The head of United Shipbuilding believes that Russia's only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov, will be decommissioned - a fate that Western analysts have long expected for the Soviet-era hulk. 

The Kuznetsov was built in USSR-era Ukraine at the Black Sea Shipyard, and she entered commissioned service in 1991, just as the Soviet Union collapsed. Shortly after her commissioning, the newly-independent Ukrainian government sent the commanding officer a letter of demand, claiming the ship as Ukrainian property and ordering that she be held in Sevastopol; the Russian Navy quickly ordered her departure and moved her out of reach. 

Kuznetsov is part of Russia's Northern Fleet, and has spent most of her service life in and around Murmansk. She made half a dozen training deployments to the Mediterranean over the decades, supported by Russia's leased base in Tartus, Syria.  

The carrier made a single combat deployment to the Eastern Mediterranean during the Battle of Aleppo in 2016, and she launched 400 sorties in support of dictator Bashar al-Assad's troops during a weeks-long fight. The Syrian campaign presented Russia's first opportunity to test out naval flight operations in combat conditions, with limited success; Kuznetsov lost two fighters due to failures of the ship's arresting gear during the campaign.

In 2017, after returning from the Syrian mission, Kuznetsov entered a shipyard period to replace her boilers and modernize her systems - and she never emerged. A long string of setbacks kept slowing down the project: in 2018, the floating drydock that supported the carrier sank out from beneath her. The dock's sinking left Russia without a facility large enough to drydock the carrier, so a pair of graving docks in Murmansk were combined and enlarged to create enough room to hold her. In 2019, while awaiting completion of the new graving dock, the ship suffered a major fire, which killed two and caused significant damage.  

In May 2022, four years after the floating drydock sank, Kuznetsov finally entered the enlarged graving dock. But by that point, Russia had begun its invasion of Ukraine, cutting off its supply chain for Soviet-compatible marine engines and spares - a niche that Ukrainian factories had filled for Russia's navy since the communist era.

Another fire in December 2022 set back the Kuznetsov's revival further, followed by crewing issues. Kuznetsov's crew was rumored disbanded in 2023, and officials publicly discussed a need to recruit replacements to fill out a 1,500-person roster. By late 2024, public records showed that many of Kuznetsov's crewmembers were reassigned to the front lines with the 1st Guards Tank Army, according to open source analyst David Axe. This prompted predictions from Western commentators that Kuznetzov - now approaching her fourth decade and increasingly obsolete - would be decommissioned. 

On Friday, the head of top Russian defense shipbuilder United Shipbuilding Corp. (USC) told state news outlet Kommersant that Kuznetov will likely be disposed of by sale or demolition. "We believe there is no point in repairing it anymore. It is over 40-years old, and it is extremely expensive," Andrei Kostin, head of shipyard owner VTB Bank, told Kommersant.

His comments followed earlier reports in Russian media that the project was under review. "The future belongs to carriers of robotic systems and unmanned aircraft," former Russian Pacific Fleet commander Adm. Sergei Avakyants told Izvestia in early July. "Carriers] can be destroyed in a few minutes with modern weapons."

Admiral Kuznetsov's sister ship, Varyag, was never completed at the Black Sea Shipyard; she was sold to Chinese interests as a hulk. Varyag was towed to Dalian and fitted out, and lives on in service today with the PLA Navy as the Liaoning. 

 

On Saturday night, the Israeli military intercepted and boarded an activist aid ship in international waters, preventing it from approaching Gaza with a cargo of food. 

The British-flagged vessel Handala (AIS reporting name Navarn) got under way from Italy in mid-July, carrying 21 passengers and crew. The vessel's holds were loaded with baby formula and food to provide symbolic relief for the ongoing food shortage in Gaza. 

At a position about 70 nautical miles from Gazan shores, an armed Israeli boarding team came aboard the vessel. The first moments of the interdiction were captured on a social media livestream, which soon ended. After taking command of the vessel, the boarding team changed course and headed for Ashdod; on arrival, the activists were detained and questioned.

pic.twitter.com/gEnomcTTxL

— Prof Zenkus (@anthonyzenkus) July 27, 2025

"The vessel is safely making its way to the shores of Israel. All passengers are safe," the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement. "Unauthorized attempts to breach the blockade are dangerous, unlawful, and undermine ongoing humanitarian efforts."

