The Indian Ocean, Insurance and Insanity.

As is obvious from recent headlines and from a great many items that the press are voluntarily refusing to publicize, the situation in the Indian Ocean is severe and extensive.

Most insurance companies have cancelled their coverage which made things difficult for the various yachts in the Blue Water Rally. Some of those yachts elected to follow differing routes including returning to Asia despite adverse weather conditions. Many of the yacht owners decided to ship their yachts from the Maldives to Turkey but the subsequent bankruptcy of a shipping company has complicated matters for those yacht owners.

The Thailand To Turkey convoy originally consisting of about thirty yachts was unable to obtain any escort services from the EUFOR or any other naval authorities in the region. The convoy leader is said to have experienced great frustration in dealing with the naval forces who are clearly only interested in protecting high value commercial shipping. It is of course highly improper for the naval vessels in the area to insist that pleasure yachts repeatedly identify themselves and their exact latitude and longitude on VHF frequencies known to be monitored by pirate vessels. The various members of the convoy reported that there is absolutely no cooperation between the naval vessels of various countries participating in EUFOR.

The details of the route chosen by the convoy are being kept secret even though the convoy has now reached comparatively safer waters.