Shipping companies are avoiding using a US military-guided transit scheme through the Strait of Hormuz after a wave of Iranian attacks on vessels sparked safety concerns, seven maritime security and shipping industry sources said.
For decades ships sailed into and out of the Gulf using a safe set of lanes down the middle of the strait established by the UN’s shipping agency in 1968 dubbed the Traffic Separation Scheme.
Since the Iran war began on February 28, Iranian forces have mined this area, forcing vessels to use one of two makeshift routes close to either the Iranian or Omani coast.
Helping Gulf energy exports keep flowing
In June, Reuters reported that the US military had helped vessels through as part of an operation involving scores of secretive ship-to-ship oil transfers to keep Gulf energy exports flowing, using aerial and water drones as well as helicopters to guide tankers.
