Analysis: 40-meter hole visible in Russian LNG tanker after drone strike
Arctic Metagaz, damaged in a likely Ukrainian drone strike in the Mediterranean (Photo: x.com/sternenko)
Arctic
Metagaz, the Russian “shadow fleet” LNG tanker drifting in the
Mediterranean Sea, sustained devastating damage to its hull after a presumed
Ukrainian naval drone strike on March 3, Defense Express reported on March 4.
Russian sources cited by Defense Express said two unmanned surface boats and four UAVs struck the vessel, reportedly concentrating fire on a single spot in an apparent attempt to sink it. Footage that likely was filmed from a helicopter or drone shows an almost completely burned hull and a large hole midship on the port side.
The tanker sailed from Russia’s Murmansk fully loaded with LNG and had been following a route along Europe, through the Strait of Gibraltar and the Mediterranean, and likely intended to continue through the Suez Canal. The vessel remained burning near Malta and, given the extent of damage, "is likely to sink," the report said.
Defense Express noted Arctic Metagaz stores cargo in large
membrane tanks rather than spherical tanks. Published images of the damage show
the large hole and a flooded cargo tank. The journalists suggested the
attacking surface drones carried powerful warheads capable of inflicting severe
damage. The tanker is about 277 meters long, and the hole was visually
estimated at roughly 40 meters.
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