Positivity: Captain freed from pirates thanks Navy ‘heroes’
A merchant sea captain who was captured and held by Somali pirates in April reunited Thursday with the U.S. Navy crew and captain who were part of his daring rescue, thanking them for saving him.
“You are the true patriots,” Capt. Richard Phillips said on the fantail of the USS Bainbridge, addressing a crew standing at attention in dress blues. “You are the heroes in the story involving me. And I just want to thank the true heroes of my incident and that’s you, the crew of the USS Bainbridge.”
Despite his ordeal in April, Phillips, 54, said he plans to return to the Maersk Alabama in March. Wednesday, pirates attacked Phillips’ old ship for the second time in seven months but were turned away. Phillips declined to talk specifically about the latest attack on the Maersk Alabama.
“I’ve never had misgivings about going to sea,” Phillips, who lives in Vermont, said later at a news conference conducted in front of the orange, boot-shaped lifeboat where he was held by pirates for five days after they boarded his ship.
Navy SEALs ended Phillips’ captivity in April with three pinpoint shots that killed three pirates in the lifeboat. The SEALs, who are not members of the ship’s crew, did not attend Thursday’s reunion on the Bainbridge.
Phillips arrived at the ceremony on the guided-missile destroyer with his wife, mother and sister-in-law. He handed out commemorative coins to some members of the crew, which totals nearly 300. He also received gifts from the city of Norfolk.
“Under different circumstances and without the job that you did, I would not be here today,” Phillips said. “I firmly believe that.” ….
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