On 01 March 2026, UKMTO issued Update 002 to Advisory 003-26, highlighting a highly volatile maritime security environment in the Arabian Gulf (also known as Persian Gulf), Gulf of Oman, North Arabian Sea, Bab al Mandab (BAM), and the Strait of Hormuz due to significant ongoing regional military activity.
This includes a substantial military presence contributing to elevated threats to commercial shipping, with risks of miscalculation or misidentification near military units, sensitive maritime facilities, and infrastructure. Mariners face potential for VHF hailing, directed communications from military units, and significant GNSS/electronic interference (including disruptions to AIS, positioning, navigation, and communications systems), which may be intermittent and unpredictable.
Claims of closure or transit restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz continue to circulate via open source reporting and VHF, but no official closure has been communicated through recognized channels such as NAVAREA warnings or IMO broadcasts; such VHF indications do not constitute a legal suspension of transit passage under UNCLOS. Broader regional instability extends threats beyond the Strait of Hormuz, including elevated tensions in the Bab al Mandab. JMIC guidance urges continuous VHF Channel 16 watch, AIS transmission per policy, adherence to Traffic Separation Schemes and corridors, professional responses to hails, enhanced risk assessments (considering military activity and insurance), and immediate reporting of unusual activity, suspicious approaches, interference, or incidents to UKMTO or other centers. The situation is under close monitoring with further updates expected as warranted.
Subscribe to Channel 16 for deeper analysis, practical recommendations, and operator-ready guidance on evolving risks across key chokepoints. Get the context behind advisories, what it means for your routes and crews, and the actions to take next before conditions change.