Russians Block Access to Naval Base in Novorossiysk After SSU Strike

In Novorossiysk, Russian forces have blocked the entrance to the military ship anchorage following an SSU drone attack on a submarine.

A satellite image confirms the move, according to the Crimean Wind Telegram channel.

The harbor entrance was sealed with barges and floating boom barriers to prevent Ukrainian surface and underwater drones from entering.

This also means that Russian forces cannot quickly deploy their own ships based there into the Black Sea to carry out combat missions.

Meanwhile, Norwegian analyst Thord Are Iversen noted that Russia has long used these barges and underwater barriers to protect the anchorage of its warships in Novorossiysk.

For example, he released a satellite image dated September 4 last year that also shows barges blocking the harbor entrance.

On December 15, a Ukrainian underwater drone exploded near the stern of a Russian Project 636.3 Varshavyanka-class submarine.

It was a joint operation by the 13th Main Directorate of the SSU’s Military Counterintelligence and the Naval Forces of Ukraine. The defenders used a Sub Sea Baby underwater drone.

Later, OSINT researchers determined that the submarine attacked in Novorossiysk was the B-271 Kolpino, which is part of the 4th Separate Submarine Brigade of the Russian Navy’s Black Sea Fleet.

The Project 636.3 Varshavyanka-class diesel-electric submarine is named after the city of Kolpino and is the sixth vessel of this project.

In 2017, Kolpino carried out combat missions in the Mediterranean Sea, launching Kalibr cruise missile strikes against targets in Syria.

Since 2022, the submarine has been involved in combat operations against Ukraine, including missile attacks.