UK intelligence explains significance of Russian boat Ivanovets liquidation
Photo: The Russian missile boat Ivanovets is sunk (Russian media)
The elimination of the Russian missile boat Ivanovets will lead to a decrease in the capabilities of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, which still retains its functionality, according to the UK Ministry of Defense.
On February 1, the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine announced that it had sunk a Russian Tarantul-3-class Ivanovets missile boat. Open-source video from various angles shows several surface drones using swarming tactics to successfully hit the ship, resulting in a massive explosion that almost certainly caused the ship to sink.
The Ivanovets was patrolling the western coast of Crimea in support of Russia's occupation of Ukraine. Its sophisticated communications link allowed it to send and receive target data to and from other ships, helicopters, and long-range patrol aircraft.
"This latest Ukrainian success highlights the continuing vulnerability of Russian warships operating in the Black Sea. It will highly likely have an impact on the Black Sea Fleet's command and control elements, probably forcing them to re-evaluate their maneuverability near western Crimea. However, the Russian Navy is almost certainly still able to conduct its three main tasks in the Black Sea: long-range strike, patrol and support," the UK Ministry of Defense says.
Russian missile boat Ivanovets elimination
On the night of February 1, fighters from one of the DIU's units destroyed the Ivanovets missile boat of the Russian Black Sea Fleet with MAGURA V5 maritime drones. The cost of the ship is 60-70 million dollars. According to a representative of the DIU, Andrii Yusov, there were only three such boats in Russia.
All in all, the Ukrainian military has disabled about 33% of the Russian Black Sea Fleet since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
Read more about the boat Ivanovets that was sunk by DIU drones in RBC-Ukraine's article.
