Middle East Situation | Iran Navy Reportedly Guides Indian Oil Tanker Through Strait of Hormuz

SighingCashier · 2026-03-21T09:46:29+00:00

Iran's Navy guided an Indian liquefied petroleum gas tanker through the Strait of Hormuz last week, with the vessel following a pre-approved route while maintaining radio contact with Iran. Crew members disclosed that the passage took longer than usual due to GPS interference, and the Automatic Identification System was reactivated only after safely entering the Gulf of Oman. Several other vessels also transited the waterway during the same period.

SighingCashier

2026-03-21 09:46:29

Abstract generation in progress

Bloomberg citing a senior crew member reported that last week, the Iranian Navy guided an Indian liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tanker through the Strait of Hormuz. After diplomatic negotiations in New Delhi, permission was granted for the vessel to pass along a pre-approved route.

The crew member stated that during the passage, the ship maintained radio contact with the Iranian Navy. Iran recorded the ship’s flag, name, port of origin, destination port, and crew nationality (all Indian), and directed it to follow the agreed-upon route.

The crew on the Indian LPG tanker refused to disclose specific route details. According to the crew member and AIS data analyzed by Bloomberg, the vessel turned off its AIS system during the voyage and only reactivated it after safely entering the Gulf of Oman. The crew member said that due to GPS interference since the outbreak of conflict, the ship was unable to use GPS, which caused the crossing to take several hours longer than usual.

Martin Kelly, head of consulting at EOS Risk Group, said it appears Iran verified the vessel’s identity before allowing it to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. While permission was granted, it was primarily for Iran’s own interests.

Over the past week, several ships have traversed the narrow waterway between Iran’s Larak and Qeshm islands, sailing along the Iranian coast. This includes two bulk carriers that previously docked at Iranian ports and the Karachi cruise ship, which flies the Pakistani flag.

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