HISTORY

a Ukrainian boat had to maneuver wildly to avoid

being fired upon. One soldier fell into the water

but was later rescued by a Ukrainian drone.

It reported the soldier's location until rescue

arrived.

It's possible that three Sea King HU.5

helicopters provided by Britain to Ukraine were

involved in these actions. Ukraine uses these

helicopters for transport, search and rescue

missions, and transporting special forces

behind enemy lines. Therefore, it's very likely

that they played a role in the occupation of oil

platforms in the Black Sea and in supporting

the special forces' landing on the Crimean

coast. Coincidentally, during the period we are

examining, a new photo of a Sea King helicopter

in Ukrainian service was published. The right

side of the fuselage features the image of

a drawn character's head and the inscription

"Aviator."

Russian ships also became targets of

Ukrainian attacks. On the night of August 4, near

Novorossiysk port, the Ropukha-class landing

ship Olenegorsky Gornyak was hit by a naval

drone as it entered the port. According to initial

Russian reports, the attack was successfully

repelled, and the ship suffered no damage.

However, in the morning, it was revealed

that the ship was unable to move and had

a significant list to the left. It had to be towed to

dry dock. The ship had a hole in the right side of

the hull, four meters high and two meters wide.

The next day, south of the Kerch Strait Bridge,

the Russian tanker Sig was also hit by a naval

drone. The explosion caused a hole in the right

side and flooded the engine room.

Ukrainian naval drone attacking the Russian ship

Olenegorskyi Gornyak.

Landing ship Olenegorskyi Gornyak listing to the left

after a Ukrainian naval drone attack.

Attack on docks and Headquarters

All the actions mentioned so far were just

a prelude to the main attack that occurred in

September. After losing radar installations on

the platforms, air defense systems, and aircraft,

Russia was unable to effectively protect the

western part of Crimea. This had disastrous

consequences for the Black Sea Fleet.

On Wednesday, September 13, early in the

morning, Storm Shadow cruise missiles

launched from Ukrainian Su-24M aircraft struck

the dry dock of the Sevmorzavod shipyard in

Sevastopol. At the time, the dock housed the

Minsk-class Ropukha landing ship and the

B-237 Rostov-on-Don submarine.

A major fire broke out on the Minsk,

destroying virtually all superstructures

from the main deck upwards. Parts of these

superstructures collapsed. The command

bridge and the ship's mast completely collapsed.

In this case, it's an older vessel from 1983, and

the cost-effectiveness of repairing it is highly

questionable. According to the Ukrainian side,

the Minsk was supposed to leave the dock

on September 14, which is why it had a crew

preparing for that. More than 60 sailors were

reported to have perished.

The Rostov-on-Don submarine fared just as

poorly. It belongs to the upgraded Kilo class

(Russian Project 636.3) and entered service

in 2014. Besides torpedoes, it can carry Kalibr

missiles, which it previously launched at

Ukrainian cities. However, it's the end for the

submarine. After being hit by Storm Shadow

missiles, it has two large holes in its hull—one

on the right side behind the conning tower and

another in the front in the torpedo compartment.

The possibility of repairing it is also highly

doubtful.

Less than a week later, Ukrainians carried

out another successful mission with Storm

Shadow missiles targeting Sevastopol. Exactly

at noon, on September 22, the headquarters of

the Black Sea Fleet were struck by at least two

missiles. Only the outer walls remained of the

building; the interior was completely destroyed.

What was worse for the Russians was that

there was a meeting of high-ranking officers

in the headquarters, which the Ukrainians were

informed about by the partisan movement. Two

days after the attack, the Ukrainian Special

Forces command reported that in this operation,

codenamed "Crab Trap," 34 Russian officers

lost their lives, and 105 soldiers were injured.

Admiral Viktor Sokolov, the commander of the

Black Sea Fleet, was said to be among the dead.

Russian authorities later released several

videos that were meant to prove Sokolov's wellbeing, but there are uncertainties about when

these videos were made. According to Russian

occupying authorities, only six were injured, and

the "situation is under control." However, they

also had to admit that the building cannot be

repaired, and its remnants will be demolished.

Most of the remaining large vessels of the

Ukrainian helicopter Sea King HU.5 with a cartoon

character's head and the name "Aviator" painted on the

fuselage side.

Olenegorskyi Gornyak in a dry dock showing

a hole in its hull.

November 2023

Landing ship Minsk on fire on September 13th

in a dock in the port of Sevastopol.

This peculiar photograph was created by assembling

images from a video capturing the damage to the ship

Minsk.

INFO Eduard

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