A serviceman of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, call sign 13, provided details of the attack on the port in occupied Crimea, which the Defence Forces carried out on 10 November. At dawn, maritime drones entered the port and bypassed anti-submarine nets. The Russians spotted them and started shooting, but were unable to stop the drones from moving.
As a result of the mission, the scouts destroyed two enemy landing craft of the Akula and Serna classes. The vessels sank along with an armoured personnel carrier loaded on board, the DIU quoted an excerpt from a conversation the soldier had with the British newspaper The Times.
Another drone exploded in a repair dock. "They knew we were coming, but they couldn't do anything. The joy was incredible. The goal of my life was to sink a Russian ship, and we sank two at once," said 13. He also provided details about the successful defeat of the Russian reconnaissance ship Ivan Khurs and the occupiers' new expensive patrol vessel Serhiy Kotov by naval drones in May and September. The military officer noted that the cost of all the drones used in the attack is thousands of times lower than the construction of one ship and the training of crews. Kamikaze maritime drones are also used by other units of the Ukrainian Security and Defence Forces, including the SBU. Their Sea Baby UAVs have attacked the illegal Kerch Bridge, the Russian frigate Admiral Makarov, the oil tanker Sig and the Russian amphibious assault ship Olenegorskiy Gornyak.
"We are writing history, and our Western partners are very interested in these tools," said 13th. The DIU said that Magura V5 is one such tool. The drone is equipped with two cameras, infrared optics, and a satellite module that transmits camera signals to the control centre. The engine allows it to reach a speed of 45 nautical miles per hour. The cruising speed of 25 miles per hour provides a range of 250 miles. The warhead is located in the front part and weighs 250 kilograms. The warhead in the next generation of drones is even heavier. The new modification of the maritime drone also allows it to lay mines in the path of enemy ships and return to its home port. The United Kingdom and the United States played a significant role in creating the Ukrainian fleet of attack drones. This cooperation resulted in significant losses of the terrorist Russian fleet and the ousting of the aggressor from the western part of the Black Sea.