US Forces Strike Second Tanker in Hormuz Blockade Standoff

Second Strike Under Renewed Naval Cordon

According to a report by The Maritime Executive, citing U.S. Central Command and AP reporter Konstantin Toropin, American forces fired on a merchant tanker on Friday as it tried to bypass the U.S.-enforced blockade of Iranian ports. This marks the second occasion since the naval cordon was reinstated that U.S. forces have used force to stop an Iran-linked vessel.

CENTCOM identified the ship as the tanker “Lavine,” a name matching a VLCC carrying IMO number 9177686. However, that particular IMO number shows no AIS trading history in the Middle East recently, raising the possibility that the reported identity involved mistaken identification, a falsified name, or manipulated AIS signals — a reminder of how murky vessel identification has become in this theatre.

What Happened at Sea

CENTCOM stated the tanker repeatedly tried to cross the blockade line in the Gulf of Oman and ignored warnings from U.S. assets before its engine room was targeted and disabled. No footage of the incident has been made public.

This latest confrontation continues a pattern of tit-for-tat strikes between U.S. and Iranian forces that has been unfolding in the strait. Both sides have now struck multiple ships, and commercial transit volumes have fallen sharply as owners and charterers weigh the growing danger against rising insurance costs.

Traffic Splits Along Contested Routes

Most vessels continuing to move through the region are avoiding the U.S.-patrolled corridor near Oman altogether, instead using the Iranian-controlled route past Larak — a path favored heavily by ships connected to Iranian commerce.

Data from maritime intelligence firm Kpler showed Hormuz crossings dropping to just six confirmed transits on July 23, a 60 percent decline from the day before, with nearly every vessel opting for the Iranian Unilateral Scheme rather than risk the American-controlled lane. Rival consultancy Windward similarly reported only five crossings overnight between July 22 and 23 — three outbound and two inbound — describing the chokepoint as still disrupted.

Despite this, CENTCOM maintained in its statement that the strait remains open for commercial transit and that vessels continue to operate freely under U.S. military protection, even as Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps forces continue intermittent attacks.

Operational Implications for Owners and Managers

The uncertainty over the disabled tanker’s true identity is itself a significant operational signal. If a warship-grade naval force cannot confidently match a vessel it has just struck to reliable AIS history, it underscores how unreliable satellite tracking and declared vessel names have become in contested waters — whether through deliberate spoofing or simple confusion. For owners and managers routing tonnage anywhere near the Gulf, this raises a hard practical question: how much can charterers, insurers, and flag administrations actually trust a vessel’s declared position and identity data before and during a Hormuz transit right now?

This also has direct consequences for condition and pre-transit inspection practice. Vessels rerouting to avoid the U.S.-patrolled lane and instead using the Iranian-side corridor may face different regulatory exposure, sanctions risk, and insurance conditions than assumed under standard voyage planning. Technical superintendents should treat AIS continuity checks and independent verification of a vessel’s recent trading pattern as a standard part of due diligence before fixing tonnage that may transit the strait, rather than relying solely on self-reported tracking data.

A Fragile Status Quo

With traffic volumes collapsing and insurance premiums almost certainly climbing in response, the commercial cost of the standoff is mounting even without further escalation. The divergence between CENTCOM’s assurances that the strait remains functionally open and the sharp drop in actual crossings recorded independently by Kpler and Windward suggests that, in practice, most commercial operators are voting with their routing decisions rather than taking official statements at face value. Until there is more clarity on how the blockade will be enforced and how safely vessels can be identified before being engaged, owners with any exposure to Gulf trades should expect continued volatility in transit patterns, freight costs, and underwriting terms.

Reviewed by Ibrahim Halil Ceylan, Marine Surveyor at Apeks Marine.