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Pictures have captured the terrifying moment awent up in flames after reportedly colliding with another vessel.

Thick black smoke can be seen pouring from the blazing ship, which is believed to be a “dark fleet” oil tanker which had been making its way through the .

The MV Adalynn caught fire after it was crashed into by a second tanker, understood to be the MV Front Eagle in a devastating impact which took place in the early hours of this morning in , local media reported.

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The “dark fleet” is a secret network of oil tankers that rogue states have been using to evade sanctions.

Neither vessel’s crew suffered any casualties, with all 24 crew members on the Adalynn quickly and safely evacuated.

It is believed that a simple navigation error caused the two ships to collide as they passed through the Fakkan anchorage near Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates.

The Adalynn is registered in Antigua and Barbuda and is reportedly owned by Global Shipping Holding Ltd, she measures 900ft long.

The vessel is believed to have been sailing without cargo towards the Suez Canal in Egypt. There have been fears of GPS interference in the area where the crash took place in recent months.

However there was no evidence that any hostile activity caused the tanker collision, the UK-based Maritime Trade Operations monitor said on Tuesday.

However the agency did warn all vessels going through the region to take care and use caution. The ongoing conflict between Iran and has heightened tension for shipping in the area in recent days.

Iran currently controls the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow gateway into the Persian Gulf through which much of the ’s shipping passes.

Iran has threatened to close the strait completely to foreign ships which would have a major impact on the world's oil and gas supply trade.

The news comes after a Russian captain of a container ship that crashed into a US oil tanker in the North Sea pleaded not guilty to manslaughter.

The Solong’s master, Vladimir Motin, 59, of Primorsky, St Petersburg, is accused of the unlawful killing of crew member Mark Angelo Pernia, 38, in the collision off the East Yorkshire coast. Motin appeared at the Old Bailey on May 30 by videolink from HMP Hull for a plea hearing before Judge Mark Lucraft KC.

Motin confirmed his identity before he pleaded not guilty to a single charge of the manslaughter of Filipino national Mr Pernia on March 10. Motin was charged over Mr Pernia’s death after his vessel collided with the American tanker Stena Immaculate near the Humber Estuary on March 10.