Maersk and Hapag‑Lloyd have announced the AE19 and AE15 services will resume transit via the Suez Canal rather than diverting around the Cape of Good Hope, following an assessment of security in the Red Sea area, sources indicated on 25 September 2026.
The two carriers said the change followed a thorough review of the security situation in the Red Sea. The update, published on 25 September, named AE19 and AE15 as the services affected.
Both Maersk and Hapag‑Lloyd specified the services will transit the Suez Canal rather than the Cape of Good Hope. The announcement was presented as a targeted adjustment to the carriers' service patterns.
The move applies specifically to the AE19 and AE15 strings. No other services were detailed in the report supplied to The Maritime Gazette.
Scope of the routing change
The announcement identifies the AE19 and AE15 services by their service codes. These two strings were singled out for the change of transit and routing described in the update from reports.
The carriers characterised the amendments as targeted, signalling that the shift affects those named loops rather than indicating a broad reopening of previous routings.
Framing and context provided by carriers
Sources indicated the carriers described the alterations as a measured step towards a gradual return. That phrasing framed the action as cautious and incremental.
The report attributed the routing decision to Maersk and Hapag‑Lloyd.
Further operational details, including timetables, transit dates for individual sailings or whether additional services will follow, were not included in the supplied notes. The Maritime Gazette has not added information beyond that published in the reports update.
Stakeholders tracking liner service patterns will monitor subsequent carrier notices for confirmation of timings, additional route changes or wider network adjustments. For the moment the published change is confined to the two service strings named in the 25 September 2026 report.