Rostov-on-Don submarine suffered devastating damage from Storm Shadow missiles - Russia could lose its first submarine since World War II
On the morning of September 13, the citizens of Ukraine woke up to pleasant news. A Russian ship and submarine were struck in Sevastopol. Almost a day later, satellite images appeared.
Here's What We Know
The Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine confirmed that the strike damaged the large landing ship Minsk and the submarine Rostov-on-Don. The submarine is a carrier of Kalibr cruise missiles.
Sky News later reported that the strike was carried out by British Storm Shadow cruise missiles. This comes hours after the Ukrainian Air Force hinted at the planes' involvement in the attack.
We've already seen a picture of the Minsk ship after the strike. From the looks of it, it will never be back in service again. But no one has published pictures of the submarine so far. Therefore, we have to be satisfied only with satellite photos.
#Ukraine: It appears that the Pr. 636.3 "Rostov na Donu" Kalibr-armed submarine, which was hit tonight in Sevastopol, suffered devastating damage too - making it the first Russian submarine lost to enemy actions since the WW2.https://t.co/4L3B8yfuwO pic.twitter.com/I4DX12cWF2
- ???????? Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) September 13, 2023
Judging by the footage, the Russian submarine has suffered crushing damage. It is probably beyond repair. If this version is confirmed, the Rostov-on-Don will become the first Russian submarine lost since World War II.
But in any case, Ukraine is the first country in history that was able to strike a submarine with cruise missiles. Note that the Ukrainian armed forces have no means specifically designed to fight against enemy submarines.
Source: @UAWeapons
