Monument to Lost Ships: How Russia Lost the Black Sea Fleet

“On Valentine's Day, February 14, 2024, the Russian large landing ship Caesar Kunikov was sunk. Since the beginning of the full-scale war, 24 Russian ships and boats have already departed to the well-known address. The Kremlin and the Russian Ministry of Defense are still gloomily silent about what happened, but the Ukrainian and world media vied with each other to write about the systematic destruction of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. But, in fact, it ceased to exist on April 14, 2022.

Let us recall that it was on April 14, 2022 that two Ukrainian Neptune anti-ship missiles sent the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, the missile cruiser Moskva, to the bottom. After this, the fleet automatically became a flotilla. And here it is necessary to emphasize that the “Black Sea flotilla” is a completely correct definition.

According to all naval concepts, the flagship of the fleet can only be a ship of 1st rank. The classification of Russian ships is as follows:

— 1st rank – aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers, nuclear submarines;

- 2nd rank - frigates, diesel-electric submarines, large landing ships;

— 3rd rank – corvettes, small landing hovercraft, minesweepers;

- 4th rank - military boats for various purposes: missile, landing, anti-sabotage.

In the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation there was only one ship of the 1st rank - in fact, the missile cruiser "Moskva". Other floating craft remaining in service (over two years, about 33% of ships and boats, plus one submarine, were disabled) - ranks 2-4. Currently, the flagship of the Russian naval group in the Black Sea is the frigate Admiral Makarov. Which, by the way, on October 29, 2022, received significant damage during a drone attack on the naval base in Sevastopol.

In principle, for its class, the frigate Admiral Makarov is a good ship, the most modern in Russia. But, whatever one may say – 2 ranks. And a formation that is headed by a ship of this rank and which includes ships of secondary classes and military boats can only be called a flotilla (like, for example, the Caspian). Or - by naval forces. But certainly not by the fleet. By the way, in Ukraine it is the naval forces. Because there are no rank 1 ships.

The Russian Black Sea flotilla has no chance of regaining its status as a fleet. Yes, in the North Sea and the Far East there are sisterships - ships almost identical in design to the late Moskva - the missile cruisers Marshal Ustinov and Varyag, respectively. There are other rank 1 ships that, in principle, can be shared. The Baltic Fleet has the destroyer Nastoychivy. But he, as the only 1st rank ship there, is the flagship himself. And if it is sent to the Black Sea, then legally the twice Red Banner Baltic Fleet will become a flotilla.

But these 1st rank ships will not be able to enter the Black Sea - Türkiye closed the passage through the Bosphorus for Russian ships on February 26, 2022. But to get to the Black Sea along the Volga and then through the Volga-Don Canal - the dimensions and displacement do not allow. Even rank 2 ships have no chance there - they will be stuck in the upper reaches of the Volga.

In a word, no Russian Black Sea Fleet has existed for a long time. Yes, the Russians still call this association that way - not to lose face as the “second army of the world” by admitting that they have only a flotilla on the Black Sea (which, moreover, is rapidly shrinking). But there is absolutely no need for us to be ashamed to call a spade a spade.