Secret weapon of Ukraine?
Mysterious drone boat washed ashore near Sevastopol
09/22/2022, 11:13 am
A washed-up watercraft not far from the Russian naval base in Sevastopol is a mystery. Naval experts suspect that it belongs to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The purpose of the drone boat is unclear.
An unidentified drone boat has reportedly washed ashore on the beach in Sevastopol, Crimea. According to Russian posts on social media, the unmanned watercraft was reportedly spotted near the Russian naval base on Wednesday. The information cannot be independently verified.
In the web published photos show a flat boat, about the size of a kayak, with several sensors. The portal specialized in marine topics naval news speculated that it could be an improvised boat of Ukrainian production. Due to the low altitude, it may be difficult to locate by radar. Due to the design, the vehicle is probably designed for speed.
According to the portal, the sensors on the roof are a camera, an infrared viewer and a flat antenna, apparently for navigation. The two sensors attached to the bow may be contact fuzes. As a result, the boat could be designed to ram other ships, causing an explosion. None of the widespread images allow a glimpse of the interior. It is possible that an aircraft bomb or an artillery shell is hidden in the abdomen, the site writes.
Such watercraft, known as explosive boats, are not new. Already in the Second World War, Italy and Japan used such weapons successfully. In recent years, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels have caused a stir with bombing boats in the Red Sea. The US Navy is also touching down unmanned watercraft (called CUSV). However, the find that has now been made would be the first documented occurrence of a bomb boat in the Ukraine war.
According to another theory, it could also be a CUSV for reconnaissance and surveillance missions – maybe even from US production. According to the Pentagon Ukraine received an unknown number of coastal defense drone boats from Washington. Also Poland is said to have already delivered such vessels to Kyiv.
It is unclear what happened to the boat after it was found. Navalnews cites local Russian reports that it is inspecting after an expert inspection was blown up.