Ireland deploys C295 patrol aircraft to help U.S. track sanctioned tanker Marinera.

On January 6, 2026, the Irish Air Force deployed an Airbus C295 maritime surveillance aircraft to monitor the oil tanker Marinera, which the United States has been attempting to intercept since December 2025.

On January 6, 2026, RTE reported that the Irish Air Corps deployed an Airbus C295 maritime patrol aircraft from Baldonnel to monitor the now Russian-flagged tanker Marinera operating in international waters west of Ireland. The flight occurred as the United States continued to pursue the vessel since late December 2025 due to its links to U.S. sanctioned oil trade and repeated AIS signal interruptions.
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At the time of the Irish C295 flight, the Bella 1/Marinera tanker was located roughly 400 km west of Ireland, sailing north and remaining outside Ireland’s Exclusive Economic Zone, which extends about 370 km from the coast. (Picture source: Irish Defence Forces)

The Irish Defence Forces deployed an Airbus C295 maritime surveillance aircraft to monitor the movements of a crude oil tanker in the North Atlantic that had been pursued by the United States since late December 2025. Flight tracking showed the aircraft departing from Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel at approximately 11:30, with its position around 14:00 coinciding closely with that of the tanker as both operated west of Ireland. The mission took place in international waters and formed part of Ireland’s established practice of maintaining awareness of maritime activity near its sea approaches, particularly in cases involving sanctioned vessels, unusual navigational behavior, and heightened international attention.

The tanker being monitored was the now Russian-flagged Marinera, whose movements have attracted attention because of its connection to sanctioned oil trade and efforts to evade interdiction. At the time of the Irish flight, the ship was located roughly 400 km west of Ireland, sailing north and remaining outside Ireland’s Exclusive Economic Zone, which extends about 370 km from the coast. To limit its visibility, the vessel has repeatedly switched its AIS transponder on and off during its Atlantic crossing, a behavior that complicates continuous tracking and has contributed to the decision by multiple states to maintain continuous aerial surveillance as it moved toward northern European waters.

Marinera has undergone rapid changes in identity and legal status over a short period. In the past week, the vessel changed its name from Bella 1 to Marinera and altered its registration from Guyana to Russia, a step that placed it under Russian flag protection. Prior to these changes, the tanker had been expected to collect oil in Venezuela, but this plan was overtaken by the declaration by U.S. President Donald Trump of a naval blockade on sanctioned oil tankers transiting to or from the country. Following the reflagging, Russia requested that the United States halt its pursuit, arguing that the vessel now falls under Russian jurisdiction, even as it continued its northbound Atlantic transit.

The ship’s recent history explains why it is attempting to escape by any means. Until last month, the Marinera was known as Bella 1, a tanker that was sanctioned by the United States in 2024 due to links with Iranian oil transport networks. Over its service life, the vessel has changed names and flags multiple times, a pattern associated with tankers operating within shadow fleets that move oil from sanctioned states such as Iran and Venezuela. Built in 2002, the ship has operated globally, calling at ports in Asia, the Mediterranean, and the Caribbean, and its current voyage makes it a target for seizure or forced boarding by U.S. authorities. From a technical and operational standpoint, the Bella 1/Marinera is a Very Large Crude Carrier that can carry up to two million barrels of crude oil, measuring approximately 333 meters in length with a beam of about 60 meters and a deadweight of more than 300,000 tonnes.

The pursuit itself has involved extensive air surveillance by U.S. and allied assets across a wide area of the North Atlantic. U.S. P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft have tracked the tanker from bases in Iceland and the United Kingdom, and at least one French military aircraft has also operated in the same general region. At the time the Irish aircraft was airborne, there were no U.S. naval vessels in the immediate vicinity of Marinera, but there had been unusually large movements of U.S. military cargo aircraft into United Kingdom airbases. Some of these flights involved helicopters, raising the possibility that a forced boarding operation remained under consideration, even though alternative explanations such as unrelated training activities also existed.

Irish authorities have framed their role within the established structure of maritime defense and security operations. While declining to comment on specific operational details, the Defence Forces have outlined that Ireland continuously monitors its maritime domain through Naval Service patrols supported by Air Corps maritime patrol aircraft. When necessary, intelligence-led missions are conducted either independently or in coordination with other agencies, and relevant information is shared with appropriate national and international partners. The Marinera case fits into a broader trend seen over the past year, with a noticeable increase in sanctioned or shadow fleet vessels appearing near Ireland’s sea approaches, requiring sustained monitoring even when no direct action is taken.

Ireland’s ability to conduct such missions is closely linked to its acquisition of the Airbus C295, a program initiated in 2019 to replace ageing CN235 aircraft that had been in service since the 1990s. Two C295 maritime patrol variants entered Irish service in 2023, followed by the delivery of a third C295 transport variant on October 7, 2025, bringing the fleet to three aircraft. The overall acquisition has been valued at approximately €300 million and represents the largest single equipment purchase in the history of the Irish Defence Forces, intended to provide long-term airlift and maritime surveillance capability.

Technically, the C295 is a twin-engine turboprop aircraft powered by two Pratt and Whitney Canada PW127G engines, each rated at around 1,972 kW. It has a typical cruise speed of about 480 km/h, an operational range exceeding 4,500 km depending on payload, and endurance that allows several hours on station during maritime patrol missions. In its surveillance configuration, the aircraft is equipped with surface search radar, electro-optical and infrared sensors, mission consoles for multiple operators, and communications systems suited to coordination with naval units. It can operate from relatively short or semi-prepared runways, carry crews of six to eight for patrol missions, and sustain persistent monitoring over wide ocean areas, making it well-suited to tracking vessels such as Marinera as they transit the North Atlantic.

Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.