Iranian supertanker evades US blockade, reaches Asia-Pacific

A massive Iranian oil tanker loaded with crude valued at over $220 million has slipped past a US naval blockade and entered the Asia-Pacific region. According to Tanker Trackers.com, “HUGE” is believed to be associated with the National Iranian Tanker Company and is carrying more than 1.9 million barrels of oil. The tanker was last spotted near Sri Lanka over a week ago and is currently moving through Indonesia’s Lombok Strait, heading toward the Riau Archipelago. A National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC) VLCC supertanker carrying over 1.9 million barrels (valued at nearly $220 million dollars) of crude oil has managed to evade the U.S. Navy and reach the Far East. Her name is HUGE (9357183), and we last sighted her off Sri Lanka over a… pic.twitter.com/dBf7QzPVkB — TankerTrackers.com, Inc. (@TankerTrackers) May 3, 2026 The ship was present in Iranian waters on April 13, the same day the US Navy announced a blockade of Iranian ports. The tracking firm also revealed that the tanker has remained off the Automatic Identification System (AIS) since March 20, when it left the Strait of Malacca en route to Iran. The development comes after Iranian state media reported on April 29 that at least 52 Iranian vessels had managed to bypass the US blockade. In contrast, US officials claim that approximately 41 ships linked to Iran have been intercepted or compelled to reverse course since the operation began.