OS35 (bulk carrier)


MV OS 35 is a bulk carrier registered in Tuvalu, a flag of convenience. The vessel came into news when a piracy attack on her off the coast of Somalia was thwarted jointly by ships of China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy and of the Indian Navy.

Vessel particulars

OS 35 is a bulk carrier with five cargo holds, a length overall of and a breadth of, built in 1989 At Shin Kurushima Toyohashi shipyard. It has a gross tonnage of 20,947 and a deadweight of 35,362. The vessel was built as Golden Harvest in 1999. Thereafter, as the ship changed hands, its name was changed to Addu Comet, JS Comet and finally OS 35.

Piracy attack in 2017

In March 2017, the bulk carrier MV OS 35 departed from Port Kelang, laden with cargo for Aden, Yemen. In April 2017, as OS 35 was sailing off the coast of Somalia and Yemen, a skiff with suspected Somalian pirates tried to board the vessel. The vessel initially attempted anti piracy maneuvers which had no effect on the pirate boats. Thereafter, all the ships crew mustered in the ship's citadel while the handful of armed security guards on board attempted to delay the pirates boarding. This too had limited effect and the pirates continued to come extremely close to the large bulk carrier and finally boarded and hijacked the vessel in the position 12°51′N 50°42′E.
Meanwhile, Chinese and Indian navy ships that were patrolling the region received the alert that had been sent by the ship using its SSAS and proceeded to assist the vessel. Two Indian ships, and, and one Chinese ship, Yulin, proceeded towards the hijacked ship in a joint operation. The Indian navy provided air cover while the Chinese ship arrived on scene. An 18-man Chinese special force team boarded the hijacked bulk carrier. The pirates abandoned OS 35 and fled before the special force team arrived.