What to Know:
Ukraine’s Main Directorate of Intelligence has released footage showing the sinking of the Russian Ropucha-class landing ship “Caesar Kunikov” during an explosive drone swarm attack off the coast of Crimea.
Footage just released by the Ukrainian GUR showing the aftermath of this morning’s USV attack on the Russian Ropucha-class landing ship Caesar Kunikov this morning.
The ship quickly rolled over and capsized after taking multiple USV hits. pic.twitter.com/gwnUXXY6RK
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) February 14, 2024
The Attack:
Footage of the attack shows that the vessel sustained several surface drone strikes along its starboard side before capsizing.
The number of survivors, if any, remains unknown at this time. The vessel is normally manned by a crew of at least 87, however, it can be more depending on if the vessel is transporting troops.
One interesting thing to note in the footage is the amount of crew visible top side, likely trying to engage the drones with small arms fire as a last ditch effort to prevent strikes.
Why it Matters:
This marks the third loss of a Ropucha-class vessel since the start of the invasion. In December, the landing ship “Novocherkassk” was completely destroyed during Ukrainian strikes in Feodosia, Crimea. In September, the landing ship “Minsk” was also destroyed during strikes in Sevastopol, although the Russian military has signaled intent to try and repair it. Likewise, the landing ship “Olenegorsky Gornyak” was heavily damaged during a surface drone attack in the port city of Novorossiysk back in August.
Earlier today, off the coast of Crimea, Ukrainian forces successfully attacked and sunk the Russian Navy’s Project 12411 Tarantul-III class corvette Ivanovets.
Multiple Ukrainian USVs scored hits, causing catastrophic damage. pic.twitter.com/8v026SpM0d
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) February 1, 2024
This latest attack also mirrors that of the sinking of the Molniya-class corvette “Ivanovets” off the coast of Crimea earlier this month, showing repeated success in surface drone swarm attacks against Russian naval assets while underway. The Ukrainian military claimed that there were no survivors from the attack. The Russian military never acknowledged the loss of the vessel.