A spokesperson for the vessel's operator, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, said that the unauthorized boarding in international waters was a violation of international law. 

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani spoke with Israel's foreign minister on Sunday to discuss the fate of two Italian activists who were aboard the vessel. According to Saar, the detainees have two options: sign a prewritten declaration and leave voluntarily, or stay in detention and be forcibly repatriated.

It is the second time this summer that Israel has intercepted and seized a Freedom Flotilla vessel in international waters. The first, the Madleen, was interdicted in June; the passengers on that voyage included activist Greta Thunberg and a member of European Parliament, Rima Hassan. The Madleen's crew reported a suspected drone attack off Malta in May, which delayed its departure for Gaza. 

Israel's government has prohibited inbound vessel traffic to the shores of Gaza for 18 years, part of its attempt to prevent foreign armament from reaching terrorist group Hamas. In light of the current food shortage emergency in the territory, the naval blockade has taken on new meaning, and the Freedom Flotilla Coalition has renewed long-dormant attempts to break it. 

Gaza's Hamas-linked health ministry - the only source of statistical information on population-level health in the Gaza Strip - says that more than 130 people have died of starvation in the territory since the start of the Israeli operation in 2023. More than half were children, according to the ministry. 

Amidst rising diplomatic pressure, Israel announced Sunday that it is allowing more UN aid convoys into Gaza, partially reversing food-delivery restrictions that it has had in place since March. 

 

As Port of Lomé grows its transshipment role in West Africa, major global powers including the U.S and Russia are moving to secure access to the important maritime hub. The increase in volume of trade between Asia and West Africa has seen Lomé port transform into a key regional container port. Major ocean carriers, specifically MSC, have responded by redeploying ultra-large container vessels (ULCVs) to the route. This has come as a major boost for liner connectivity of West African ports including Lomé.

In view of these trade advantages, the U.S has pledged to expand its African market access through Lomé port. Last week, the U.S Embassy in Lomé led by the Chargé d’Affaires Richard C. Michaels conducted a tour of the port facility. The delegation also held a meeting with the management of Lomé Container Terminal (LCT) to explore commercial opportunities for U.S businesses.

“With advanced deep-water capabilities, cutting-edge equipment, and an annual throughput exceeding 30 million tons, Lomé offers U.S businesses unmatched access to African markets. Ongoing infrastructure expansion, including a dry-port and industrial zone further enhances the port’s role as a growing gateway,” commented U.S Embassy in Togo.

The port tour follows shortly after U.S President Donald Trump met five African leaders in Washington. The African leaders were largely from countries in West Africa including Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania and Senegal. The meeting with Trump concentrated on trade opportunities for both sides, at a time the U.S government is cutting aid in Africa and other regions.

Meanwhile, Russia has ratified its military cooperation agreement with Togo, which was initially signed early this year. As per the agreement, Russia and Togo will jointly hold military exercises, training exchanges and weapons and military equipment support. Notably, the agreement also covers support in hydrography, navigation and combatting piracy.

According to some observers, the agreement will give Russia unfettered access to Togo’s strategic seaport of Lomé. Visit by Russian military ships to ports in Togo is covered by the cooperation.

“Togo is considered the most organized and equipped in Tropical Africa. For example, the busiest seaport in the West African region is located on its territory,” said Vladimir Gruzdev, a member of the Russian Government Commission on Legislative Activity, which drafted the ratification law of the defense cooperation.

Top image: Container terminal at Lome, Togo (Houaito Affo Daniel / CC BY SA 4.0)

 

Authorities in Greece have busted a group of six stevedoring employees for allegedly smuggling drugs through the Port of Piraeus, the third time in three years that workers or officials at the port have been detained in connection with cocaine imports. 

