Russia’s Defense Ministry has released footage showing warships of the Black Sea Fleet practicing the destruction of enemy unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and naval drones.
The drills, conducted off Crimea, included the firing of ships’ heavy naval guns and light machineguns at mock naval and aerial drone targets, and were conducted on the march as warships escorted civilian vessels through local waters.
“We practiced actions related to repelling an attack by unmanned boats and observed the fire of an artillery installation, including how it behaved, its maximum rate of fire, firing range and aiming angles,” an officer participating in the exercise said.
The exercises also included drilling related to the detection of UAVS, and included both daytime and nighttime training.
After the exercises were complete, the crews continued on with their mission of protecting commercial shipping routes against possible Ukrainian attack.
Ukrainian forces backed, armed and advised by NATO have dramatically ramped up attacks on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in recent weeks after a string of failures in last year’s counteroffensive and facing the growing threat of the US and its allies cutting off aid to Kiev. Russia has responded by moving to beef up naval and coastal defenses, spreading out the Fleet’s ships at various bases, and taking steps to improve its anti-drone warfare capabilities.