Strait of Hormuz — Iran War Intelligence
Daily Status

Strait of Hormuz and Maritime Chokepoints

March 28, 2026

Key Metrics — Today
Vessels in Gulf
675
Active vessels tracked
↑ +11 vs yesterday
Inbound Crossings
1
1 AIS · 0 Dark
↓ −2 vs yesterday
Outbound Crossings
7
7 AIS · 0 Dark
↑ +6 vs yesterday
Dark Activity Events
318
AIS-off events
↓ −8% vs yesterday
Vessels Attacked
21
Since conflict start
↑ +1 this week
Daily Intelligence Summary
28 March 2026 · Strait of Hormuz
Transit Activity

8 vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on 28/03 — 1 inbound, 7 outbound. Traffic remains significantly suppressed relative to historical norms, with the newly adopted Iranian territorial waters route continuing to redirect commercial tonnage away from the main navigation lanes.

Gulf-Wide Presence

675 vessels are currently tracked in the Arabian Gulf (373 Cargo / 302 Tankers). The fleet is dominated by Marshall Islands, Greece, and China-flagged tonnage, with 318 AIS-off events recorded in the last 24 hours indicating continued evasion behaviour.

⚠ Key Intelligence Note

Elevated use of Comoros and Mali flag-of-convenience registrations detected among vessels with AIS gaps near Iranian territorial water entry points. Pattern is consistent with known sanctions-evasion methodology. Windward MIOC monitoring continues.

Vessel Movement — Strait of Hormuz
1
→ Inbound Today
Northern corridor via Larak Island
AIS: 1 Dark: 0
1
AIS Visible
0
Dark / No AIS
1
Vessel Classes
9
Staged Larak
Tanker
Tanker · AIS Active
BWBotswana
CC: India
Source: Windward AI · March 28, 2026 windward.ai
7
← Outbound Today
Departing via controlled corridor
AIS: 7 Dark: 0
7
AIS Visible
0
Dark / No AIS
2
Vessel Classes
Active
IMAC Corridor
Cargo
General Cargo · AIS Active
IRIran
BO: Iran
Cargo
General Cargo · AIS Active
IRIran
BO: Iran
Cargo
General Cargo · AIS Active
PAPanama
CC: India
Cargo
General Cargo · AIS Active
INIndia
CC: India
Tanker
Tanker · AIS Active
INIndia
BO: India
Tanker
Tanker · AIS Active
PKPakistan
CC: Pakistan
Tanker
Tanker · AIS Active
MHMarshall Islands
CC: Unknown
⚠ Controlled Corridor Active — Iranian Maritime Authority coordination required. Northern routing via Larak Island. Standard lanes empty as of 02:15 GMT. 10+ vessels >180m staged north of Larak awaiting sequencing.
Source: Windward AI · March 28, 2026 windward.ai
Live Vessel Tracking Live
Vessel Tracks — Strait of Hormuz 28 March 2026
Vessel Transit Tracks · 28 March 2026
SAR Satellite — Hormuz 28 March 2026 14:17 UTC
SAR Satellite · 28-03-2026 · 14:17 UTC
Windward Maritime AI™ — Strait of Hormuz · March 28, 2026 windward.ai
Fleet Composition — 675 Vessels in Gulf
149
Bulk Carriers
71
Product Tankers
67
Crude Tankers
38
Container Ships
37
LNG / LPG
MIXED
230
Other
Flag Registry — Top Countries
MHMarshall Isl.
109
GRGreece
91
CNChina
90
SGSingapore
80
LRLiberia
55
HKHong Kong
55
JPJapan
43
INIndia
42
PAPanama
35
KRSouth Korea
27
Other
37
Analytics — Crossings & Destinations
Hormuz Crossings
AIS-visible · Last 7 days · Inbound vs Outbound
Inbound
Outbound
Dark ÷50
Top Destinations
Oil & crude export by destination
Geopolitical Affiliation — Vessels in Gulf
Bloc Affiliation Overview
China / Russia / Iran (24%)
Western Aligned (22%)
Other / Neutral (54%)
159
China/Russia/Iran
147
Western
358
Other / Neutral
MIOC
Windward MIOC
Maritime Intelligence Operations Center
Daily Intelligence Highlights · 28 March 2026
🚨 Three Critical Chokepoints — Currently Compromised
• Strait of Hormuz: Currently under siege by the IRGC, which is enforcing a strictly selective transit policy. Over the past 12 months, approximately 9,227 million barrels of oil were exported through the Strait — an average of 21 million bbl/day. Primary destinations: China, India, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore — with no viable alternative exit route available to Gulf producers.
• Ust-Luga (Russia): Sustaining its fifth UAV attack in seven days, with operations severely disrupted. The terminal shipped ~536 million barrels over the past 12 months (1.15M bbl/day), of which 343M bbl/year flowed to Asian markets. Five strikes in seven days place its operational continuity in serious doubt.
• Red Sea — Yanbu: Following the effective closure of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline is now running at full capacity, with Yanbu exporting 5 million bbl/day and 52 VLCCs en route. It is the single most important oil lifeline keeping global markets supplied — and it remains exposed to Houthi interdiction.
🚨 Combined Impact Scenario
• Should Ust-Luga cease operations entirely, Middle East Gulf exports remain at current suppressed levels, and Houthi forces move to blockade Yanbu and the Red Sea in coordination with the IRGC — the combined daily export loss across all three hubs would reach approximately 27.15 million bbl/day.
• That represents nearly $3 billion USD in oil value that could potentially go unexported every single day.
• For oil that continues to move, rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope instead of Suez adds 10–14 extra sailing days per voyage, at an additional cost of $1.8M–$2.0M per tanker voyage.
• With thousands of voyages annually, this detour alone imposes an estimated $10–14 billion per year hidden tax on the global economy — costs that ultimately flow through to fuel prices, food, and manufactured goods.
📊 Strait of Hormuz — Fleet Snapshot 28 March 2026
• 675 total vessels in the Arabian Gulf — nearly split between cargo (55%) and tankers (45%). Only 1 inbound transit vs. 7 outbound transits — a stark net-export day, signaling severe inbound suppression.
• Flag state dominance: Panama (133), Liberia (86), and Marshall Islands (77) collectively represent ~44% of Gulf-wide vessels — all major flag-of-convenience registries, warranting ongoing scrutiny for opacity.
• Outbound ownership complexity: The 7 outbound vessels involve a mix of Iran, India, Pakistan, and unknown beneficials/controllers — consistent with the opacity patterns Windward MIOC continues to monitor.
• Dark activity: 318 AIS-off events detected in the past 24 hours — a key indicator of potential sanctions-evasion or covert transit activity.
Vessels Under Attack — March 2026
Active Threat Zone · Strait of Hormuz · Arabian Gulf · Gulf of Oman
21
All Incidents
18
Attack
3
Near Miss
› scroll
SKYLIGHT
IMO 9330020 · Tanker · Palau
SANCTIONED
01 Mar · Strait of Hormuz ATTACK

