Navy Commander tells how Ukraine prevented Russian landings in Black Sea operational zone

Ukraine’s Navy Commander, Oleksiy Neizhpapa, shared the information in an interview with Ukrainska Pravda.

He mentioned that an amphibious operation is among the most challenging naval operations as it necessitates the engagement of all branches of the Navy. 

Despite the Russians holding air and sea superiority at that time, the Ukrainian Navy resisted.

"After the full-scale invasion, the enemy advanced to Mykolaiv, then went northwest, bypassing Mykolaiv in the direction of Voznesensk, to enter the rear of the Odesa region. If our 80th Air Assault Brigade had not stopped the enemy near Voznesensk, the conditions would have been created for the Russians to launch an amphibious operation in the Black Sea operational zone," said Neizhpapa.

He noted that the Ukrainian Navy had been laying minefields in the areas accessible to the landing force.

"From the initial days, the artillery unit of the Marines, along with other stationed brigades in the Odesa region at that time, was deployed to firing positions. Radio and radar reconnaissance were intensified, employing both radio posts and Bayraktar unmanned aerial vehicles to detect potential enemy landings," the Navy commander said.

In addition, Russian forces decided to abandon the amphibious operation after the Ukrainians fired Neptune missiles at the Admiral Essen frigate and then at the Moskva cruiser.

"The enemy realized that it would be very difficult to reach our shores without sinking," said Neizhpapa.

• According to Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk, last year Ukraine's defense forces destroyed at least six ships and boats of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and up to 700 personnel of these vessels.