Ukrainians Claim to have Destroyed Russian Coast Guard Boat

Timeline of Events

At approximately 2140 EST, explosions were reported west of Crimea in the black Sea. Russian military bloggers reported that naval drones were intercepted near Chornomorske, Crimea by 2200 EST.

By 0030 EST this morning, Russian military bloggers reported that no damage had been sustained after naval vessels engaged naval drones in an inlet near Chornomorkse, Crimea.

By 0330 EST, the Ukrainian Main Intelligence Directorate claimed that a Russian Coast Guard Mangust-class patrol boat was destroyed in an overnight attack using the Magura V5 marine attack drone in Vuzka Bay near Chornomorske, Crimea. Their announcement reads below:

“As a result of the mission of the GUR in Crimea, an enemy speedboat was destroyed. As a result of the operation of the GUR unit of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine “Group 13” a Magura V5 attack marine drone destroyed a speedboat of the Russian invaders. The successful mission in the Uzka Bay on the territory of the temporarily occupied Crimea was made possible with the assistance of the United24 platform. Since the fear of Ukrainian attacks forces the occupiers to hide large ships of the Black Sea fleet away from the peninsula, combat work continues against the high-speed maneuverable military vessels of the Russians, which are illegally in the Ukrainian territorial waters of Crimea. We will remind you that with the help of Magura V5 attack marine drones, the Russian ships “Cesar Kunikov”, “Ivanovets”, “Sergei Kotov”, “Shark” and “Serna” were already destroyed, as well as the “Ivan Khurs” was damaged. We continue to destroy the invaders! Glory to Ukraine!”

By 0800 EST, the Ukrainian Main Directorate for Intelligence updated the strike with the below comment:

“Scouts in Crimea destroyed the Russian boat “Mongoose” On May 6, 2024, the GUR unit of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine “Group 13” destroyed the Russian high-speed patrol boat of project 12150 “Mongoose” with the help of a Magura V5 attack marine drone. Boats of this class are used by the enemy fleet and special services as multi-purpose high-speed vessels for patrolling the water area, fighting against saboteurs, as well as search and rescue operations. “Mongooses” have been produced since 2000. The boat is up to 20 m long and up to 5 m wide. The maximum speed is up to 50 knots. The modified versions of the speedboats are equipped with combat remote-controlled modules with the main standard weapon – a 14.5 mm machine gun. The Russians also have two AGS-17 automatic grenade launchers, a DP-64 manual anti-sabotage grenade launcher and two Igla or Verba type MANPADS on board the Mongoose. The estimated value of the destroyed “mongoose” is about 3 million dollars”

These claims butt right up against media published by the Russian Defense Ministry which reportedly shows a video of naval fire destroying Ukrainian naval drones.

The Mangust-Class Patrol Boat

While not a major surface combatant of the Black Sea Fleet, this strike serves as another indicator that the Black Sea is becoming increasingly contested by Ukrainian naval drones, which have already sunk or attempted to sink a number of major surface combatants. The Black Sea Fleet operates 26 of these boats. Below are the characteristics: