Moscow deploys drone boat for first time, sinks Ukrainian Navy ship

Russia on Thursday said it carried out a drone boat strike on a Ukrainian Navy reconnaissance vessel in the Danube River estuary, marking the first confirmed use of such weapons by Moscow.

The Russian Defense Ministry (MoD) claimed that the medium reconnaissance ship Simferopol was sunk.

“Using a high-speed uncrewed surface (USV) vehicle, the Ukrainian Navy’s Simferopol medium reconnaissance ship was defeated at the River Danube mouth,” the ministry said. “As a result of the attack, the Ukrainian ship sank.”

Ukraine acknowledged the strike but did not provide details on how the attack was carried out. “We confirm the fact of the strike on the ship,” Ukrainian Navy spokesman Dmitry Pletenchuk told Ukrinform.

“Currently, the elimination of the consequences of the attack is ongoing. The overwhelming majority of the crew is safe. The search for several sailors continues. Unfortunately, one crew member was killed, and several were wounded.”

Two videos circulated on social media showed the moment of impact — one filmed from the attacking drone boat itself and another from an overhead surveillance drone. Ukrainian officials, however, did not confirm the identity of the vessel.

Ukraine’s official United24 media outlet described the incident as significant, saying, “This marks the first recorded instance of Russian forces employing a naval drone to strike a Ukrainian warship.”

Russia’s Expanding Use of Naval Drones

Russia released no technical details about the USV involved, though reports suggest it may have been launched from occupied Crimea, about 130 miles away, or from a naval vessel. Military analyst Denis Fedutinov said the attack was carried out by a remotely operated boat.

Moscow has been developing a fleet of naval drones, including the Katran model, which is designed to carry FPV aerial drones or light weapons. However, experts have noted its limitations. “Katran lacks satellite communication capabilities, unlike Ukrainian sea drones equipped with systems like Starlink,” Ukraine’s Defense Express reported in May.

“Instead, it relies on radio channels, limiting its operational range and making it susceptible to electronic warfare (EW) systems.”

Russia’s state outlet Izvestia had also acknowledged earlier this year that “transmitting a reliable radio signal still limits the range of the boats.”

Ukraine Strikes Back in the Sea of Azov

In what appeared to be a retaliatory move, Ukrainian military intelligence said it struck a Russian missile corvette in the Sea of Azov. “As a result of the strikes, a Russian missile ship, which was in the potential launch zone of Kalibr missiles in the Temryuk Bay, was damaged and forced to leave the combat duty area,” Ukraine’s intelligence service said, according to Reuters.

This comes amid heightened maritime hostilities, with Ukraine frequently targeting Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, while Russia has attacked both military and civilian vessels since the start of the full-scale invasion.