A NORTH-EAST man held hostage for 57 days on supertanker when Somali pirates hijacked it has vowed to return to sea.

Peter French, chief engineer of the 1,080ft Sirius Star, the largest ship ever hijacked, is recovering from the ordeal in his Willington, County Durham, home.

However, despite being warned by the heavily-armed gang, "If they rescue you we will shoot you," the 45-year-old is determined to go back to sea.

"I'm back until my leave comes to an end, then I'm away again," he told the Mail on Sunday yesterday.

Mr French was among 25 crew, including James Grady of Renfrewshire, Scotland, who were surprised by eight pirates who stormed the vessel, 450 miles off Kenya, on November 15.

His captors demanded £17m for the £100m tanker, which was heading for the Caribbean with two million barrels of oil bound for the United States.

But on Friday, January 9, the owners of the Liberian-flagged ship, Vela International, parachuted a £2m ransom package onto the deck.

It was later reported that some of the pirates drowned, still with the money on them, as they made their getaway in a small boat.

Newcastle United fan Mr French, who returned to his home on Minister Court which he shares with his wife, Hazel, 42, and daughter, Amy, 18 last Wednesday, said the day of the attack began as normal until an officers' briefing was interrupted by a phone call alerting them they were being followed. He said: "It was obvious we were being menaced by pirates and I went down to the engine room to increase speed while (Polish captain, Marek Niski) ordered the Filipino crew to man the fire hoses. Jets of water were our only defence.

"Very quickly, a speedboat came alongside and the pirates flung a long ladder with a hook over the guard rail.

"The lower deck was around 12ft off sea level. They shimmied up the ladder and onto the deck - they were armed with AK47s and rocket-propelled grenades."

The ship was ordered to turn back to Somalia and Mr French said the crew settled into a relatively normal, but tense routine, as the pirates made their demands.

He said he feared for his life at times and was told by the pirates they would blow up the ship if there was a rescue attempt.

Tensions eased when, on January 3, a deal was struck. Several days later the cash was dropped and eventually the pirates left allowing Mr French to call his wife. "I rang Hazel, he said. I just said, 'Hello, we're free. I was only on for a minute as others were clamouring for the phone."