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March 24, 2024: Ivan Cruz
Jörg Iszyk/Reuters
Initially, Ukraine only said that attacks on Russian warships in late March had damaged the Yamal and Azov ships. However, two days later, the Ukrainian military announced that two more Russian naval vessels had also been attacked, including the Yuri Ivanov-class intelligence ship Ivan Khur.
Launched in 2017, the Ivan Kur is one of Russia’s most sophisticated vessels and a prime target for Ukraine to further cripple the Black Sea fleet. It is fitted with radar warning receivers and electronic eavesdropping devices, and is armed with machine guns and a mobile air defense system.
Posted by Open Source Analyst Telegram satellite image A Russian spy ship was apparently damaged after a missile attack on Sevastopol, Ukraine.
“As for the Ivan Cruz ship, we can confirm damage to its reconnaissance equipment,” navy spokesman Dmytro Pletentchuk said. Ukrainian media outlet Militarny. “So the reality is that they are currently not combat ready and cannot carry out their primary mission.”
The Ukrainian Navy targeted the Ivan Kur less than a year after the March attack: In May 2023, Ukraine fired three maritime drones laden with explosives at the 4,000-ton patrol ship as it sailed 115 miles northeast of the Bosphorus.
The drone exploded as it approached the Ivan Khur, but the ship remained largely undamaged and remained active in the western Black Sea, guarding two vital pipelines carrying gas from Russia to Turkey.
“The drone is [310 miles] It was a very difficult operation,” said a senior Ukrainian defense official. Ukrainian news agency Pravda. “The start of the mission was delayed due to bad weather. The connection was repeatedly broken. Unable to see anything or control the drone, the enemy crew began to repel the attack.”
“Connection was eventually restored and we pursued the ship for six hours until we ran out of ammunition,” the official added.
“After about two hours, it became clear that they had not run out of ammunition. We caught up with the ship at 3:30 in the middle of the night, but they continued to fire back at us until about 7:00 in the morning. During the long chase, some drones ran out of fuel and several others were damaged, but we still managed to reach them.” [not sure how necessary this is]