A blow to Russia: Ukraine disabled the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet
More than four years after sinking the cruiser "Moskva", Kyiv managed to strike the frigate "Admiral Makarov" in the port of Novorossiysk in a drone attack. The ship and another frigate were severely damaged and will require at least a year to return to service.
The flagship of the Black Sea Fleet and another warship were significantly damaged in a Ukrainian attack on the port of Novorossiysk last week, Ukrainian media revealed today, Thursday.
The damage was revealed following the publication of satellite images of the damaged ships by The Moscow Times, an opposition newspaper operating from Russia, and an analysis by open-source intelligence experts around the world. According to the analysis, both frigates were significantly damaged and will require many months of repairs before they can return to the open sea.
A modern frigate is a medium-sized, fast warship, typically weighing between 3,000 and 7,000 tons and measuring 100 to 140 meters in length. It is designed to protect naval forces, escort merchant ships, and fight submarines, enemy ships, and aerial targets using advanced missile systems, powerful radar, and a naval helicopter. The Russian fleet used these powerful missile ships to launch "Kalibr" cruise missiles at Ukrainian cities.
Reports indicated that the "Admiral Makarov" has a hole in the front part of the upper deck, to the left of the "Kalibr" cruise missile installation, a fire in the UKSK 3S14 launch tubes due to an internal explosion, and heavy damage was caused to the "Centaur-NM1" satellite communication station and the "Positiv-M1.2" detection radar.
At the same time, on the "Admiral Essen", the bow section was destroyed—including the deck and the eight-cell UKSK 3S14 module—the "Trebovanie-M" combat management system was disabled, and the antennas of the 3Ts-25E tracking radar, the TK-25 electronic warfare system, and the "Centaur" dome were destroyed.
According to experts, both ships have completely lost their combat control capabilities and their strike potential, which consists of a single salvo of 16 cruise missiles. They have been taken out of service for at least a year and will require extensive repairs in a dry dock.
"The defense forces carried out a unique operation, attacking the last stronghold of the Russian Navy in Novorossiysk," said the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky.
On the night of August 12, 2026, units of the Ukrainian defense forces attacked a naval base in Novorossiysk, Krasnodar Krai, Russian Federation, as part of a joint operation.
Among the vessels damaged were two Project 11356 frigates, "Admiral Makarov" and "Admiral Essen", a Project 21631 "Buyan-M" small missile ship, and a Project 22160 "Vasily Bykov" patrol ship.
