Russia Building First Sea Drone Port in Crimea for Mass BEK Launches, Posing Threat to Odesa and Mykolaiv
Ukrainian defense outlet Defense Express reports that Russia is constructing its first sea-based drone port on the Crimean coast to store, maintain and mass-launch BEK unmanned aerial vehicles. The site includes at least 21 dug-in, boathouse-like shelters protected by sand embankments and camouflage netting, making the base far harder to destroy than ordinary Shahed drone ports.
Russia is developing a new maritime drone threat against Odesa and Mykolaiv by building what Ukrainian defense outlet Defense Express describes as its first sea-based drone port in Crimea, according to the publication. The facility is intended to support large-scale drone operations from the coast, potentially putting southern Ukrainian cities within easier reach of strikes from the sea.
At least 21 excavated shelters have appeared along the Crimean shoreline for storing, maintaining and launching BEK unmanned aerial vehicles. The dug-in structures resemble small boathouses and are arranged to allow mass launches.
The base is protected on its sides by sand embankments and covered from above with camouflage netting. Defense Express notes that these fortifications make the shelters far more difficult to destroy than ordinary open-air “drone ports” used for Shahed-type drones.
If the port becomes operational, it could enable Russia to send swarms of BEK drones from the sea toward Odesa and Mykolaiv, adding a new maritime dimension to strikes against southern Ukraine.
https://t.me/smolii_ukraine/160018