Twenty-four crew have been rescued by the oil tanker ADALLYN, following a collision with another vessel in the Gulf of Oman.
The crew members from the oil tanker ADALYNN were rescued on 17 June following a maritime collision in the Gulf of Oman, the UAE’s Coast Guard division of the National Guard confirmed. The incident occurred approximately 24 nautical miles off the UAE coast and involved the ADALYNN and another vessel, likely a VLCC called FRONT EAGLE.
As stated, in response, search and rescue boats were swiftly deployed to the scene and all crew members were safely evacuated and transported to the Port of Khor Fakkan.
Initial reports sparked fears of an Iranian attack due to fires seen onboard but later updates confirmed the incident was a collision, not a security-related event. The collision occurred near the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime chokepoint.
Furthermore, the event comes amid rising regional tensions, as Israel and Iran continue to exchange attacks for a fifth consecutive day. UKMTO has issued an advisory urging vessels to exercise caution while navigating these areas and while the Strait of Hormuz remains open to commercial traffic for now, the growing prevalence of electronic interference adds a new layer of complexity to vessel operations in the region.
The fire outside the Strait of Hormuz was a collision between the tankers Adalynn and Front Eagle. pic.twitter.com/SDQun2rQX4
— Sal Mercogliano (WGOW Shipping) ⚓☠️ (@mercoglianos) June 17, 2025
Maritime historian Sal Mercogliano, commented on the incident and raised concerns that the incident may have been exacerbated or even caused by GPS spoofing, which could have misled Front Eagle’s autopilot or navigation system into making unintended course changes.
Furthermore, he emphasized that in high-risk areas like the Persian Gulf, manual helm control should be prioritized over automated systems tied to potentially compromised GPS data.
