- British and French Cruise Missiles Used in Attack
- Rare Disclosure of Operation Details
- Damages to Russian Vessels and Dry Docks
The chief of Ukraine’s air force has revealed specific details of the strikes, which devastated one of four Russian cruise-missile-capable submarines in its Black Sea Fleet, together with a large warship undergoing maintenance in the port city of Sevastopol in occupied Crimea on Wednesday.
Ukrainian bombers unleashed British and French cruise missiles from either wing to assault the Russian naval in seized Crimea, which behaved “perfectly.”
The strikes, which occurred in the early hours of Wednesday morning, destroyed one of four Russian cruise-missile-capable submarines in its Black Sea Fleet and a large warship in dry dock in the port city of Sevastopol.
The commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk, explained that British Storm Shadow and French Scalp missiles were attached under the left and right wings of a Ukrainian Su-24 jet, respectively.
“Both missiles operate flawlessly, leaving no chance for the occupant!” he wrote.
It is extremely uncommon for Ukrainian commanders to disclose specific operation details.
The air chief indicated that his Su-24M bomber aircraft could also transport German Taurus missiles, a weapon that Berlin has indicated it may give to Kyiv.
“Then the ‘game of cities’ can be continued even more effectively,” the air force chief remarked in Telegram.
Once again, I thank our Western partners for the weapons and equipment that helped us destroy the aggressor and liberate Ukrainian land!
The attack used British Storm Shadow missiles, according to Ukrainian and Western sources.
France is the only other nation to have provided cruise missiles to Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The British Ministry of Defence reported that the Sevastopol raid hit the Kilo-class submarine Rostov-na-Donu and the landing ship Minsk.
The research says the ship “is likely inoperable. While the Rostov has probably sustained catastrophic damage.”
“Any effort to return the submarine to service is likely to take many years and cost hundreds of millions of dollars,” the British Ministry of Defence added.
Dry docks may be inoperable for months due to the difficulty of cleaning trash.
