Footage captures the moment Ukrainian kamikaze drone takes out the SECOND Russian warship in just 24 hours while hitting a tanker carrying cargo and explosives in the Black Sea, another blow to Putin’s fleet

This is when a Ukrainian kamikaze naval drone hits a Russian tanker carrying cargo and explosives in a second blow to Vladimir Putin in just 24 hours.

Footage shows the 4,754-tonne SIG oil and chemical tanker being hit by an unmanned marine drone in the Black Sea off the coast of annexed Crimea.

The engine room of the 143 meter long ship was flooded and the 11 crew members suffered abrasions from broken glass.

The hit came shortly after the Russian warship Olenegorsky Gornyak was left badly damaged on Friday and towed back to port following a drone attack at sea.

A giant fireball explosion from the shore was initially thought to be an attack on Vladimir Putin’s £3 billion Crimean Bridge, which also faced nightly drone strikes.

But it turned out that the attack happened last night on the SIG oil and chemical tanker that regularly carries cargoes – reportedly including explosives – between Russia and Syria.

The voice of a SIG crew member seeking help over the radio was overheard saying, ‘We can’t move on our own.

‘Without a tugboat. The engine room is completely under water. The management does not know what will be decided….”

Tugs went to the aid of the ship and the crew, who had not been evacuated, were given pumps. The ship is currently being assessed for damage.

The Russian-flagged SIG, built in St. Petersburg, has been under sanctions since 2019 for its role in supplying cargo to Syria.

Ukraine’s Defense Ministry warned on July 21 that ships bound for Russian ports would be considered part of Putin’s war effort and would be potential military targets.

A day earlier, Russia had threatened Ukraine with a similar warning.

Earlier this week, Russia reported that the patrol vessels Vasily Bykov and Sergey Kotov had been targeted by Ukrainian kamikaze drones.

At the time when the two ships escorted the Sig on its way from Syria, it is believed.

“Such an attack is intended not only to force Russia to return to the infamous grain deal, but also to partially jeopardize the logistical capabilities of Russian forces in the Middle East,” said Russia’s pro-war channel Rybar. .

The landing ship Olenegorsky Gornyak with large holes is now in the port of Novorossiysk.

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said the use of drones in the Black Sea will “ensure freedom and security in the Black Sea for world trade.”

He claimed that ‘drones are changing the rules of the game and returning the aquatic area to full-fledged remote jurisdiction.

“There will be an end to the presence of the Russian fleet in the Black Sea, and with it the traditional blackmail in Moscow,” he said.

Loud explosions were heard elsewhere on Friday morning as Ukraine launched another night attack on an oil depot in Feodosia, annexed Crimea.

Ship movements in the main port of Novorossiysk – which handles 2 percent of the world’s oil supply and also exports grain – were temporarily halted due to the drone strikes and the sound of gunfire.

Local residents reported seeing “a bright flash over the sea and explosions.”

This was close to the facilities of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, a major international oil pipeline system that supplies oil from Western Kazakhstan to the Black Sea terminals in Novorossiysk.

Explosions were reported after midnight and at dawn.

Russia’s defense ministry said its forces repelled two drone strikes in Novorossiysk.

“Two unmanned naval craft attempted to attack the Novorossiysk naval base,” the ministry said.

“During the repulsion of the attack, unmanned boats were visually detected and destroyed by fire from the standard guns of Russian ships guarding the outer assault on the naval base.”

The pre-war Russian channel Rybar said: “It is noteworthy that at the time of the attack and attempted attack on Novorossiysk, three US Air Force and NATO Air Force reconnaissance UAVs – RQ-4D Phoenix, two MQ-9A Reapers – and one R-8A aircraft was in the air in the southwestern Black Sea.’

Mayor Andrei Kravchenko said yesterday: “Today, military units have worked effectively to protect our hero city.

‘Our soldiers are technically equipped with everything they need to perform their task.

“All life support and logistics facilities are reliably protected.”

In Crimea, just across the water from Novorossiysk, Russia’s defense ministry said it foiled another attack by Ukraine on Thursday night by downing 13 drones.

Footage showed an explosion at or near an oil depot in Feodosia.

Pro-Russian sources said this was “air defenses shooting down enemy drones in the Crimean town of Feodosia,” but there was no independent confirmation.

The Black Sea port of Novorossiysk is home to the terminus of a pipeline that carries most of Kazakh oil’s exports through Russia.

The fuel artery operator, Caspian Pipeline Consortium, said it will continue shipping oil to tankers moored at the terminal, Russian state media reported Friday.

But “a temporary ban has been imposed on the movement of ships in the port,” the company said, as quoted by the Interfax news agency.

Attacks in the Black Sea have increased from both sides since Moscow struck a deal last month that allowed Ukrainian grain exports through the shipping hub during the conflict between the two countries.

Russia’s Black Sea Fleet has been targeted since the start of Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine more than a year ago, but attacks have increased in recent weeks.

Russia’s defense ministry said on Tuesday it foiled a Ukrainian drone attack on patrol boats in the Black Sea.

Three drones were trained on ships navigating waters 340 kilometers (210 miles) southwest of Sevastopol, the base of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in Crimea.

A week earlier, a similar attack was repelled.

Annexed by Russia in 2014, Crimea was targeted by Kiev during the Ukrainian offensive in Moscow, but has fallen victim to more intense and increased attacks in recent weeks.

Ukrainian drone strikes in Crimea in July blew up an ammunition depot and damaged a strategic and symbolic bridge connecting mainland Russia to the peninsula.

Kiev has repeatedly said it intends to take back Crimea, a regular target of its forces.

On Sunday, Russian-installed authorities in Crimea said 25 Ukrainian drones had been destroyed over the peninsula.

Kiev says Russia has repeatedly attacked Odessa, an ancient city on the shores of the Black Sea and one of Ukraine’s main ports.