The attacks on the Russian submarine Rostov-on-Don and the landing ship Minsk on the night of 13 September were carried out by the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Source: Press service of the Special Operations Forces
Details: Special forces officers revealed certain details of the operation. The officers received information from several sources about the likely location of the Minsk large landing ship and the Rostov-on-Don diesel-electric submarine at one of the ship repair enterprises in temporarily occupied Sevastopol. In order to identify targets, guide and direct fire, and conduct reconnaissance at the operational depth of the Russians, they involved operators of the Special Operations Forces. The group approached a safe place by boat and moved to the shore using underwater delivery vehicles. After successful infiltration (penetration into certain Russian positions – ed.), the soldiers began to perform the main part of the operation. With the help of special reconnaissance equipment, identification and targeting were carried out. During the direct hit (the Ukrainian Air Force used Storm Shadow cruise aircraft missiles – ed.), the group carried out fire adjustments and confirmed the destruction of targets. The video shows the aftermath of the attack. After that, the soldiers of the Special Operations Forces conducted a successful exfiltration (withdrawal of soldiers from the scene of hostilities – ed.).
Quote from Special Operation Forces: “All this became possible thanks to the professionalism and audacity of our soldiers! This information is published after a certain time, taking into account operational security and making the enemy understand that there is no longer a safe place for them. Let’s move on!”
Background:
- On the night of 12-13 September, the occupation authorities of Sevastopol claimed that a missile attack caused a fire to break out at a shipyard near Kilen-balka, and the Russian Ministry of Defence reported an attack by missiles and uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) that damaged two ships.
- OSINT researchers reported that a Ropucha-class large landing ship and a Kilo-class submarine were damaged at a shipyard in occupied Sevastopol. The Russian Telegram channel Baza wrote that the attack damaged the Minsk large landing ship and the Rostov-on-Don diesel-electric submarine, which was launched only in 2014 and is the carrier of Kalibr cruise missiles, which the Russian Federation is firing on peaceful cities in Ukraine.
- According to UK Intelligence, the Russian large landing ship Minsk and the Rostov-on-Don diesel-electric submarine, which were in Sevastopol undergoing dry-dock repairs, sustained critical damage due to a strike by Ukraine.
- On the afternoon of 13 September, Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk, Commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, thanked Ukrainian pilots for the explosions in temporarily occupied Sevastopol.