Cunard’s Queen Anne Takes Precautions to Deter Pirates
Yo ho, yo ho, it’s NOT a pirate’s life for guests currently onboard Cunard Line’s Queen Anne – which is in the middle of her 111-night maiden world cruise.
However, the 2024-launched cruise ship did get an (uneventful) taste of the pirate life while sailing in the Sulu Sea on March 14-15, 2025, which is located within the Philippine Archipelago.
As these waters are known to have active pirate activity, including acts of terrorism and kidnappings for ransom, Captain Inger Klein Thorhauge issued a warning out of an abundance of caution and informed up to 2,996 passengers onboard of increased security precautions.
“This area is known for piracy threats…Therefore, we will be operating at a heightened level of security alertness during this period,” Captain Thorhauge’s announcement began.
One such precaution was that the external promenade deck was closed overnight from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m. local time on the night of March 14 until the morning of March 15 – as guests would be safer if they were already inside in the unlikely event of an emergency.
The ship’s external lighting was also decreased to the bare minimum and guests were asked to keep their curtains closed in their staterooms and turn off or dim their lights.
These actions make it harder for pirates to spot and board the ship, and also preserve the crew member’s night vision capabilities.
After giving a run down of what the emergency protocol would look like if pirates did approach, Captain Thorhauge reassured cruisers that this was quite unlikely and that their safety was her top priority.
“I would like to emphasize that the safety and security of the ship, all guests, and crew onboard is my highest priority. I assure you that measures to prevent any unlikely incident have been well planned, and the likelihood of this happening on a big ship like Queen Anne is absolutely minimal,” she continued.
As expected, this portion of the voyage – which was part of how the 113,000-gross ton ship made her way from Darwin, Australia, to Manila, Philippines – unfolded without incident.
She is now carrying onto destinations throughout Asia, South Africa, the Canary Islands, England, and Germany before all segments of the world voyage conclude in Europe by April 28, 2025.
Are Pirates an Issue for Cruise Ships?
If you are cruising in the near feature, a potential pirate invasion is highly unlikely and should be very low on your list of possible concerns.
In fact, the last pirate attacks on cruise ships occurred more than a decade ago and were not successful.
The most recent of these was on Saga Cruises’ Spirit of Adventure when she was sailing in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Africa in 2011. In this case, the ship increased its speed, and the pirates gave up when they realized they couldn’t catch up.
In April of 2009, MSC Cruises’ MSC Melody escaped a potential attack in the Indian Ocean by enacting evasive maneuvers that involved creating large waves.
As cruise ship wakes can do a number on smaller vessels without trying, the deliberate maneuver achieved a successful outcome in just a matter of minutes.
The last significant attack in the modern era was on Seabourn Cruise Line’s Seabourn Spirit (now renamed as Star Breeze for Windstar Cruises) when she was sailing off the coast of Somalia, East Africa, in November of 2005.
Even as a smaller vessel with a capacity for 312 passengers, the up to 164 crew members were able to fend off the pirates using evasive maneuvers and a long-range acoustic device.
Read Also: From Mishaps to Maydays – Cruise Ship Accidents
Although encountering pirates is highly unlikely, the crew members are still trained to respond appropriately in order to keep everyone safe in an “expect the unexpected” strategy.
“We train for these situations long before sailing through high-risk areas. Cruise ships have a lot more on board than water guns. Pirates are after cargo and fishing vessels with small crews—not a cruise ship with thousands of passengers,” an anonymous deck officer stated.
Indeed, modern cruise ships are equipped with knowledgeable security personnel, security cameras, water cannons, and sound-based deterrents.
When cruise lines know one of their ships will be sailing through a high risk region, they often increase patrols and surveillance measures, and obtain security escorts – sometimes from the military.