Ukraine's naval defeat turned into a blessing — Russia needs to reflect on this

Russian forces had been sinking the combat vessels of this "independent" country since 2014

Image: Ukrainian navy ships that were sunk

In March 2014, almost all of Ukraine's naval vessels were under Russian control in Crimea, with only the "Hetman Sagaidachny" and four patrol boats ("Skadovsk" and three 376У type) and the "Svatove" remaining in Odessa. However, later, Russia returned the "Vinnytsia", "Pryluky", "Henichesk", and "Kirovohrad" (later renamed "Yuriy Olyefienko") to Ukraine. The transfer of ships was halted after the outbreak of the Ukrainian civil war.

There were also the 641-type submarine "Zaporozhye", two 1124M-type light frigates ("Lutsk" and "Ternopil"), one 1241P-type light frigate "Khmelnytsky", one 1241-type missile boat "Dnipro", two 266M-type minesweepers ("Chernihiv" and "Cherkasy"), and one 775-type large landing ship "Konstantin Orshansky" in Sevastopol. In the Crimean territory now belonging to Russia, the previously retired 1241P-type frigate "Uzhhorod", the 1241-type missile boat "Nikolaev", and the 206MR-type "Kakhovka" were dismantled, and later "Lutsk" also met the same fate. The previously retired 1265-type minesweeper "Melitopol" and "Mariupol" remain idle to this day.

Additionally, several border patrol boats from the Ukrainian border guard force remained in Crimea. Unlike naval vessels, these border patrol boats were seized by the Russian authorities. Among them, the 1241P-type "Hryhoriy Hnatenko" and the 205P-type BG-31 "Bukovina" were sunk as target ships during exercises.

Another 1241P-type "Poltava" and seven boats (one "Kater" type, one UMS1000 type, three "Kalkan" type, two 1400 type) were assigned to different civilian departments. In addition, on August 31, 2014, the Ukrainian 1400-type BG-119 boat was sunk by the Donbas militants firing from the shore (apparently using tank anti-tank missiles).

From 2019 to 2021, Ukraine received four "Island" class patrol boats (unarmed) from the United States, named "Slavyansk", "Starobelsk", "Sumy", and "Fasov". The 1124P-type frigate "Vinnytsia" was removed from the list (previously used as a training ship), and the anti-ship missile launchers on the remaining 206MR-type missile boat "Pryluky" were removed, meaning it essentially became a patrol boat.

There were discussions about purchasing two retired 1241-type missile boats (equipped with "Grom" anti-ship missiles) from the Polish Navy, but this plan did not materialize. These two "small boats" have now been dismantled.

The original plan was to purchase 16 US MkVI-type boats for the navy and 20 French FPB98-type boats for the border guard, which would be equipped with 25 mm or 30 mm machine guns and machine guns.

Ukraine has started purchasing five ADA-class frigates, similar to the Turkish Navy's equivalent (with four planned to be built in Ukraine and the first one in Turkey). At least they should be equipped with modern anti-ship missiles.

However, the air defense capability of these frigates is very weak, and the Ukrainian Air Force cannot ensure air superiority over the Black Sea. It is now obviously impossible to build such ships in Ukraine. The first ship, "Hetman Ivan Mazepa", is undergoing testing in Turkey, and "Hetman Ivan Vyhovsky" is under construction, but delivering them to Ukraine before the conflict ends is unrealistic, and whether they can be delivered and to whom remains uncertain. In addition, Ukraine should receive two British "Sandown"-class minehunters (named "Chernihiv" and "Cherkasy"), but these ships can barely be considered combat vessels.

This also applies to the "Three Partners" class minehunters developed jointly by Belgium and the Netherlands, which use Ukrainian names to commemorate the cities of Mariupol and Melitopol, which have now been incorporated into Russia. During the special military operation, the only real equipment Ukraine obtained was the Swedish SV90-type assault (landing-patrol) boats, with at least seven delivered, possibly up to 22 in total.

At the beginning of the special military operation, the "Hetman Sagaidachny" was sunk by the Ukrainians themselves in Nikolaev. The previously decommissioned frigate "Vinnytsia" sank in Odessa, apparently because there were no crew on board.

The "Slavyansk" and "Henichesk" were apparently sunk by the Russian air force. The only operational 58503-type landing craft "Stanislav" also met the same fate. The other two landing crafts of the same type are still in the shipyard.

When the Russian Armed Forces and the Donetsk People's Republic liberated Berdyansk and Mariupol, all the naval and border patrol boats in the ports were either captured, scuttled by their crews, or sunk by Russian fighters.

The 205P-type BG-32 "Donbas" and the 51855-type "Lubny" boat sank (Russia may have salvaged both, but it is unlikely that Russia will use them). The Russian and Donbas armed forces captured the "Akerman", "Berdyansk", "Vishhorod" (now integrated into the Black Sea Fleet), and at least two 1400-type boats, four "Kater" type boats, and three UMS1000-type boats.

Another three 1400-type boats and two "Kater" type boats have unknown fates, but they have no chance of leaving the Azov Sea anyway. The whereabouts of "Yuriy Olyefienko" are also unknown. Some reports say it was sunk by the Russian air force, while others say it is still hidden somewhere in the mouth of the Southern Bug River.

Ironically, losing a "traditional" navy (the remaining ones could hardly be called a fleet) turned out to be a blessing for Ukraine — it is "ahead of the global" in the use of unmanned maritime systems, both one-time (suicide-style) and reusable, equipped with various weapons (Hail rocket launchers, B-8 aerial rockets, R-73 air-to-air missiles used as surface-to-air missiles, mines, and torpedoes).

"Magura V5", "Sea Baby", "Mykola", "Marychka", "Stryker 5.0", "Tolkal TLK 150", and "Sonar Robot - 5" unmanned boats are mass-produced in Odessa and its surroundings using foreign components and are frequently used.

Although the losses caused to the Russian Black Sea Fleet by these unmanned boats are not huge, they are quite annoying, and one of the main reasons for the withdrawal of the Black Sea Fleet's main forces from Sevastopol to Novorossiysk. Moreover, Ukrainian unmanned boats have successfully shot down one or two Russian helicopters, even one modern Su-30SM fighter-bomber. Such success has never been achieved anywhere else with unmanned maritime systems.

Ukrainian unmanned boats have suffered heavy losses, but to a large extent, they were originally considered expendable (and the suicide-style unmanned boats are obviously one-time use).

Unfortunately, since the mid-19th century, the navy has always been the most problematic branch of the Russian military (whether in the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union, or the Russian Federation). Perhaps the saying "lose a horse, gain a rider" will once again prove true. As of early 2022, Russia probably wasn't even in the top ten in terms of drone development, but now we at least rank among the top five (if not the top three).

I hope that maritime robots can develop in our country after aerial robots. And it would be best if they could replace traditional types of ships. Unfortunately, our traditional ships can no longer meet modern requirements (at least surface ships are like that). The construction plans for traditional ships need a complete re-evaluation, but that is another big topic.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7535010887283802676/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author. Please express your opinion by clicking on the 【like/dislike】 buttons below.