Sixteen Indian seafarers aboard the Marshall Islands-flagged offshore supply vessel AM Pioneer have refused to transit the Strait of Hormuz, citing safety concerns amid the ongoing regional conflict.
The Forward Seamen’s Union of India (FSUI) has asked the Indian government to intervene, alleging that the vessel’s owners and managers are pressuring the master and crew to make the passage. The union is also seeking the repatriation of the 16 seafarers to India with full wages and other contractual dues.
FSUI said in a post on X that the crew had refused to enter the Strait of Hormuz because of safety concerns. According to the union, the seafarers also objected to making the passage during darkness with communications switched off.
In a video shared by FSUI, AM Pioneer master Anil Raj said the vessel had arrived at Ras Al Khaimah Port in the United Arab Emirates the previous month for a survey. He said the crew had initially been told that the vessel would sail through the Strait of Hormuz toward India once the waterway was open to shipping and considered safe for transit.
Forcing Seafarers to strait of Death #Shipowners and managers of Marshall Islands-flagged vessel AM Pioneer are pressuring the Master to force its 16 Indian crew to transit the high-risk Strait of Hormuz.
— FSUI (@FSUIINDIA) August 17, 2026
The crew has clearly refused. They will not put their lives in danger. They… pic.twitter.com/AE1qfq1Byf
Raj said the situation subsequently changed when the company sought to have AM Pioneer cross the strait and proceed to Fujairah. He alleged that the company had blamed him for the crew’s position and accused him of influencing the vessel’s officers and seafarers against the company.
According to Raj, the company also sought to arrange security for AM Pioneer and had asked for US air support to assist the vessel during the passage. The information provided does not indicate whether such support was confirmed.
An unidentified second engineer aboard AM Pioneer said he would agree to transit the Strait of Hormuz when it was open to all ships. Another crew member said the seafarers had previously been instructed to keep the vessel ready and sail once conditions were considered safe.
FSUI has called on India’s Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and Directorate General of Shipping to take action over the situation involving the 16 Indian nationals.
The information provided does not include a response from the vessel’s owners or managers to the allegations made by FSUI, the master and crew.
AM Pioneer is a Marshall Islands-flagged offshore supply vessel. Ship-monitoring information cited in the source material identifies Mumbai-based Alphard Maritime Private Limited as the vessel’s manager.
The dispute comes as ships have continued to transit the Strait of Hormuz during the US-Iran conflict. The Indian government told Parliament on 21 July that 59 India-bound ships had safely crossed the strait since the conflict began on 28 February. At that time, six Indian-flagged vessels remained stranded on the western side of the waterway.
Although AM Pioneer is registered under the Marshall Islands flag, all 16 crew members involved in the dispute are Indian nationals.
