Kremlin plans Shahed boat launcher that Ukraine can jam, track and sink
The model of Russian marine Shahed carrier (Photo: Defense Express)
Russia is developing a sea-based drone designed to launch Shahed-type UAVs, but the platform would have little practical value for strikes against Ukraine, military outlet Defense Express (DE) wrote on Nov. 18.
The publication reviewed Russian media reports about the new marine drone and assessed the threat to Ukraine.
According to Russian media, the new naval drone — intended for launching UAVs directly from the sea — is being developed by the Far Eastern branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Judging by the published images, the design involves launching Shaheds or similar UAVs: the platform carries a box-shaped launcher for four drones. In addition to the launch system, the vessel appears to be equipped with a remotely operated turret with a machine gun, likely a 7.62 mm PKT (Kalashnikov machine gun), DE analysts noted.
There is no doubt the system is intended for strikes on Ukraine. The distance from the coast of the temporarily occupied Crimea to Ukrainian-controlled coastline is roughly 150 kilometers, the experts said.
If the plan is to launch standard Shaheds, their existing flight range already covers this distance — so Russia has no real need to extend their operational radius by 150 km. The sea-based launcher would only make sense if Shaheds were fitted with a heavier warhead instead of the usual 50 kilograms.
“In that case, the strike range will shrink significantly, and a 150-km boost could matter,” the analysts explained.
Another possible objective is achieving greater surprise — allowing Ukrainian defenses to detect incoming drones only when they are already near the shore.
“However, Russia could achieve the same effect by launching from mobile truck-mounted launchers directly near the frontline, as Iran has done for years,” DE wrote.
Moreover, Ukraine is rapidly expanding its fleet of naval drones — meaning a Russian marine drone carrying Shaheds could be intercepted quickly. Analysts also noted that Russia relies on radio-controlled systems, which can be jammed and detected.
Defense Express concluded that the newly developed sea-based Shahed carrier would provide no significant advantage.
“Instead, it may run into Ukrainian naval ‘interceptors’, loitering munitions, or simply lose signal due to electronic warfare,” the outlet summarized.
On Nov. 15, Russia’s state propaganda agency TASS reported that engineers at the Far Eastern branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences had developed a new stealthy unmanned boat designed to launch up to four fixed-wing UAVs.
According to the patent description, the vessel’s design includes a launcher with four compartments for UAVs, “suspended inside the ship’s superstructure on rubber-metal shock absorbers that protect the UAVs from seawater, spray, and engine vibration or impact.”
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