A 30,000-ton luxury cruise ship, Nautica outran pirates off the coast of Yemen last week. The ship took evasive maneuvers and accelerated to its full speed of 23 knots or 27 mph. One of the smaller craft closed to within 300 yards and fired eight rifle shots at the cruise ship, but the ship was able to pull away.

The Nautica escaped without damage or injury to its 684 passengers and 400 crew, and arrived safely on schedule in Salalah, Oman early on Monday morning. It is believed that the ship was not off the coast of Somalia, which has become a base for pirates, but off the coast of Yemen. The International Maritime Bureau has issued piracy warnings for both areas. The Nautica however was in a Maritime Safety Protection Area, patrolled by international anti-piracy task forces.

The Nautica left Rome November 18 on a 32-day cruise to Singapore. It was the first time one of the company’s cruise ships had encountered possible pirates.