Iran shoots down US Navy RQ-4 Global Hawk drone over Strait of Hormuz
Incident Report
Fact Sheet
| Date | 20 Jun 2019 |
| Tracker | Strait of Hormuz Tensions |
| Type | Interception |
| Location |
Strait of Hormuz
26.18, 56.25 (approximate) |
What Happened
On June 20, 2019, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps shot down a US Navy RQ-4A Global Hawk surveillance drone with a surface-to-air missile near the Strait of Hormuz. US Central Command said the unmanned aircraft was in international airspace when hit, calling it an 'unprovoked attack'; Iran said the drone had violated its airspace near Kuh-e Mobarak and released coordinates supporting its account. No personnel were aboard. President Donald Trump said he came close to ordering retaliatory strikes on Iranian targets before calling them off, marking a sharp escalation after weeks of tanker attacks.
Measured Footprint
| Series | That day | Prior 30-day avg | Week after vs before |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transits | 75 +8% | 69.2 | +23% (453 → 556) |
| Tankers | 43 +2% | 42.3 | +23% (280 → 345) |
| Cargo ships | 32 +19% | 26.9 | +22% (173 → 211) |
Daily figures from IMF PortWatch around June 20, 2019; the day's value is compared with the trailing 30-day average. Week comparisons are shown only when the series covers both full weeks.
Strait of Hormuz
Marker placed at sea area precision.
Activity Around the Incident
Commercial ship transits of the Strait of Hormuz, two weeks either side
Daily counts from IMF PortWatch; the highlighted bar is the incident day, June 20, 2019.
Incidents Around the Same Period
Nearest logged incidents
| Date | Type | Incident |
|---|---|---|
| 12 May 2019 | Strike | Limpet mines damage four tankers off Fujairah, UAE, in suspected Iranian sabotage attack |
| 13 Jun 2019 | Strike | Front Altair and Kokuka Courageous tankers set ablaze in Gulf of Oman attacks blamed on Iran |
| 19 Jul 2019 | Interception | Iran seizes British tanker Stena Impero in Strait of Hormuz, retaliating for Gibraltar's Grace 1 seizure |
| 4 Jan 2021 | Interception | Iran seizes South Korean tanker Hankuk Chemi near the Strait of Hormuz |