The Russian Black Sea Fleet’s Sevastopol headquarters was destroyed by a volley of Ukrainian missiles in occupied Crimea. Social media was used by the strategic communications department of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to announce the attack, which took place at noon Sevastopol Time.
The Black Sea Fleet Headquarters controls Russian naval activities in the Black Sea. It was once a sleepy backwater, but with Putin’s War in Ukraine, it has become the center of attention. The Black Sea Fleet and its main base at Sevastopol are involved in the attempt to enforce Russia’s porous blockade on Ukrainian grain shipments, as well as firing cruise missiles against targets in Ukraine.
Fleet Headquarters was hit by either British Storm Shadow missiles or French SCALP EG cruise missiles. This video shows one of them in a short final.
Without a watermark: The moment Ukrainian Storm Shadow/SCALP-G missiles hit the Russian Black Sea Fleet HQ in temporarily occupied Sevastopol, Crimea today pic.twitter.com/MXs74zrvFi
— Giorgi Revishvili (@revishvilig) September 22, 2023
Several high-ranking officers were reported to have been killed or injured. Unofficially it is believed that Admiral Viktor Sokolov was killed. He was the commander of the Black Sea Fleet.
Budanov claims that the commander of Russian forces in southern Ukraine, Col. Gen. Alexander Romanchuk, and commander of the 200th sep MR bde, Lt. Gen. Oleg Tsekov were severely wounded in the Ukrainian attack on the Russian Black Sea Fleet headquarters today. https://t.co/h43i3cgZ7W pic.twitter.com/GqLdoqynVV
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) September 22, 2023
You need to examine the Ukrainian military operations of the past two or three weeks in order to understand where we are today. In a little more than a week, Ukrainian cruise missiles destroyed two Russian warships as well as a sub and landing ship. An antiaircraft patrol boat was also damaged. This attack was set up by an antiaircraft and radar site raid in Crimea, which punched a large hole in the air defense belt around Sevastopol. In the past two weeks, other antiaircraft sites were also targeted. Last week, an S-400 antiaircraft weapon battery that covered downtown Sevastopol – the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet – was destroyed.
These attacks created a corridor that allowed Ukrainian strike aircraft to fly very close to Crimea and then launch their missiles.
UKRAINE’S SEALs: Kyiv has recaptured the Petro Hodovalets & Tavrida offshore platforms in the Black Sea. Seized by Russia in 2015, they had been used as radar stations. A counter-attacking Russian Su-30 strike fighter was damaged during the operation. https://t.co/W8me7jMl6Z pic.twitter.com/81RvZtEWih
— Chuck Pfarrer | Indications & Warnings | (@ChuckPfarrer) September 11, 2023
Before and after satellite imagery of yesterday’s AFU Storm Shadow missile strike on the Russian Navy command post north of occupied Verkhnosadove, Crimea (44.714735, 33.704408).#OSINT #Counteroffensive #UkraineRussiaWar #UkraineWar #Ukraine pic.twitter.com/oX4YOrADU9
— OSINT (Uri) 🇺🇦 (@UKikaski) September 21, 2023
Some claim that the strike on the Navy command post in Verkhnosadove aimed to increase the density of the main headquarters.
If reports of high ranking deaths are true, it looks like Ukraine could have knocked out the Black Sea Fleet’s secret HQ a couple of days ago and basically herded them into the main building for today’s strike https://t.co/w0uJCsrbBX https://t.co/u6AdukNRqF
— Chris York (@ChrisDYork) September 22, 2023
After the attack on the Black Sea Fleet ships, and then this attack on their headquarters, the Russian Fleet will be looking over its shoulders for some time.
