On October 13, drone attacks on two ships in the Black Sea resulted in one sinking and 11 crew members reported missing.
On October 13, Tuesday, two commercial vessels were targeted by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) outside Bulgarian territorial waters in the Black Sea. The bulk carrier HS DIGNITY, flying the flag of Guinea-Bissau, sank after the attack, with five of the 16 crew members rescued and 11 reported missing. The Malta-flagged general cargo ship CHELSEA 3, linked to Ukraine, sustained damage after being hit by three UAVs. All 15 crew members aboard the vessel were rescued.
The Bulgarian Ministry of Transport and Communications announced that the vessels AZOV CONCORD and SCANDI ASSERTER, which were in the area, were the first to intervene in the rescue efforts for HS DIGNITY.
HS DIGNITY was hit at 01:20.
According to information from the Bulgarian Ministry of Transport and Communications, the HS DIGNITY, flying the flag of Guinea-Bissau, was attacked by UAVs at 01:20 local time on October 13.
The ship was located approximately 17 nautical miles east of the city of Shabla, Bulgaria.
The vessel, which was sailing empty from the Port of Mostaganem in Algeria to the Port of Braila in Romania, sank following the attack.
The first information regarding the sinking of the ship was obtained from a rescued sailor. At the same time, the ship's Automatic Identification System (AIS) signal was also lost.
Of the 16 crew members aboard HS DIGNITY, five were rescued, while a search and rescue operation was initiated for the 11 missing sailors.
AZOV CONCORD participated in the rescue efforts.
The Bulgarian Ministry of Transport announced that the vessels AZOV CONCORD and SCANDI ASSERTER, which were in the area, were the first to participate in the rescue efforts following the sinking of HS DIGNITY.
AZOV CONCORD, reported to be operated by a Turkish company, supported the efforts to rescue the five sailors at sea along with the other vessel.
While the role of both ships in the rescue operation was confirmed by Bulgarian authorities, no details were provided regarding how many of the five sailors were retrieved by which ship.
CHELSEA 3 was hit by three UAVs.
In a second attack that occurred the same night, the general cargo ship CHELSEA 3, flying the Malta flag, was targeted.
According to a statement from the Bulgarian Ministry of Transport, the vessel was attacked at 01:15, approximately 17 nautical miles east of the town of Byala.
The ship, which was sailing empty from the Port of Giresun in Turkey to the Port of Giurgiulesti in Moldova, was hit by three UAVs.
Following the attack, CHELSEA 3 dropped anchor.
All 15 crew members aboard, including seven Ukrainians and eight Azerbaijanis, were rescued.
Five sailors received medical treatment for minor injuries.
ALFA WATAN sank a week earlier.
On October 6, two commercial vessels were also targeted by UAVs and unmanned surface vehicles off the coast of Bulgaria.
The Togo-flagged ALFA WATAN was attacked approximately 70 nautical miles east of the town of Byala, resulting in its sinking.
Ten crew members, including nine Syrians and one Egyptian, were unreachable.
In the same attacks, the Palau-flagged vessel ABLE was also hit, resulting in a fire.
A total of 18 crew members, including 11 Turks and seven Indians aboard ABLE, were rescued.
Bulgarian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Kiril Mihaylov stated on October 9 that it was still undetermined whether ABLE would sink.
Bulgaria summoned the Russian Ambassador.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev stated that the attacks on commercial vessels were unacceptable and called for a meeting with Russia's Ambassador to Sofia, Eleonora Mitrofanova.
Radev mentioned that there was no definitive evidence regarding the responsible party for the attacks, but he believed that the resulting outcomes served Russia's interests.
Russian Ambassador Mitrofanova stated that she had not received information from the Russian Ministry of Defense regarding the attacks on commercial vessels and suggested that the incidents could be provocations by third parties.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha held Russia responsible for the attacks, while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemned the attacks.
Discussions with Turkey for Black Sea security.
Bulgarian Defense Minister Dimitar Stoyanov held phone conversations with his counterparts in Turkey and Romania following the attacks.
The discussions focused on measures to ensure maritime security and protect commercial shipping traffic in the Black Sea.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Radev also sought support for strengthening maritime and airspace surveillance capabilities in discussions with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Search efforts for 11 missing sailors.
As of the evening of October 13, it was reported that four of the five sailors rescued from HS DIGNITY had reached Varna.
Bulgarian authorities announced that the search efforts for the 11 missing sailors were temporarily halted due to darkness and reduced visibility.
Thus, two of the four commercial vessels that were attacked off the coast of Bulgaria on October 6 and 13 sank, with a total of 21 sailors reported missing in both incidents.
Source: SeaNews Türkiye