Struck by projectile at anchor causing fire; crew evacuated with injuries.

HERCULES STAR
IMO 9916135 · Tanker · Gibraltar
HIGH RISK
01 Mar· Strait of Hormuz ATTACK

Struck by projectile while transiting outbound; fire reported onboard.

OCEAN ELECTRA
IMO 9402782 · Bulk Carrier · Liberia
HIGH RISK
01 Mar· Arabian Gulf ATTACK

Projectile detonated in close proximity during transit; no damage reported.

MKD VYOM
IMO 9284386 · Tanker · Marshall Islands
HIGH RISK
01 Mar· Gulf of Oman ATTACK

Struck by USV while transiting northbound; fire and one fatality reported.

STENA IMPERATIVE
IMO 9666077 · Tanker · United States
—
01 Mar· Bahrain ATTACK

Struck by two projectiles while in drydock; fire and damage reported.

PELAGIA
IMO 9433626 · Bulk Carrier · Malta
HIGH RISK
03 Mar· Gulf of Oman NEAR MISS

UAV observed before impacting water nearby; no damage reported.

GOLD OAK
IMO 9806342 · Bulk Carrier · Panama
LOW RISK
03 Mar· Gulf of Oman ATTACK

Struck by projectile at anchor causing structural damage.

LIBRA TRADER
IMO 9562673 · Tanker · India
LOW RISK
03 Mar· Gulf of Oman ATTACK

Struck by projectile while anchored; damage reported.

SAFEEN PRESTIGE
IMO 9593517 · Container · Malta
LOW RISK
04 Mar· Strait of Hormuz ATTACK

Explosion near stern following approach by small craft; crew abandoned vessel.

MSC GRACE
IMO 9987366 · Container · Liberia
HIGH RISK
04 Mar·Arabian GulfNEAR MISS

Projectile detonated ~1 NM from vessel while drifting.

SONANGOL NAMIBE
IMO 9325049 · Tanker · Bahamas
LOW RISK
04 Mar·N. Arabian GulfATTACK

Explosion onboard causing cargo hold damage and oil leakage.

MUSSAFAH 2
IMO 9522051 · Tug · UAE
LOW RISK
06 Mar·Strait of HormuzATTACK

Struck by projectiles while supporting SAFEEN PRESTIGE rescue.

GH KAHLO
IMO 9617521 · Bulk Carrier · Bermuda
HIGH RISK
10 Mar·Arabian GulfNEAR MISS

Master reported a splash and loud bang in close proximity.

ONE MAJESTY
IMO 9424912 · Container · Japan
MODERATE
10 Mar·Arabian GulfATTACK

Struck by projectile at stern causing potential structural damage.

ZEFYROS
IMO 9515917 · Tanker · Malta
—
11 Mar·N. Arabian GulfATTACK

Struck during STS operations causing a significant fire.

SOURCE BLESSING
IMO 9243198 · Container · Liberia
MODERATE
12 Mar·Arabian GulfATTACK

Projectile struck accommodation block causing fire; crew safe.

UNCONFIRMED · LPG CARRIER
17 Mar · Details pending
UNCONFIRMED · TANKER
18 Mar · Details pending
UNCONFIRMED · TUG
19 Mar · Details pending
Live Activity · Strait of Hormuz
Attacked Vessels
Source: Windward AI · March 2026
Windward MIOC · Daily Intelligence

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