U.S. forces fired from an F/A-18 Super Hornet to disable the rudder of Iranian-flagged oil tanker M/T Hasna in the Gulf of Oman at 9 a.m. ET on 6 May after the vessel failed to comply with repeated warnings while sailing toward an Iranian port, according to a U.S. Central Command press release.
CENTCOM said the unladen tanker was in international waters when U.S. forces observed it en route to Iran, issued multiple warnings and then used several rounds from the 20mm cannon of a U.S. Navy F/A-18 launched from USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72).
The command said Hasna was no longer transiting to Iran after the action.
Public vessel-tracking databases identify Hasna under IMO 9212917 and list it as a crude oil tanker sailing under the Iranian flag.
The incident sharpens the operational message behind CENTCOM’s blockade enforcement by showing Washington is prepared to stop a tanker physically, not only warn it off. CENTCOM said the blockade on ships attempting to enter or depart Iranian ports remains in force and that its units will continue to ensure compliance.
U.S. Central Command is the U.S. Department of Defense combatant command responsible for military operations across its area of responsibility, including the Gulf region. Its public role in this case is as the issuing authority for the operational account and the stated enforcement policy.
M/T Hasna is a crude oil tanker built in 2003, with reported deadweight of 299,229 tonnes.
