Ukrainian special forces conducted a unique operation and returned gas and oil platforms in the Black Sea between Crimea and Odessa under Ukrainian control.
Over the past two weeks, Russian military officials have reported “amazing things” happening in the Black Sea off the coast of Crimea. Today, the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense explained the incident: it turns out that it was a special operation, during which Ukraine brought the Boyko towers back under control.
Annoying platforms
We remind you that the so-called “Boiko derricks” are gas and oil drilling platforms in the Black Sea. They are officially called Petr Godovanets and Ukraine, discovered off the coast of Crimea in 2010 and 2012, respectively.
The Chernomorneftegaz company, which is under the Ministry of Energy, acquired two Singapore-made drilling rigs for $400 million each in 2011-2012. The purchase did not take place directly from the manufacturer Keppel, but through intermediaries. Thus, the amount paid for the platforms became twice the actual cost of the installations.
They began to call them “Boiko towers” because the process of acquiring the installations was supervised by the then Minister of Energy Yuriy Boyko (a well-known representative of the people from the Party of Regions and the political forces that Opposition Platform – In his life) .
According to the investigators from the Office of the Prosecutor General, officials of the Ministry of Energy grossly violated tender procedures, as a result of which they illegally spent public funds on a particularly large scale, while Boyko himself was involved in the case as a witness.
In 2015, drilling rigs were captured by the Russian army and moved from the Odessa gas field area closer to temporarily occupied Crimea. On June 20, 2022, during the massive invasion of Russian troops in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched a missile attack on the “Boiko towers,” and in mid-August of this year, near the drilling platforms, a clash of the military. took place between Ukrainian defenders in four boats and a Russian Su-30 fighter. The incident was captured on video by a Ukrainian UAV. The Russian plane unsuccessfully tried to hit the Ukrainian boats with cannons and missile weapons, and these attempts were stopped by a MANPADS shot, as a result of which the plane was damaged.
Today, September 11, the Main Intelligence Directorate reported that the Boyko rigs, as well as the Tavrida and Sivash jack-up drilling rigs, have been returned to Ukrainian control.
Details of a unique operation
Let’s remember that at the beginning of the mass invasion, Russia actively used the “Boiko tower” for military purposes. In particular, as helipads, warehouses with ammunition and fuel for helicopters, for placing radar equipment, with the help of which they monitor the situation in the Black Sea.
Therefore, the route of the power steering landing party on the platforms is especially dangerous: on a boat in the open sea, they have almost a full view for Russian aircraft and drones. In addition, the Black Sea was stormy at that time, which complicated the task.
In the first stage of the operation, the special forces used a rubber boat, despite the bad weather at sea, they leaned on the platform and examined it. One of the problems was a Russian Su-30 fighter jet moving towards Zmeiny Island and flying over the platform. 3-4 minutes after the plane took off, Zmeinoye was hit.
Despite this, the Ukrainian paratroopers successfully disarmed the Russian radar and returned under the cover of darkness.
A few days later, the military returned to the installation with a larger number of boats to retrieve the enemy trophies found last time: a supply of NAR-type helicopter ammunition, as well as the Neva radar, which could monitor the movement of ships in the Black Sea.
“During one of the stages of this operation, a battle took place between Ukrainian special forces on boats and a Russian Su-30 fighter. As a result of the battle, the Russian aircraft was defeated and forced to retreat,” GUR added.
At the same time, as a result of maneuvering the boat under enemy fire, one of the Ukrainian soldiers ended up in the sea and, through heavy fire, the special forces had to retreat from the place where the soldier fell .
However, for the first time they began to look for him. A few hours later, a military man with the call sign Conan was found in the sea with the help of drones and a rescue operation began. But, since the Russians also knew about the whereabouts of the fighter, enemy aircraft flew over the search area. Finally, Conan was evacuated after 14 hours at sea.
The importance of the military for Ukraine
GUR representative Andrey Yusov said that satellite data was also used during the operation, but declined to provide other details.
“We will not comment on the permanent presence, so as not to make the work of the Russian special services easier. Restoring control is the effective use of these facilities to help the Defense Forces,” Yusov told LIGA.net .
According to him, the Russians used the installations as observation posts. The enemy has deployed electronic warfare equipment there. Russia also lost part of its capabilities that allowed it to observe the Armed Forces of Ukraine and carry out strikes, while Ukrainian troops, on the contrary, gained such potential, Yusov added.
“If we analyze the events in Crimea over the past few months, we see active steps. This is another step towards the liberation of Crimea and the return of control over the Black Sea,” the GUR representative emphasized.
In this regard, Alexey Ezhak, an expert at the National Institute of Strategic Studies, believes that the invaders used the “Boiko tower” to control the movement of ships in the direction of Odessa, Nikolaev and Kherson. For this reason, continuing to control them implies an opportunity to strengthen security in the Black Sea and weaken the Russian Federation in the temporarily occupied Crimea.
“Now we have established control, and therefore we can ensure the safety of the routes, as well as the weakening of the Russian Federation in the west to the peninsula. This is a sign that our forces will return under the control of all. the things that the Russians use in the military infrastructure to control the water area, “said the expert in comments for Focus.
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.