Over the past five weeks, Ukraine has sunk three Russian warships, continuing to limit the freedom of maneuver of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
What is the aftermath for Russia of "Sergei Kotov" ship destruction?
The summary notes that on March 5, the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) announced that they had attacked and sunk the Russian patrol ship "Sergei Kotov" near the Kerch Strait in the eastern part of the Black Sea.
The DIU reported that Magura V5 unmanned surface vehicles were used during the attack on the Sergei Kotov ship. Drones of the same type were used in the attack on the Russian landing ship "Caesar Kunikov" on Feb. 14.
According to British intelligence, "Sergei Kotov" only joined the Black Sea Fleet in July 2022. It was previously attacked by UAVs in July and September 2023, sustaining minor damage, and on both occasions, it soon returned to service.
This is the third Russian Black Sea Fleet vessel sank in the past five weeks. Likely because of Black Sea Fleet losses, on Feb 15, 2024, the Black Sea Fleet Commander, Admiral Viktor Sokolov, was dismissed. Ukraine continues to limit the freedom of manoeuver of the Russian Navy in the Black Sea, the British Ministry of Defence notes.
Destruction of the ship "Sergei Kotov": what is known
On the night of March 4-5, 2024, the DIU "Group 13" special unit, in cooperation with the Ukrainian Navy, conducted an operation to destroy the Russian patrol ship "Sergei Kotov", which was only launched in 2022, near the Kerch Strait.
Russia used the ship for attacks on the territory of Ukraine, in particular, at one time on Snake Island.
The DIU reported the day before that the enemy probably managed to evacuate the 52 crew members who were on the ship.
The strike was carried out by Magura V5 naval drones. The Russian ship suffered damage to the stern, right, and left sides.
The Ukrainian Navy reported a combat helicopter was also supposed to be on board the destroyed ship.
The cost of the sunken ship is about $65 million.