According to local media, the personnel were employed by a private firm that runs cargo operations at Piraeus. They have been charged with participating in international organized crime, and have denied the charges. 

The narcotics were allegedly loaded into reefer containers of bananas departing Ecuador, a common cover cargo for cocaine shipped out of South America. Ecuador's banana producing region near Guayaquil is a major transshipment area for the drug: bananas are a high-volume cargo, so the contaminated shipments are difficult for customs officers to single out. Banana cargoes are commonly shipped to destination markets for cocaine (Europe and North America), making them a convenient carrier. 

Greek police said that they obtained surveillance of the group's communications, and that the scheme was led by an Albanian crime group. The overseers of the scheme used the employees' port access, and would direct them to retrieve drugs out of "dirty" containers. Albanian mafia organizations are among the leading players in cocaine shipping, and are believed to have close ties with Italy's Ndrangheta, an acknowledged leader in European cocaine trafficking.

The arrest follows after a high-stakes raid in the Neo Ikonio sector of Piraues on Monday. Authorities caught four stevedoring employees in the act of recovering cocaine from a shipping container, and a chase ensued: the suspects attempted to get away in a Porsche mini-SUV, and the police shot out its tires to halt their escape. 

 

The fifth generation to run the family business, Randall Crutchfield is both humbled and challenged by his new role.

Welcome, Randall, and congratulations on 150 years of achievement! Let's start with a brief history of the company, in your own words, and some of the milestones along the way.

Yes, sure thing. So my great-great-grandfather, Charles J. Colonna, was a ship's carpenter who settled in Norfolk, working for another gentleman who owned a shipyard, which was just a marine railway. That was the technology back then.

He decided to set out on his own but needed some money to do so. Meanwhile, his older brother, Benjamin A. Colonna, who went to Virginia Military Institute and was the only Colonna of that generation to be able to go to school, had made an agreement with their father that, because he had the opportunity to go to college, he needed to look out for his other siblings. So part of living up to that deal was a $2,000 loan to his brother Charles to build a marine railway here in Norfolk.

And that's how the shipyard started.

A lesser known piece of that history was that the $2,000 was actually not enough to get the shipyard off the ground, and Charles had to borrow another $2,000 a couple of years later. But it all worked out.

In 1891, the Colonnas put in a second and third marine railway. Amazingly, the #3 Marine Railway is still in operation today and is booked solid. So it's very cool to be able to walk folks around and show them that piece of equipment that's been around for 135 years.

What's a marine railway?

It's a way of hoisting ships out of the water so they can be worked on. They were originally powered by horses. Picture a king post in the ground with a chain attached to it and two horses pulling the chain around the post, hauling the ship up. That was our first marine railway, and it could lift 40 tons.

Fast forward to 1920, when the #4 Marine Railway was installed. It had a capacity of 4,000 tons, which we believe was the largest in the world at the time. It was in operation for nearly 100 years and finally retired in 2014.

Amazing! What came next?

We trace our history through different eras, and the first hiccup came during World War I.

We were having conversations with the Department of Defense, which needed more capacity. So we installed the infrastructure to be able to meet that need. But we were a little bit late getting there because the war wound down at the same time we were building out this infrastructure, and we ended up in pretty tight times.

Then came the Great Depression and things were really tight. But we always stayed true to our legacy customers – the fishing boats, the transportation companies locally, barges, dredges and Navy work where and when we could. World War II came and we were busy again, and it was after the war that my granddad took over.

He was a big idea guy, and he took this sort of laid-back shipyard and hired the right managerial staff to grow it successfully. And that led to a lot of expansion.

But there was one last wrinkle. And look, you don't stay around a long time without some hardship. We landed a really nice contract with the Coast Guard in the late '80s. We had just bought a 16,000-ton drydock, and the contract was going to be the next big thing for Colonna. But the government terminated the contract, and we wound up filing Chapter 11 and doing a workout.

But the really cool thing about it is there are still people around who remember those really lean times and can tell stories of how tight things were and the sacrifices people had to make to stay at Colonna's, including foregoing portions of their paycheck for some periods of time.

