HMCS Fredericton pulled out of port in Halifax Sunday morning for a six-month deployment to the Arabian Sea.

The mission is part of a long-standing NATO commitment to secure the Gulf of Aden and surrounding waters off the coast of Somalia.

"The mission now is about the anti-piracy piece, which has certainly received a lot of media coverage and folks are familiar with what that is," said Cmdr. Steve Waddell, captain of the 250 men and women serving on board the ship.

"In the past, there were activities against Iraq, whether it was United Nations Security Council resolutions, or things like that, but today the emphasis is on the anti-piracy piece and that's our focus today," he said.

Friends and family of the crew members were on hand to see the ship off. Many of them said the time away from loved ones is difficult, but improvements to email service and satellite phones make the experience more bearable.

"It's difficult, it's lonely, but you pull together and you get close to your family and other family members and you go with the flow," said Jennifer Murphy, whose husband, Master Seaman Alec Murphy, had previously deployed to the Arabian Gulf in 2001, shortly after the attacks of Sept. 11.

The Fredericton is expected to reach the Arabian Sea in November.

Somali pirate activity has been rampant in and near the Gulf of Aden, one of the world's busiest sea lanes, which connects the Red Sea and Indian Ocean.

Analysts blame Somalia's nearly 20 years of lawlessness for fuelling piracy's rise off its coast.

Somalia has not had a functioning government since warlords overthrew dictator Muhammad Siad Barre in 1991. The coup sparked a number of faction-based clashes and the country has been caught between competing militias ever since.

HMCS Fredericton is a Halifax-class frigate that was laid down at Saint John Shipbuilding Ltd., in Saint John, in 1992.

The ship, named for New Brunswick's capital city, has served the Canadian Forces since 1994. Its home port is Halifax.

She has delivered humanitarian and disaster relief to Haiti, has been involved in boarding ships smuggling drugs, weapons and people, and has performed search and rescue work.