Two missiles hit the most vulnerable place of the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet.
The crew of the Russian missile cruiser” Moscow “was blind and unprepared for the Ukrainian missile attack , which sank the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, shows a new analysis US Naval Institute.
A review of images of two Neptune anti-ship missiles by open-air naval analyst and retired Navy Captain Chris Carlson showed that the cruiser did not turn on radar and could not see the threat from the two weapons. span>
In the photo of “Moscow” after the strike, the radars “are in the usual tidy position,” – said Carlson.
“If you look at a picture of Moscow when it's just moving from place to place, or anchored, all these radars are always aimed at the stern,” he said.
The analysis is based on images of the cruiser with guided missiles of the “Glory” class, which appeared immediately after the attack off the coast of Ukraine from two anti-ship missiles of the “Neptune” class.
Although the Russian warship had older point-of-defense systems, they would be able to withstand Neptune missiles based on 40 years of Soviet development, which in turn was based on the US Navy's Harpoon anti-ship missile, he said. .
“It's like a Harpoon. It's a small rocket. Its warhead weighs about 145 kilograms and flies less than 10 meters. from the surface [and has] radar guidance, “Carlson said. “It's not, so to speak, a stressful threat to air defense systems. It's not supersonic.”In particular, the radar system that was supposed to direct surface-to-air “Moscow OSA-M” missiles to counter Ukrainian missiles, according to the photo, was not active because its emitters were assembled.
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“If you don't launch it, your anti-aircraft missile defense won't work,” Carlson said.
In addition, “Moscow” has old equipment, which means that it is unstable. It is difficult to maintain, and maintenance at sea was not a strong point of Russia, “the expert added.
Judging by the photos that appeared after the impact, two “Neptune” missiles hit the most vulnerable place: in the main engine compartment of the ship, located in the center, just above the waterline.
“The missile would most likely cause significant damage to the winged gas turbines and steam turbines and could potentially deform the main shaft enough to damage the forced turbine gearboxes,” Carlson said. “Severe damage to the power compartment can lead to the loss of all electricity, as well as potentially decommissioning the ship's automated damage control system.”
Combined with the uneven training of Russian Navy sailors in injury control, Carlson said the photos provide a convincing explanation for Ukraine's ability to aim, launch missiles and hit the target on its own.
After the initial strike, the Telegram channel, associated with Russian mercenaries from the Wagner group, reported that the crew noticed a Ukrainian Bayraktar TB2 near the ship. The Ukrainian Navy has been buying combat drones since last year, and they are equipped with an electro-optical system that can provide Neptune's command system with enough catalytic information to guide missiles at targets.
General Staff of the Armed Forces
” All, what they need to do is be lazy once or twice, and then they will have a real solution for aiming, “Carlson said.
Shortly after the sinking, there were reports that a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon was in the area before the attack, suggesting that the United States may have provided Ukrainians with detailed information about the missiles being fired at the ship.
Carlson said that although the United States could give Ukrainian forces a general idea of the ship's location , they could not provide the necessary information directly for “Neptune”, because P-8 is incompatible with this system.
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“The P-8 does not have the ability to directly transmit data via the communication channel to Ukrainians”, – he said. “This must be done through the transmission channel.”
On Thursday, following an article in The New York Times on Wednesday about strikes on Russian generals, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said the US intelligence-Ukrainian exchange had its limits.
“We do not take part in the decisions of the Ukrainian military on the choice of targets. Ukrainians, frankly, have much more information than we do. This is their country, their territory, and they have their own opportunities to gather intelligence,” he said. “Ukraine combines the information we and other partners provide with intelligence that they gather on the battlefield, and then they make their own decisions and do their own.”
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