'Alakrana' in the Seychelles by dawn on Friday

It is finally over. The agony of the 36 crew members of the Alakrana, their families and the entire community reached its end with the liberation of the tuna-fishing vessel after 47 days being held hostage by pirates. It is now sailing free in safe waters, and is expected to arrive at the Seychelles by dawn on Friday meaning the fishermen should be home by Saturday.

A Spanish naval helicopter opened fire on Somali pirates fleeing in skiffs after freeing the Spanish trawler, but the hijackers got away, the military said Wednesday.

Minutes after the tuna boat Alakrana and its crew of 36 were released on Tuesday - reportedly following payment of a $3.3 million ransom - a helicopter based on a Spanish frigate gave chase. It first fired warning shots at two skiffs carrying the last of dozens of pirates to leave the trawler, then tried to take out their engines, Spain's top military officer said.

The goal was to stop the pirates rather than kill or harm them, Air Force General Jose Julio Rodriguez Fernandez told a news conference. At that point, the Alakrana had just been freed after being held for 47 days, and was about 2.3 miles (3.7 kilometers) from the beach.

"Given the short distance to the beach, the skiffs reached it before they could be stopped. The occupants got out and blended in with a group of people who were there," the general said.

Separately, a prosecutor at Spain's National Court called for a judge to investigate what he called the "legal and financial network" surrounding the hijacking of the Alakrana and negotiations to end it.

Prosecutor Jesus Alonso wants Spain to investigate whatever middlemen and "law firms based in London and other European countries may have taken part in the hijacking negotiations and other events" connected with the ordeal.

This inquiry does not target the Spanish government, an official at the Spanish attorney general's office said. She spoke on condition of anonymity in line with department rules.

The request was made to Judge Santiago Pedraz, who on Monday indicted two suspected Somali pirates on charges of kidnapping and other offenses connected with the Alakrana case. The two suspects were caught by Spanish naval forces a day after the trawler's Oct. 2 hijacking.

The government has refused to say if a ransom was paid for the Alakrana's release, although Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has done little to deny it, saying Tuesday the government "did what it had to do."

As relatives of the freed sailors rejoiced in the news that the crisis was over and the fishermen will soon be home, the hijacking quickly became fodder for Spanish politicians to attack each other.

The conservative opposition Popular Party had largely kept quiet while the trawler was controlled by the pirates, but that silence ended Wednesday as it accused the government of incompetence in its handling of the hijacking.

Party leader Mariano Rajoy said he was surprised that Spanish naval forces overseeing the freeing of the ship failed to arrest any of the fleeing brigands.

Rajoy did not publicly criticize the reported ransom payment, and declined to say if he would have facilitated such a payment if he were prime minister.

But he said the government had failed to heed repeated warnings that Spanish tuna boats in the Indian Ocean lacked sufficient security, neglected families of the hostages during much of the crisis and "gave itself medals" when the ordeal concluded with the release of the hostages.

"The only thing the government can give itself a medal for is incompetence," Rajoy told reporters.

Jose Antonio Alonso, a spokesman for the ruling Socialist Party in Parliament, responded by saying the conservatives were trying to use the ordeal for political gain, and should instead be offering constructive suggestions on how to prevent a repeat.