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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
The United States is planning to deploy1 unmanned aerial vehicles in the Seychelles islands in the coming weeks to combat piracy2. The use of land-based drones is a new approach to deter3 ship hijackings in the region.
Air Force MQ-9 Reaper4 takes off from Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan, 13 March 2009
The spokesman for the U.S. military's Africa Command, Vince Crawley, says several Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles will be in the Seychelles by late October or November. He says they will be used to conduct intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions throughout the Indian Ocean region.
"We have people going in individually for very short trips right now. We plan to start sending some of the teams that will assist in the September-October time frame. And then it would take a month to begin the flights," said Crawley. "It is widely recognized that western Indian Ocean piracy is extremely disruptive to international trade and this is simply a U.S. contribution to the international effort against piracy."
Reapers5 are designed for long-endurance, high-altitude surveillance, capable of staying in the air for 30 hours and flying at speeds of more than 440 kilometers an hour. They can also carry weapons and ordinance6, but African Command says the drones being deployed7 in the Seychelles will not be armed.
The U.S. Navy has long used ship-based unmanned aerial vehicles in counter-piracy missions. But the UAVs in the Seychelles will be housed at the international airport in the capital Mahe. Dozens of American military and civilian8 personnel will also be based at the airport to oversee9 the Navy-led mission for the next several months.
Crawley says the government in the Seychelles requested assistance from the United States earlier this year after Somali pirates began extending their operations more than 1000 kilometers away from Somali shores. Since March, two Seychelles-flagged vessels10 have been hijacked11 and several others attacked in waters near the Seychelles and the Comoros Islands.
In addition to the Reaper UAVs, the U.S. military is also considering basing Navy P-3 Orion patrol aircraft in the Seychelles for a limited time. Like the Reaper, the Orion can survey a large region and help deter attacks.
Maritime12 officials say the vastness of the Indian Ocean and the lack of naval13 patrols in the area are tempting14 some pirates to expand their operations further east. The Indian Ocean is considered a safer hunting ground than the Gulf15 of Aden, a narrow shipping16 lane to the north that is heavily patrolled by warships17 from more than a dozen countries.
Alleged18 Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden raise their hands as US Navy teams in inflatable boats approach and a Navy helicopter patrols overhead, 12 Feb 2009
For nearly a year, the international armada has been successful in keeping many ships from being hijacked. But it has done little to deter pirates from targeting ships.
In the first half of 2009, nearly 150 vessels were attacked by pirates in the Gulf of Aden and off the coast of Somalia, compared to less than 30 in the same period a year ago. More than 30 vessels have been taken, with ransom19 demands now averaging about $2 million for the release of the ship and its crew.
Rough weather conditions have helped keep the number of pirate attacks in the region low for the past few months. But as the weather improves, sailors, ship owners, and maritime officials say they are bracing20 for another surge of pirate activity.
1 deploy | |
v.(军)散开成战斗队形,布置,展开 | |
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2 piracy | |
n.海盗行为,剽窃,著作权侵害 | |
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3 deter | |
vt.阻止,使不敢,吓住 | |
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4 reaper | |
n.收割者,收割机 | |
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5 reapers | |
n.收割者,收获者( reaper的名词复数 );收割机 | |
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6 ordinance | |
n.法令;条令;条例 | |
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7 deployed | |
(尤指军事行动)使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 ); 施展; 部署; 有效地利用 | |
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8 civilian | |
adj.平民的,民用的,民众的 | |
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9 oversee | |
vt.监督,管理 | |
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10 vessels | |
n.血管( vessel的名词复数 );船;容器;(具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的)人 | |
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11 hijacked | |
劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 ); 绑架; 拦路抢劫; 操纵(会议等,以推销自己的意图) | |
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12 maritime | |
adj.海的,海事的,航海的,近海的,沿海的 | |
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13 naval | |
adj.海军的,军舰的,船的 | |
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14 tempting | |
a.诱人的, 吸引人的 | |
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15 gulf | |
n.海湾;深渊,鸿沟;分歧,隔阂 | |
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16 shipping | |
n.船运(发货,运输,乘船) | |
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17 warships | |
军舰,战舰( warship的名词复数 ); 舰只 | |
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18 alleged | |
a.被指控的,嫌疑的 | |
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19 ransom | |
n.赎金,赎身;v.赎回,解救 | |
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20 bracing | |
adj.令人振奋的 | |
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