But they were committed to the vision of the leadership and ownership here, and it wasn't a hard decision for them because they knew we were going to keep our word. That was a really poignant message for me – that folks had faith we were going to do the right thing, even if it was hard. And we did.

A great lesson to learn at any age.

Yes, it was.

So we dug out of that under the leadership of my granddad and a gentleman named Tom Godfrey. We started being really successful in our legacy ship repair work with the marine railways and drydocks, and we became a lot smarter about both the commercial and government work we were doing. That allowed us to start investing heavily in our infrastructure and our corporate structure.

We started Steel America, which is our heavy fabrication machining business. We started doing what we call Down River services at government installations and larger shipyards in the port. And we also started a temporary staffing company called Trade Team, all around the year 2000 timeframe.

So with the shipyard doing well, the legacy ship repair business doing well, and then these other handful of businesses being largely successful from the outset, it allowed us to really expand in granddad's later years.

He bought back several parcels, probably 40 or 50 acres of land that we had gotten rid of over that previous 100 years. And now we're able to incorporate that into what has become a 120-acre waterfront facility.

We added more than 100,000 square feet of industrial shop space with heavy cranes inside to do structural fabrication and machining. We bought a 1,000-ton-capacity marine Travelift in 2009, the largest ever built at the time, and added a third drydock in 2016.

These investments were all successes because we took a long-term approach. We weren't looking for a payback in three years or five years or anything like that. We just felt it was the right thing to do even if it was the hard thing to do.

Well, it's worked for 150 years.

It has. For me, putting things in the context of 150 years and connecting that to the business approach that, if we do the right thing, it's going to pay off long-term, sums up how my granddad and his father and grandfather really thought about the place. They never thought about it as a way to make lots of money for themselves. They always thought about it from the perspective of a caretaker – taking care of the facility and taking care of all the families that have worked here. And that's my perspective too.

Tell us about your management team. Who are the key members?

Yes, so we'll start with Jordan Webb. He's my #2 – President and General Manager. Jordan came to us in 2007, fresh out of Virginia Tech, and he just worked his way up through deck plate repair management – the "school of hard knocks" here at Colonna's.

Chris Hartwig did the same thing. He manages Steel America. He came around 2007 as well, straight out of college. The rest of the leadership team includes Rebecca Wieters, our CFO, who does a great job, and Chris Bates, who runs a company in Owensboro, Kentucky called Accurity Industrial Contractors.

Accurity's an interesting story. We were looking to diversify and wanted companies that matched our culture and also understood the concepts of project management and craftmanship. We met Chris about four years ago and acquired his company two years later. They work in the industrial power market. They're process pipe experts, so think about combined cycle power plants, coal-fired power plants, gas power plants.

It's no different than what we do in the shipyard – project management work that relies on blue collar, skilled tradespeople We've been able to share work back and forth. We've gotten them involved in some Department of Defense work, and they've helped us with some pipefitting on ship repair contracts and ship construction contracts. We're starting to realize certain synergies, which is really positive.

How many employees are there overall?

We typically carry 700 to 800 employees. Accurity in Kentucky generally runs about 100. Our West Coast facility in San Diego, called Colonna's Shipyard West, is only about 30 people, and everything else is here on our Norfolk campus. It's all one big campus – Colonna's Shipyard, Down River, Steel America, Weld America and Norfolk Barge.

You have all of these different divisions, and yet the name of the complany is simply Colonna's Shipyard. Why is that?

Yes, my granddad was firm that that's always going to be the name. It's just part of who we are – being steady and holding true to the legacy. And that's why it's always going to be the name.

Is there a good workforce in your area?

We have some of the greatest people in the U.S. working right here in Norfolk. Unfortunately, too many people have been swayed by the notion that blue collar work isn't for Americans. So we've got some convincing to do to really get folks in the younger age groups to realize that these are great-paying jobs and you don't need a college degree to get them.

What's your biggest concern right now?

I think for the country to be viable for the next generation, the big concern for folks in my position is making sure people realize that shipbuilding and ship repair are necessary not only for our national defense but for how we operate commercially.

