that could be tracked sailing to Iraq even as
it was in reality loading crude in Iran, which is
banned from selling its oil by U.S. sanctions.
The tanker, whose name Windward asked to be
withheld so as not to disrupt any potential U.S.
government investigation, set sail on Feb. 11,
2021, from the United Arab Emirates, reporting its
destination as Basra, Iraq. When it was 20 nautical
miles away, its global navigation system began
exhibiting strange drifting patterns. Twelve days
later, its transmission stabilized and it could be
tracked heading back through the Hormuz strait
at normal sailing speed, this time fully laden
with crude.
Satellite imagery shows that during the two-
week voyage a ship of identical length and with
the same red deck broken up by a white pole
and bridge was spotted dozens of nautical miles
away, in Iran’s Kharg Island oil terminal. That
vessel was then followed on satellite sailing back
to the UAE, its course merging with the reported
position of the original ship after it resumed its
normal transmission.
Under a United Nations maritime treaty, ships of
over 300 tons have been required since 2004 to
use an automated identification system to avoid
collisions and assist rescues in the event of a spill
or accident at sea. Tampering with its use is a
major breach that can lead to official sanctions
for a vessel and its owners.
But what was intended as an at-sea safety
mechanism has also driven a proliferation in ship-
spotting platforms like MarineTraffic.com.
Experts say such websites can be easily tricked
since they partly rely on data gathered from
thousands of amateur base stations that function