, or other assets, while Jihadi terrorists are focused on maximum pain, inconvenience and embarrassment to Americans, or indeed, anyone who does not share their goals.

These apparent terrorist plans could really ruin a vacation, couldn’t they? I can’t help but  wonder, though, is: why isn’t more being made of this? Are people really so focused on their fun times that they can’t bother to worry a bit – or at least concern themselves somewhat – about a situation like this developing on the cruise ship they are currently enjoying? I know it’s not a great idea to run around like Chicken Little yelling “the sky is falling,” but really, are the cruise lines serious about this? Have they taken – and are they continuing to take – reasonable precautions against allowing terrorists on cruise ships? I am not referring to canceling their plans to stop at ports with unrest. I am referring to making sure that terrorists have absolutely no way to gain entrance to a cruise ship, and in the worst case, if they do, that their mayhem can go no further than that.

I’ll have to admit that security seemed a bit tighter on my last cruise, just three weeks ago. My husband was questioned about his Leatherman tool, which he forgot and left in his carry-on (he had intended to leave it in our parked vehicle). He was admonished not to bring any sort of tool larger than that in the future, but was allowed to pass.

Online forums have a bit of chatter going on about this concern as well. Some have even opined that this situation would be too hard for a small group of terrorists to control, if they were wanting to follow through on their original plans (hijack, orange garb and execution). However, if explosives could be loaded onboard amongst all the luggage and supplies, that would be a more serious scenario.

Meanwhile, organizations that watch terrorists apparently have not changed their minds that this type of attack is certainly possible, if not immediately imminent. There are too many open spaces, too many easy ways for a terrorist to get aboard – and commandeer – a cruise ship, to be at ease about the situation just now. I do hope that the cruise lines really mean it when they say “your safety is our number one concern.” This is a good time to prove it!