“A dramatic new view released by the Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Directorate (GUR) shows several of its uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) strike and sink the Russian Tarantul-III class missile corvette Ivanovets. The attack took place Wednesday night local time on the Black Sea near Lake Donuzlav in western Crimea, the GUR said on its Telegram channel.
“A 128-second video posted on Twitter shows what appears to be a complex attack on the Ivanovets by what Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, commander of GUR, told us were Maritime Autonomous Guard Unmanned Robotic Apparatus (MAGURA V5) USVs operated by the GUR’s Group 13 drone unit.”
The vessel in the video is a Tarantul class missile corvette. These vessels are powered by four engines totaling 32,000 HP making them very fast (42 knots). The hot gas turbine exhausts on either side of the transom glow brightly early in the video.
They have a pair of 30mm gatling guns on the aft superstructure with a clear field of fire aft.
This ship appears well equipped to defeat an unmanned surface vessel (USV) attack.
The Drive post analyses the attack, but I would point out that I don’t see as many splashes as I would have expected, if the 30mm guns were functioning. I don’t see muzzle flashes. What I did see appeared to be from heavy machine guns (12.7 or 14.5mm) rather than 30mm.
Many USVs were involved in this attack. The Ukrainians claimed six USVs hit the little corvette. Still other USVs filmed the ultimate explosion and sinking.
Perhaps the 30mm guns had run out of ammunition engaging other USVs by the time the drone in the first video recorded attack gets as close as seen in the video.
The report included this statement,
““The Ivanovets MRK sank while repelling a night attack by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on Sevastopol,” the Russian VoenkorKotenok Telegram channel wrote.”
The Russians have historically stationed a “guard ship” off their ports to prevent surprise attack. Ivanovets may have been stationed off Sevastopol specifically as a counter to a drone attack.

Ukraine claims to have sabotaged a missile corvette in the Baltic. Why would they bother to attack a ship so far from the Black Sea? Because this class can be transferred by Russia’s river an canal system from the Baltic to the Black Sea allowing it to circumvent the Turkish closure of the Bosporus to warships.