The Main Directorate of Intelligence (known as GUR) of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine named the preliminary data regarding the victims among the crew of the Russian patrol ship project 22160 "Sergei Kotov" that it was attacked by at least 5 Magura V5 kamikaze drones on the night of March 5 near the Kerch Strait.
According to preliminary data, 7 sailors died and another 6 were injured. The enemy probably managed to evacuate the 52 crew members who were on the ship.
Earlier, the spokesman of the Naval Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Dmytro Pletenchuk informed that the majority of the crew of the “Sergei Kotov” ship was either killed or wounded, but the data of the Ukrainian Armed Forces do not confirm this.
Pletenchuk also reported that there could be a helicopter on board the ship. It was probably either a Ka-29 or a Ka-27.
The helicopter was mentioned by the commander of the 184 brigade of ships protecting the water area (Novorossiysk), whose conversation was intercepted by GUR specialists and published after the attack on the ship.
- According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as of March 5, 2024, during the full-scale invasion, Ukrainian forces destroyed 26 boats and ships, including the “Sergei Kotov” and the Rostov-on-Don submarine. The most significant destroyed target remains the missile cruiser "Moskva", which was the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation. It was sunk on April 14, 2022.
- In February 2024, Magura V5 drones sank the large amphibious assault ship "Cesar Kunikov". There could be 87 crew members on board.