Russian naval ship sinks near Türkiye

A Russian naval reconnaissance ship sank after colliding with a cargo ship off the coast of Türkiye.

Liman ship operating in the Black Sea area. Photo: Kchf.ru.

The Russian electronic reconnaissance ship Liman sank today after colliding with a Togolese-flagged livestock ship in the Black Sea, 40 km northwest of the Bosphorus Strait. Turkish rescuers said 78 people on board were rescued, Reuters reported.

The Russian Defense Ministry said the Liman suffered a punctured hull after the collision, adding that no one was injured. Turkish authorities did not provide information about the cargo ship or the condition of its crew.

Liman is an electronic reconnaissance ship of Project 861M, built in the period 1968 - 1974 in Poland. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian Navy commissioned and operated 4 ships of this class. Each ship is 73 m long, 11 m wide and has a displacement of 1,580 tons. The ship is equipped with many electronic reconnaissance and surveillance complexes, along with an acoustic positioning system.

The ship has a crew of 80-120 people, equipped only with some infantry weapons and shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles.

The location where the collision is believed to have occurred. Photo: Google Earth.

According to VNE