Turkish drones involved in the sinking of the Moskva ship?

Nikkei Asia quoted a senior Ukrainian official “tacitly admitting” the involvement of the Bayraktar TB2 armed drone in the operation against the Moskva ship. When asked if the plane was used in the attack, the official said: “Moscow was hit by two Neptune missiles with the help of different equipment.”

The missile cruiser Moskva of the Russian Black Sea fleet sank on April 13. While Ukraine claims to have hit the ship with a missile, the Russian military says an ammunition depot exploded and its ship sank while being towed to safety.

Analysts say the TB2 drones could have been used to pinpoint the exact position of ships, facilitate attacks, or engage in attacks with the aim of “causing damage.” distraction” for Moscow. A Telegram account affiliated with the Russian paramilitary organization Wagner Group writes that the ship’s defenses may have been redirected to the Bayraktar TB2 drone when Ukraine opened fire.

However, none of these theories have been confirmed.

Turkish drones have been in the spotlight since the beginning of the conflict when the Ukrainian military released videos showing the weapons hitting alleged Russian convoys and blowing up them. tanks as well as surface-to-air missile defense systems.

Turkey insists that after the sale, the drones produced by Turkey are operated by Ukraine and that Ankara is not involved in their operation. However, the loss to the Russian navy could also affect relations between Russia and Turkey.

Regarding the Moskva ship, the Russian Defense Ministry released a 26-second video showing the commander Nikolai Yevmenov, meeting with about 100 sailors from the ship. Russia said all 500 crew members were rescued after the explosion.

Previously, analysts recorded signs of drones appearing in the area.

Defense industry analyst Arda Mevlutoglu cites open source intelligence and official Russian claims that the drones are operational. On April 10, a mobile ground control station of TB2 was discovered in Odessa, Mevlutoglu said.

Then, on April 12, the Russian Defense Ministry released a video showing that a Russian frigate destroyed a Bayraktar-type drone near the western coast of the Crimean peninsula. “UAV conducted reconnaissance of the actions of ships of the Black Sea force” of Russia, the statement said.

Two days later, the Moskva ship sank.

Mevlutoglu said the main radar system on the Moskva ship is based on an old technology, used as an early warning system against fixed-wing fighters, bombers, helicopters and cruise missiles. But “Bayraktar TB2 is much smaller, with low radar cross-section and lower airspeed, making it very likely to fall below the detection threshold of the Moscow radar.”