A US Navy fighter jet fired on the smokestacks of two Iranian-flagged oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman on Friday, disabling both of the blockade-running vessels, the American military said.
The Navy has used force multiple times to disable Iranian commercial vessels since the US began a maritime blockade of Iran’s ports last month.
US Central Command, which oversees American military operations in the Middle East, said that M/T Sea Star III and M/T Sevda were sailing into an Iranian port on Friday in violation of the blockade.
CENTCOM said that an F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet launched from the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush and fired precision munitions into the smokestacks of the unladen tankers to disable the large ships, which the military described as “non-compliant.”
It’s unclear what warnings the oil tankers received prior to the engagement. It’s also unclear what munitions the Super Hornet fired to disable them. CENTCOM declined to provide additional details on the incident.
Super Hornet fighter jets can carry a mix of different armaments on the weapon hardpoints along the wings, including precision glide bombs and anti-ship missiles. These aircraft are also equipped with an internal 20 mm M61A2 six-barrel rotary cannon.
Friday’s incident comes two days after a Super Hornet launched from USS Abraham Lincoln and fired several rounds from its 20 mm cannon into the rudder of M/T Hasna, disabling that Iranian-flagged oil tanker as well. The Hasna, like the Sea Star III and Sevda, was also sailing in the Gulf of Oman en route to an Iranian port.
“All three vessels are no longer transiting to Iran,” CENTCOM said on Friday.
In mid-April, the Trump administration announced a naval blockade of maritime traffic entering and exiting Iran’s ports to put pressure on its economy, which is dependent on oil exports.
More than 20 US warships and 200 aircraft, including those based on the two aircraft carriers operating in the Middle East, are involved in the blockade, which has turned around dozens of commercial vessels since it began.
In late April, Navy destroyer USS Spruance fired nine inert rounds from its 5-inch deck gun into the engine room of an Iranian-flagged vessel trying to run the blockade, marking a rare use of force by the US against a non-combat ship.
The strikes disabled the M/V Touska, which was then boarded by US Marines.
“US forces in the Middle East remain committed to full enforcement of the blockade of vessels entering or leaving Iran,” said Adm. Brad Cooper, the CENTCOM commander, in a statement on Friday. “Our highly trained men and women in uniform are doing incredible work.”
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