So we've got some decisions to make, and they're going to be hard decisions. Do we want to continue to outsource everything we can or do we want to have a domestic manufacturing capability? And if we make a bad decision there, that drives right to the heart of what Colonna's has always been about, which is a blue collar, project management organization. And if as a country we decide that's not important to us, I have to go find something else to do for a living, right? And so do the 800 people that we have employed here.

Heavy stuff! Any final words for our readers?

Yes, I love what I do, and it's humbling for me to have the opportunity to be able to do this and do it for my family and for all the families that have contributed to this place. Just think about the thousands and thousands of people who chose to work here. You can go do anything else in the world.

So I feel a sense of gratitude and also an obligation to those people to do the right thing, even if it's hard, to make the best decisions for all of us as much as possible. And I believe that over time, if you have that intention and that guiding principle, it's going to aggregate to making a lot of good decisions.

Are we going to make bad decisions? Yes, but can we make them fast and then fix them fast? That's really key for me. And that's how I look at things.

Tony Munoz is founder, publisher and editor-in-chief of The Maritime Executive.

 

In the past one decade, Guyana has become a global energy powerhouse, with the oil boom reshaping the country’s international trade. Last year, Guyana’s economy expanded by 44 percent, marking the fifth consecutive year of double-digit growth. But the growing trade is putting a strain on Guyana’s aging port infrastructure. At an event last week by Shipping Association of Guyana, the country’s President Irfaan Ali highlighted wide-ranging port reforms that his government is pursuing.

A key part of this transformation agenda is a legislative reform in the port sector. President Ali announced that a new Port Act is in the drafting process, which will streamline the maritime sector in Guyana.

“We want our ports to be competitive, reliable and future-ready. That is why we are designing a modern Port Act which will govern development, regulation and oversight of port operations. Further, it will ensure safety, efficiency and transparency in the maritime sector,” added Ali.

Currently, port regulations are scattered in several key legislations including the Maritime Zones Act (2010), the Shipping Act 1998 and the Customs Act. Apart from the legal reforms, Guyana’s government is also in the process of establishing an independent Port Authority, which will have mandate to manage ports in the country. This role is currently under the Ports and Harbors Division, within the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD). The proposed Port Authority is an attempt to corporatize port management, as Guyana positions itself as a regional logistics hub.

Other projects on course include the development of a deep-water port in Berbice. The preparations for the $285 million port project has been ongoing since 2020. Early this year, President Ali confirmed that the government is finalizing the project planning in partnership with the international engineering firm Bechtel.

Additionally, the government has invested close to $10 million to remove ship wrecks from the Demerara Harbor, an important entry into Georgetown port. The work is ongoing which includes deepening the harbor, as Guyana moves to attract larger modern vessels.

Early this month, MARAD commissioned a new $3 million tugboat, the second of such vessel to be acquired in the last two years. The new tug Arau is built by Damen Shipyards and is 16 meters long, with a beam of 6 meters. The vessel is capable of towing and maneuvering ships between 10,000-20,000 GT. The expansion of the tugboat fleet is intended to enhance operational efficiency in Guyanese ports, according to MARAD.  

 

[By David Axe]

Unseen, largely unknown and, until recently, highly classified, the US Navy’s vast network of underwater sonars is one of its greatest advantages over rival fleets. The United States can detect many, if not most, enemy submarines through much of the world’s oceans.

A sub that can be detected can also be killed. It’s a profound problem for the Chinese navy as it eyes a possible amphibious assault across the Taiwan Strait. Its growing fleet of quiet attack submarines could protect the landing force—but only if they themselves can avoid detection.

The problem for the US is that the Chinese fully appreciate how vulnerable they are underwater—and they’re actively thinking about ways to end that vulnerability. The US fleet needs new and better ways of defending its underwater sensors during a seabed battle that could get very nasty, very quickly in the months and weeks leading up to a possible Chinese move against Taiwan.

In particular, the US needs more ships that can repair the sensor network at sea. ‘There are only a small handful of vessels capable of such at-sea repairs, fewer than 10 globally, and they are easy targets when on station,’ warned Chris O’Flaherty, a retired Royal Navy captain with deep experience in undersea warfare.

