Windward

Russia is routing LNG carriers to and from China around the Cape of Good Hope to avoid the Mediterranean Sea. This shift follows a drone attack on the Russia-flagged tanker Arctic Metagaz east of Malta in March. At least five Russian-flagged vessels sanctioned by the EU or UK were tracked on this route during April and May. The path involves sailing southbound from Arctic LNG trains around the Cape of Good Hope and entering the South China Sea via the Sunda Strait. While the longer route was used intermittently in 2023 to avoid Houthi attacks and high insurance premiums in the Red Sea, vessel tracking now indicates a broader effort to reduce exposure to the Mediterranean. The difficulty of the Arctic Metagaz salvage operation highlights the operational risks Russia is seeking to mitigate. This signals that Russia continues to prioritize route deviations for sanctioned LNG carriers to bypass both the Red Sea and the Mediterranean. Follow for updates.

Reports confirm a Russian drone strike on the Vanuatu-flagged, Turkish-owned vessel ANT (IMO 9412311) while outbound from Odesa. Windward Maritime AI™ reveals: - The vessel exhibited two distinct dark periods (May 4–7) prior to the attack. - It was returning to the Odesa region, likely for a subsequent loading operation, when struck. - ANT is one of three foreign-flagged merchant ships (including vessels from Panama and the Comoros) targeted in a coordinated drone surge overnight. As attacks on merchant shipping and port infrastructure intensify, Windward is tracking drone-related threats to assess the evolving risk to global supply chains.

Three months of Operation Epic Fury have fundamentally restructured the Strait of Hormuz. Rather than a total closure, the corridor has transitioned into a controlled maritime operating zone. Visibility has significantly degraded as new layers of coastal control and dark staging activity redefine the daily traffic picture. The current environment remains highly restrictive: - Transits are currently at just 6% of pre-conflict baselines. - Residual flow is dominated by dark, stationary, or Iranian-flagged vessels. - A shift toward selective access management is creating a new baseline for maritime risk. Read the 90-day impact analysis: https://okt.to/lZQ1P2

Since the onset of conflict in the Strait of Hormuz, GPS jamming has evolved from a series of incidents into a permanent fixture of the maritime domain. Windward has tracked this interference since day one. To support global domain awareness, GPS jamming visibility is now accessible through our Hormuz & Maritime Chokepoints dashboard. The new view provides a technical breakdown of daily vessel impact, false ship-to-ship (STS) meetings, and long-term trends since Feb 28. The data at a glance: - 48,149 unique vessels jammed since Feb 28. - 2.6M+ false STS meetings generated. - 589 jammed vessels identified yesterday (May 27). Our Maritime AI™ identifies and suppresses false meetings in real-time. By measuring the interference, we ensure it never skews a risk score or misleads an operational decision. Access the data here: https://okt.to/SVbWzl

Windward CEO Ami Daniel joined CBS Morning News to discuss the volatility in the Strait of Hormuz. He highlighted the threat of new toll booths and the looming traffic jam of 1,000+ vessels, pointing to a month-plus of disruptions even in a best-case scenario. Watch the full segment: https://okt.to/jA3vF2

🔴 Windward MSI has identified a dark Panamax tanker (~184m) stationary north of Larak Island today, following an 8-day round trip from Kharg Island. - The short turnaround and vessel capacity suggest an intra-Iran shuttle rather than a direct export run. - In this pattern, crude is lifted from Kharg and delivered to downstream ports for transshipment or transfer onto larger hulls for eventual export. - The vessel has remained entirely non-transmitting (dark) throughout the cycle, relying on physical concealment for movement through the Strait. This activity highlights the logistics chain used to move cargo to regional storage hubs before final export. Track the evolving Hormuz developments here: https://okt.to/eHw5C9

New Fox News Media coverage highlights how Windward identified a mass tanker blackout near Fujairah just as the first major oil transfer since the blockade began was completed. While AIS transmissions collapsed due to suspected electronic warfare, our multi-source intelligence tracked 1.35M barrels of crude moving to South Korea, the first signal of flow resuming in the Strait. Three days since this initial movement, we continue to monitor whether this ceasefire posture marks a true reopening or a temporary anomaly. Read the full story: https://okt.to/wKRGZN

The path to reopening the Strait of Hormuz is proving complicated. While recent diplomatic signals suggest an imminent return to normalcy, maritime data reveals an expanding regulatory blockade on the water. Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) has recently pushed its transit-toll zone toward the UAE coast, creating new operational hurdles near Fujairah. This shift presents a dual challenge for the maritime industry: - A widening gap between diplomatic expectations and the expanding permit-to-transit regime. - Persistent low transit volumes, which remain 60% below early May averages. - Increasing pressure on compliance teams to navigate Iranian-linked fees without triggering secondary sanctions. Read the full analysis: https://okt.to/VaHbRW

A powerful Day 1 at the Submarine Networks & Subsea Security Summit in London. The team stayed busy with demos at Booth #21 while Andy Euston joined a panel of experts to discuss moving beyond monitoring to true subsea security. Highlights from our conversations today: - 35K+ slow speed sailing activities detected near critical cables in Q1 alone. - Identifying vessel behavior to prevent accidental or deliberate strikes. - The benefits of a multi-sensor approach for protecting underwater infrastructure. Still here? Come say hello to the Windward team before we wrap for the day!

Windward on the front page of The New York Times. As a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz nears, the maritime world faces a massive logistical restart. Moving 1,500 stranded ships and 20,000 seafarers through a waterway threatened by sea mines is far more complex than a political signature. Windward CEO Ami Daniel provides a critical reality check in the piece, noting the gap between political rhetoric and operational safety. In high-stakes moments like this, advanced Maritime AI™ is mission-critical. Read the full story: https://okt.to/bHk0IZ