Mike Baker

Later in the show, tragedy at a California airbase as a B-52 bomber crashes moments after takeoff, killing all eight crew members on board.

I'll add the latest details on the deadly accident and what investigators are now looking at as they search for answers.

But first, today's afternoon spotlight.

The U.S.

and Iran may have signed a memorandum aimed at ending their months-long conflict, but that does not mean that everything is suddenly back to normal in the Persian Gulf.

While both sides have reportedly pledged to reopen this straight-up Hormuz, obviously one of the world's most important energy chokepoints, shipping companies and insurers, well, they remain wary.

Tanker operators say it could take weeks before commercial traffic returns to normal, even if the ceasefire holds.

For many in the shipping industry, the risk of missiles or drones or renewed hostilities remains too high.

That lingering uncertainty helps explain a new Reuters investigation published today.

According to Reuters, the U.S.

has spent the past several weeks overseeing a secretive operation designed to keep Gulf oil flowing despite Iran's effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

And in a twist that few observers would have predicted, the operation reportedly relies on techniques long associated with Iran's own sanctions evasion network.

Reuters reports that since early May, at least 92 ships have participated in a system of offshore ship-to-ship oil transfers near the Gulf of Oman.

Satellite imagery reviewed by the news agency showed multiple tankers meeting at designated transfer points off the coasts of Oman and the UAE.

Oil would be loaded onto larger vessels waiting outside of the most dangerous waters before continuing on to international markets.

Reuters estimates that as much as 90 million barrels of crude oil and petroleum products may have moved through the network since the operation began.

The details read more like an intelligence operation than a commercial shipping arrangement.

According to Reuters, participating ships traveled with their transponders switched off and their lights dimmed.

Departures were staggered to reduce exposure.

The vessels moved through a series of waypoints while being monitored by drones and helicopters and other surveillance assets.