Captain freed from pirates thanks Navy rescuers

NORFOLK, Va. -- The merchant sea captain who was captured and held by Somali pirates thanked the U.S. Navy crew and captain who were part of his rescue Thursday.

Aboard the fantail of the USS Bainbridge, Richard Phillips enjoyed a reunion with the skipper, Frank X. Castellano, and crew. The guided-missile destroyer was berthed in the Elizabeth River in downtown Norfolk.

Phillips called the Navy the real heroes.

U.S. special forces snipers ended Phillips' captivity in April with three pinpoint shots that killed three pirates in the lifeboat where the New England mariner had been held for five days.

Wednesday, Somali pirates attacked Phillips' old ship, the Maersk Alabama, for the second time in seven months but were turned away.

(Copyright (c) 2009 Sunbeam Television. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)