Drones Strike Ship 16 Miles Off Cape Kaliakra

Another ship has been struck in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea. It was hit by three drones approximately 21 miles from Shabla and 16 miles from Cape Kaliakra. This was confirmed by Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov during a briefing following his meeting with his Turkish and Romanian counterparts. The ministers and chiefs of defence of the three countries held an official meeting in Sofia to discuss the situation in the Black Sea and joint measures to ensure security.

At 12:01 p.m. today, the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Constanța received a report that the Liberia-flagged container ship CONTSHIP JET had been struck by maritime drones approximately 17 nautical miles east of Cape Kaliakra. The vessel was travelling from the port of Haifa, Israel, to Constanța, Romania, and was carrying 421 containers, according to crew members.

At 12:13 p.m., the crew abandoned the vessel. A search and rescue operation was immediately launched. Three vessels from the Bulgarian Navy and one vessel from the General Directorate of Border Police were dispatched to the area of the incident. At 12:53 p.m., eight sailors were taken aboard a Bulgarian Navy vessel, while the remaining 10 sailors were in the ship’s lifeboat. The entire crew was rescued, and a Bulgarian Navy vessel was dispatched to Varna with them on board. Arrangements were made for Border Police officers and medical teams to receive them.

The latest attack is part of a series of incidents involving commercial vessels in the Black Sea in recent weeks.

On October 6, two vessels were attacked by drones near the Bulgarian coast. One sank, while 18 sailors were evacuated from the other vessel, ABLE, which was sailing under the flag of Palau, with the assistance of the Bulgarian ferry DIOSCURIA. Two of those rescued were injured.

Further attacks followed on October 13. The Malta-flagged merchant ship CHELSEA-3 was struck off Byala. All 15 crew members were rescued, with five sustaining minor injuries. Another vessel sank off Shabla.

On October 23, an attack on a ship off the Romanian coast was also reported. One sailor was killed, while other crew members were reported missing. Subsequently, the damaged vessel Khoriv began drifting towards the Bulgarian area of responsibility, necessitating monitoring by the competent authorities.