Ukraine’s Marichka underwater drones: threat to Crimean Bridge and Russian fleet

Contents

1. How Ukraine's SBU carried out its latest Crimean Bridge attack

2. What is the Marichka drone

3. Key characteristics of the Marichka drone

4. Marichka underwater drone: key advantages

5. Foreign experts on the Marichka underwater drone

How Ukraine's SBU carried out its latest Crimean Bridge attack

The explosion of the structure, around which Russia had built a true cargo cult, took place on June 3 at 4:44 a.m. According to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the operation had been months in the making. Agents planted explosives on the bridge supports and later activated them without any civilian casualties.

Ukrainian special forces say the underwater supports were heavily damaged at the seabed level using 1,100 kg of explosives in TNT equivalent. The SBU reported that the bridge is now effectively in critical condition.

“It’s extremely important to understand that the explosion was carried out at the seabed, at a depth of about 10 meters. That’s why there was no fire show like in previous cases. The real condition of the support structure can only be assessed during diving operations. Moreover, this also means that any repair work will be correspondingly difficult,” Defense Express described the special operation.

The authors of the article raised questions about the method used to strike the bridge, pointing out the logistical and technical challenges involved.

“Placing over one ton of explosives — just the explosive material itself, without casing — would have been nearly impossible for divers to achieve,” Defense Express experts noted. “One of the few realistic scenarios involves the use of underwater drones. This theory gains weight especially considering the recent lack of public information about such systems, despite their clear potential.”

Among the most likely candidates named in the article is the Marichka underwater drone.

This view is shared, for example, by Valerii Riabykh, Director of Development at the information and consulting company Defense Express.

“Since there are more powerful explosives available, the actual weight might have been closer to 500 kg. Some experts now speculate that an underwater guided drone, like the previously shown Marichka, could have been used,” the military expert noted on Espreso TV.

What is the Marichka drone

Marichka is a multipurpose strike underwater unmanned vehicle of Ukrainian production. The drone is designed to engage a wide range of targets — boats, ships, bridge supports, and coastal fortifications. It can also be used for reconnaissance or cargo transport.

Marichka was developed by the AMMO.UKRAINE volunteer team. The creators of the platform stated that they united Ukrainian scientists, analysts, and military experts to create an Army of Underwater Drones, with the large autonomous submarine Marichka as its foundation.

On August 24, 2023, the successful testing of the new strike drone was announced — for the first time, an underwater one. A few days later, on August 29, a video of the test was released.

“We are confident that after Marichka’s first strike, the Russian fleet will leave the Black and Azov seas and retreat to the Caspian,” Focus quoted the drone’s creators as saying.

The exact technical specifications of the underwater unmanned vehicle are not disclosed for security reasons. Most likely, it will use electric propulsion, as the developers have already purchased a large batch of batteries.

Known characteristics of the Marichka drone

• Length – 6 m,
• Width – 1 m,
• Range – up to 1000 km,
• Cost per unit – approx. $400,000

Marichka underwater drone: key advantages

The manufacturers highlight Marichka’s low noise level and stealth. Additionally, the drone carries powerful ammunition and can resist enemy electronic warfare systems. AMMO.UKRAINE dedicated a special video to Marichka’s advantages, emphasizing the following points:

1. Safety. The absence of a crew makes the drone safe for personnel and does not put them at risk. Remote control means no injuries or fatalities.
2. Stealth. The underwater combat machine is very difficult to detect and destroy; it remains invisible to many radars, scanners, and sonars.
3. Autonomy. Marichka can “lie in wait” underwater, conserving energy while waiting for a target, then activate either by timer or operator signal.
4. Range. The drone can travel over 1,000 km, a distance unreachable for many missiles and torpedoes.
5. Payload capacity. The underwater drone’s large size allows it to carry a large combat load. The payload can exceed one ton over distances of more than 1,000 km. If the distance is reduced, it allows for even greater payload capacity.
6. Versatility. Marichka is multifunctional, so it can be used not only for attacks but also for reconnaissance or cargo transport.
7. Effectiveness. Developers call this the most important advantage. A year ago, they emphasized Marichka’s ability to destroy underwater objects, including bridge supports. Russia ignored this information back then.

Foreign experts on the Marichka underwater drone

After the official information about the drone Marichka appeared, the Naval News website, dedicated to naval enthusiasts, published a piece about this weapon. In particular, the article’s author, former Turkish Navy officer and naval combat expert Tayfun Ozberk, believes that a drone of this type, which targets the underwater parts of ships, could become a far more destructive weapon than surface aquatic drones of the boat type.

“Underwater drones are even more dangerous to Russian BSF (Black Sea Fleet - ed.) assets because they cannot be detected by the Russian surveillance system. While it is not known how much explosive Marichka can deliver to the target, given the size of the drone, it can be assumed that it has a significant amount of explosives on board. Moreover, Marichka will hit the ships on the underwater part, which can be even more destructive for the warships. A swarm of these suicide UUVs is very hard to defend,” wrote Tayfun Ozberk.

British military analyst H. I. Sutton highlighted some interesting features of the device in his blog. According to him, one prototype has an X-shaped rudder configuration. He also noted the unusual nose cone at the front of the autonomous submarine prototype.

“Among the many large AUV projects around the world, it is probably the first born directly from wartime needs” the author emphasized.