●Monitor
AIS layer · vessels
/monitorWhat it answers
Live positions of the military, government and strategic vessels Hawkline tracks: category, heading, speed, operator, theater, proximity to a chokepoint or a base.
When to open it
- To check a strike group is really moving where the press says it is: pick out the Military dots, center on the theater, read the headings.
- When brent or LNG moves with no macro reason: look at traffic through the chokepoints (Hormuz, Bab el-Mandeb, Malacca) — an abnormal build-up there is usually priced within hours.
- To place a Piracy or Conflict narrative: where the strategic vessels sit (specific tankers, replenishment ships, intelligence collectors) in the area concerned.
Anatomy
Switch on AIS in the layer grid at top right. Each vessel shows up as a dot colored by category, carrying a directional glyph that follows its heading. The fresher the vessel is in the feed, the more opaque the dot; aging positions fade out.
Click one and an info card opens in the top-right corner, while the last 24 hours of track is drawn on the map.
How to read it
The dot on the map
| Element | How to read it |
|---|---|
| Color | Military · Government · Strategic (tankers, LNG carriers, replenishment ships, intelligence collectors). |
| Orientation | The glyph points along the heading. A vessel at a standstill shows no marked direction. |
| Opacity | The fresher the position, the brighter the dot. |
The info card (click a vessel)
| Block | How to read it |
|---|---|
| Header | Category dot plus the label MILITARY / GOVERNMENT / STRATEGIC. On the right: identification confidence (high, medium, low). |
| Name + hull | The ship's name (or its MMSI failing that), followed by the hull number in parentheses where known. |
| SPD / HDG / CRS | Speed in knots, heading (where the hull points), course (the actual direction of travel). N/A when not broadcast. |
| Operator + country | Navy or company, and the country it answers to. |
| Timestamp | Relative (Just now, Nm ago…), for the last AIS position received. |
| Dest | The destination the vessel declares (free text, unverified). |
| Near | Nearest chokepoint (Hormuz, Suez, Malacca…) when the vessel is within range. |
| Base | Nearest military base where relevant. |
| Theater + MMSI | The operational theater it is assigned to, and its AIS identifier. |
The track drawn on the map
Clicking draws the vessel's trail over the last 24 hours. It clears on its own when you click empty space or another object.
Controls
| Gesture | Effect |
|---|---|
| AIS toggle in the grid at top right | Turns the layer on or off. |
| Click a vessel | Opens the info card and draws the 24h track. With Fly on, the camera recenters on it. |
| Click empty space or Esc | Closes the card and clears the track. |
| Click the info card | Opens the matching Intel page in a new tab. |
The layer reloads automatically every 30 seconds.
Cross-check with other Hawkline features
- A build-up of Military on one theater: TDI, Vessels stream — see whether the tape is off baseline.
- A strike group inside a marked ZONE: the event feeds that zone's signal count.
- Tankers bunching near Hormuz, Suez or Malacca: cross-check with TRADE for the real trade dependence of the countries exposed.
Keep in mind
- Coverage is targeted, not exhaustive. Hawkline tracks vessels of interest — not civilian freight, not yachts. An empty map doesn't mean nobody is at sea.
- AIS is a self-declared signal. Navies switch their transponders off, spoof their position, or broadcast under an assumed name. The confidence marker (
high/medium/low) on the info card is there to price that identification risk.