A containership owned by France's CMA CGM was not being escorted by the US Navy when it was hit by an Iranian projectile late on 5 May while trying to exit the strait of Hormuz.
CMA CGM's containership San Antonio was the "target of an attack" while crossing the strait of Hormuz that resulted in injuries to crew members and damage to the vessel, the French shipowner said Wednesday in a social media post.
The injured crew members were evacuated and are receiving medical care, CMA CGM said.
A US defense official told Argus that the transit was not coordinated with US forces. Tuesday's failed attempt at crossing the strait came after US president Donald trump announced the suspension of "Project Freedom" on the same day, a short-lived initiative to conduct US naval escorts of commercial ships through the embattled waterway.
The Malta-flagged vessel has not transmitted a live Automatic Identification System (AIS) signal in over 24 hours, and its last position showed it inside of the strait of Hormuz, MarineTraffic data shows.
"Changes announced at short notice or changes that are surprising, such as the sudden suspension of Project Freedom, are a challenge for shipowners attempting to assess the risks and planning for leaving the Persian Gulf," shipping association Bimco's chief safety and security officer Jakob Larsen said.
CMA CGM's decision to risk the San Antonio strait transitmay have also stemmed from the successful crossing achieved by the CMA CGM Saigon. Vessel tracking shows the latter containership outside of the strait of Hormuz on 6 May after reactivating its AIS, despite last being observed outside of Dubai on the other side of the strait on 5 May.
The key takeaways from the attack are that Iran retains the ability to detect, ID and target ships with AIS off and at night, and that they retain control of the strait of Hormuz, said EOS Marine Risk Group head of advisory Martin Kelly.
