Tom Hanks’ 2013 movie Captain Phillips was based on a true story, and it was surprisingly accurate to what actually happened during the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama. Captain Phillips depicted the true story of the 2009 hijacking of the cargo ship Maersk Alabama by Somali pirates. Hanks played the titular Richard Phillips, and Captain Phillips even included one of Hanks’ best scenes ever. Captain Phillips is a very good movie, but it owes much of its acclaim to the true story behind it.

Captain Phillips is one of the most intense thrillers based on true stories, and much of that intensity comes from the true story. In April 2009, the Maersk Alabama was hijacked by Somali pirates. Though they left the ship within the same day, they took Phillips hostage in a small lifeboat for five days. From abuse at the hands of his kidnappers to the cramped and hot conditions of the lifeboat, Richard Phillips had a terrible experience. Captain Phillips was able to convey the harrowing nature of the true story very accurately, but it didn’t get all the real details exactly right.

Somali Pirates Hijacked Captain Richard Phillips’ Cargo Ship In 2009

In April 2009, Captain Phillips and the Maersk Alabama was carrying emergency food supplies from Ṣalālah, Oman to Mombasa, Kenya (via The Gainesville Sun). That route took the ship around the Horn of Africa, off the coast of Somalia, where a group of pirates found the ship on their radar. Somalia experienced a resurgence in piracy in the 2000s for a variety of reasons. A pirate expert analyzed Captain Phillips and said that the piracy began as a way to protect Somali fishing waters. The instability of the region, the profitability of piracy, and a lack of policing made piracy very lucrative, though (via History).

The increasing danger of Somali pirates was well-known when the Maersk Alabama was making its trip to Kenya. The United States Navy even issued seven warnings to Captain Phillips via email advising him to take his ship 600 miles off the coast (via CNN). Phillips ignored those warnings and kept the Maersk Alabama about 240 miles off the coast (via History). His crew members criticized Phillips for not heeding that warning, but Phillips himself defended his decision by saying that he believed no amount of distance would protect them from pirate attacks (via CNN).

As Captain Phillips depicted, the Maersk Alabama was originally attacked by several pirate skiffs on April 7, but they turned back before reaching the ship. The following day, April 8, one of the skiffs, crewed by four Somali pirates, attacked the ship again. Again, the movie accurately depicted that the pirates’ skiff was flooded and lost, although in real life it was done by the Maersk Alabama‘s rudder, not the hoses. Despite losing their skiff, the four pirates were able to board, and April 8, 2009, marked the first time pirates had boarded a U.S. ship in almost 200 years (via Encyclopedia Britannica).

What Happened To The Crew On Board The Maersk Alabama Cargo Ship

The majority of the crew of the Maersk Alabama was safe when the pirates boarded. They retreated into the engine room, which was fortified and defensible (via Encyclopedia Britannica). Crew members, including Captain Phillips, who were stationed on the bridge, however, were not able to reach safety, and were captured by the pirates. The pirates then sent one of the crew down to bring the rest of the crew to the bridge, but he didn’t do so. One of the pirates, Abduwali Muse, then brought another crew member down to the engine room, but as Captain Phillips showed, Muse was ambushed and captured by the crew.

None of the crew members of the Maersk Alabama, aside from Captain Phillips, were injured while the pirates had control of the ship, but they did manage to cut Muse on the hand. The crew members in the engine room then tried to use the captured pirate to secure the safety of the other crew members on the bridge. During the exchange, however, the crew let Muse go, but the pirates refused to release Captain Phillips. They then cut the Maersk Alabama‘s power and took Phillips hostage as they escaped in a lifeboat.

Why The Somali Pirates Took Captain Phillips Hostage On The Lifeboat

After the four pirates boarded the Maersk Alabama, they quickly realized they would not be able to control such a large ship. They attempted to force the crew to pilot the ship at gunpoint, but after Muse was captured and his gun was taken, that was no longer an option. With their own skiff destroyed and any chances of taking the Maersk Alabama gone, the pirates still wanted to make some profit out of the situation, and recover the cost of their sunken skiff, so they planned to ransom Phillips for $2 million (via BBC).

Aside from the ransom they were seeking, the Somali pirates had a few reasons to take Captain Phillips hostage. As the movie depicted, Phillips was used as a human shield to prevent the U.S. Navy from simply capturing or destroying the lifeboat before they could reach the Somali coast. Since the lifeboat ran out of fuel quickly after departing the Maersk Alabama, the pirates aimed to be rescued by other Somali pirates in the area. Those pirates had captured other ships, and they may have planned to use their hostages as additional human shields.

How Captain Phillips & The Maersk Alabama Crew Were Rescued

After the pirates left, the Maersk Alabama‘s crew restored the ship’s power and began following the lifeboat as they waited for aid from the U.S. Navy. Eventually, on April 9, the USS Bainbridge arrived to handle the hostage crisis on the lifeboat. The Maersk Alabama was eventually told to continue on their route to Kenya with armed soldiers providing protection (via Encyclopedia Britannica). After returning to the U.S., 11 of the Maersk Alabama‘s 20 crew members sued the ship’s owners and operators for $50 million for sending them into pirate-infested waters (via The Guardian). That lawsuit was settled out of court.

As for Captain Phillips, the events of the movie showed his rescue very accurately. Like Captain Phillips showed, Phillips had a failed escape attempt, and though Muse was captured, Phillips was also recaptured. After a total of five days being held captive, the Navy SEALs opened fire on the three pirates remaining in the lifeboat after they pointed a weapon at Phillips, killing them all (via Encyclopedia Britannica). As the ending of Captain Phillips showed, Phillips was then given medical attention for seasickness, abrasions on his wrists, and other injuries from the pirates’ abuse, but he was not harmed by the SEALs.

What Happened To The Somali Pirates That Carried Out The Hijacking

Three of the four Somali pirates who hijacked the Maersk Alabama were killed by SEAL Team Six during the operation to rescue Captain Phillips. The fourth pirate, Abduwali Muse, was captured earlier, when Phillips attempted to jump out of the lifeboat. Muse was extradited to the United States, where he was put on trial. Muse was found guilty of ten counts related to piracy under international law, and a New York court sentenced him to 34 years in prison, almost the maximum sentencing (via ABC News). Muse asked for forgiveness from Phillips and the rest of the crew during the trial.

While it gets many of the events of the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama right, Captain Phillips has also been criticized for its creative liberties. The crew of the ship asserted that Phillips was far less heroic than the movie made him out to be. They specifically took issue with his refusal to move further off the coast of Somalia. Captain Phillips also added some dialogue Phillips himself confirmed he never said, such as his offering to sacrifice himself to save the crew. There were a few additional inconsistencies between Captain Phillips and the real-world hijacking of the Maersk Alabama, but the true story was still harrowing.

Sources: The Gainesville Sun, CNN, History, Encyclopedia Britannica, The Guardian, BBC, ABC News