The pride of the Ukrainian Navy's small fleet, the frigate Hetman Sahaidachny, has been scuttled in its moorings at Mykolaiv. The ship, a Krivak III-class frigate displacing 3,100 tons, was under repair in Mykolaiv when the commander of the ship ordered it scuttled by flooding the vessel's hull. This was done, it is said, on February 27. The scuttling was confirmed by Ukrainian defense minister Oleksiy Reznikov.
The battle for Mykolaiv is still ongoing. Initial skirmishes occurred on February 26 with some Russian units penetrating into the city but were repulsed. Following the taking of Kherson, the bulk of the Russian forces pushed again on Mykolaiv, commencing an attack on February 28 through the city of Bashtanka, located just to the north of Mykolaiv. This attack, however, was blunted by Ukrainian forces. As of March 4, the governor of Mykolaiv Oblast, Vitaly Kim, reported that Russian forces had been repulsed from the city limits but Russian counterattacks were ongoing from three directions, leaving only the western side of the city free from attack. Ukrainian forces also retook Kulbakino Airport which is located close to 7 miles to the southeast of Mykolaiv's city center.
The Hetman Sahaidachny, named after Ukrainian political and civic leader Petro Konashevych-Sahaidachny, Hetman of the Zaporozhian Cossacks (b. 1582 d. 1622), was the flagship of Ukraine's navy and it is believed the ship was scuttled in order to deny the Russians the propaganda coup of capturing the ship intact. The ship is armed with a single AK-100 100mm gun, two AK-630 30mm Close-In Weapon Systems (CIWS), two quad-tube 533mm torpedo launchers, and two RBU-6000 anti-submarine rocket launchers. It can carry up to two Kamov Ka-27 helicopters.
Originally posted on March 5, 2022.
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