On March 5, Reuters quoted the Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Agency (DIU) as saying that its unmanned surface vehicle (USV) attacked and severely damaged a Project 22160 patrol ship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet off the coast of the Crimean peninsula.
Also according to DIU, the agency's "Group 13" task force attacked the patrol boat Sergey Kotov of Project 22160 near the Kerch Strait.
Patrol ship Sergey Kotov of Project 22160 of the Black Sea Fleet.
“As a result of the attack by the USV MaDIUa V5, the Russian ship Sergey Kotov suffered damage to its stern, port and starboard sides,” the DIU said in a statement. The Ukrainian authorities added that the patrol ship, which belongs to Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, is worth about $65 million.
Sergei Kotov is the fourth ship of Project 22160. In case of hostilities, the ship will participate in the protection of the coast and coastal bases. It can be used to escort groups of warships and merchant ships.
The ship has a displacement of 1,300 tons and a speed of 45 km/h. The ship can stay in the open sea for a long time (60 days). The crew consists of 80 people. The ship is equipped with a 76 mm gun, a grenade launcher and a Kord machine gun. The deck can accommodate a Ka-27PS helicopter, and can also use drones and underwater robots.
The ship is built on a modular structure, which allows it to be equipped with special weapons or equipment to solve specific combat tasks. Currently, integrated weapons and auxiliary equipment modules are being tested for ships of this type. Among them are the Redut and Pantsir-M air defense systems, as well as anti-submarine equipment.
A Telegram channel run by a Russian-appointed official in Crimea said that rail traffic on the bridge connecting the peninsula to mainland Russia had been temporarily halted. Road traffic across the bridge was also suspended for several hours, before returning to normal shortly before 7 a.m. local time on March 5.
Reuters could not independently verify the information. The Russian Defense Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
The Ukrainian military claimed last month that it had destroyed a Russian heavy landing ship near Crimea by using a USV to puncture its port side and cause it to sink.
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