Momsen and Bunker Hill disrupt pirate attack

The Ticonderoga class AEGIS guided missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill (CG-52) and the Arleigh Burke-class AEGIS destroyer USS Momsen (DDG-92) have disrupted a pirate attack on the Panamanian flagged merchant vessel Duqm in the Gulf of Oman.

While transiting in international waters last week Tuesday, the merchant vessel reported that pirates were attempting to board the vessel. Momsen and Bunker Hill, which were in the vicinity, responded to the Duqm's distress signal and caused two pirates skiffs alongside the vessel with ladders against its hull to flee the area.

The US Navy says in a media release that the Momsen and Bunker Hill tracked the skiffs movement and located the mothership that facilitated the attempted boarding of Duqm, towing the two empty skiffs. Consistent with the UN Security Council Resolutions on piracy and US rules of engagement, Momsen destroyed the two skiffs to prevent their use for future attacks.

Momsen and Bunker Hill are deployed supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the US 5th fleet area of operations, the statement concluded.