Shafaq News- Washington
The United States has shifted military protection for commercial vessels crossing the Strait of Hormuz to two recommended transit windows each day after Iranian attacks intensified, with shipping through the strategic waterway remaining far below pre-war levels.
According to messages reviewed by the Financial Times (FT) on Saturday, Washington has provided air cover to merchant ships using a route along the Omani side of the strait since May. Ships previously received broad overnight transit windows from the Naval Cooperation and Guidance for Shipping (NCAGS) center, but around the start of September, the system shifted to specific daily departure times.
One NCAGS message explained that vessels were not required to use the recommended times but would receive the “best support” if they did, while another warned that nighttime transit had not proved to be the safest option. US Central Command (CENTCOM) told the FT the messages “spoke for themselves.”
The change follows a renewed escalation at sea, with more than 70 commercial vessels attacked since the conflict began on February 28, according to the outlet. On September 9, Iran claimed attacks on 20 ships near Hormuz, including two US vessels and eight tankers, after the United States struck five Iranian oil tankers.
Maritime analysts cited by the FT said concentrating US aircraft and other resources into shorter periods could make the protection effort more sustainable and allow greater military capability to be focused on each transit window. A commercial vessel can take about seven hours to cross the strait, while operating an advanced US military aircraft can cost between $25,000 and $75,000 per flight hour.
Meanwhile, Kpler data showed only seven commodity vessels crossed the strait on September 10, compared with a 10-day average of 15 and a pre-war average of about 125 large commercial vessels per day. The figures exclude vessels operating with tracking systems switched off.
The disruption has also pushed tanker freight rates to record highs, with the cost of shipping crude from the Gulf of Oman to China on very large crude carriers reaching about $11.50 per barrel this week, according to Baltic Exchange data.
Iran has separately announced plans for a restricted zone extending from the US naval blockade line toward the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf, warning that vessels entering it could face unspecified sanctions. Tehran has also said a preliminary agreement with Oman on a new shipping corridor is close to completion, while shipbroker Clarksons expects disruption through Hormuz to persist until at least the second half of 2027.