The US Navy was a pioneer in seabed surveillance. In 1950, the service launched the then highly secret Project Jezebel, a generational effort to lay thousands of miles of undersea cable connecting sensitive acoustic sensors to shore stations staffed by sonar analysts.

By the time the navy declassified the Integrated Undersea Surveillance System in 1991, it also included catamaran surveillance ships towing additional acoustic arrays. Today, the system—again largely cloaked in secrecy—probably also features many small drones on the surface and under the waves. Shore sensors, ocean surveillance satellites and reconnaissance aircraft, crewed and uncrewed, also complement the undersea equipment.

It’s not a totally global, totally comprehensive surveillance system—but it’s close. And it vexes naval planners of the People’s Republic of China. ‘The probability that PRC submarines are discovered when leaving port is extremely high,’ Senior Captain Zhang Ning, a faculty member at China’s Naval University of Engineering, wrote along with coauthors in a November 2023 journal article translated by Ryan Martinson, a professor at the US Naval War College.

‘There is a fairly high probability that PRC submarines will be detected and intercepted while operating in the Near Seas’ along the First Island Chain between Philippines and Japan, Zhang and his coauthors warned, according to Martinson. Cued by surveillance, US and allied anti-submarine forces—submarines, ships and aircraft—can cut off Chinese attack boats from the deep water where they could best perform their missions.

But the US surveillance system isn’t invulnerable, Zhang and his coauthors stressed. ‘The authors further argue that the location of individual “nodes” … in the U.S. undersea surveillance system can be located and “removed”,’ Martinson wrote in an analysis of Zhang and company’s own analysis, published by the Center for International Maritime Security.

O’Flaherty listed the ways Chinese forces could disable US undersea sensors. They ranged from the ‘relatively overt’—the deployment of remotely operated vehicles from unhidden surface motherships ‘to go down to almost any depth and to uncover and sever cables’—to ‘semi-covert’ methods. One semi-covert method would be sending autonomous submarines equipped with sonars to find the cables and plant explosive charges to cut them.

The Chinese may want to undertake a covert counter-cable effort far in advance of any attempt to invade Taiwan. Long-range underwater vehicles could ‘leave an explosive charge in the immediate vicinity of a cable, ready for actuation at a time of the owner’s choosing—which could be years hence,’ O’Flaherty said. ‘Actuation of such an explosive can be via a coded acoustic signal, which is very easy to achieve.’

Cables can be repaired, of course—usually by highly trained crew aboard specialized auxiliary vessels. The US Navy operates just one cable-repair ship, the 14,600-ton USNS Zeus, delivered to US Military Sealift Command in 1984. For several years now, the navy has been studying a possible replacement for the aging Zeus, but the service is still years away from signing a contract and cutting steel.

And anyway, there’s no way Zeus and its crew could perform their hard, precise work in contested waters during wartime. As O’Flaherty said, cable ships are ‘easy targets’.

It’s possible the US fleet’s single special-mission submarine—the heavily modified, 12,000-ton USS Jimmy Carter—could covertly deploy divers for select cable repairs. After all, finding, tapping and eavesdropping on the enemy’s cables is reportedly among the boat’s secret missions.

Even with Jimmy Carter on cable duty, the US Navy would be stretched thin trying to safeguard the surveillance system that lends it one of its greatest advantages in wartime. And forget hiring private companies to help. Even if they were willing to risk ships during open conflict, there’s a global shortage of commercial cable vessels. Fewer than 10 are in use, but one trade group claimed the world needs 20.

The US fleet still spends most of its nearly $40 billion annual shipbuilding budget on aircraft carriers, amphibious ships, destroyers, logistics ships and submarines. It had better start prioritizing cable vessels, too—and figure out how to protect them after the shooting starts.

David Axe is a journalist and filmmaker in South Carolina, United States.

This article appears courtesy of The Strategist and may be found in its original form here. 

 

The United Kingdom’s Royal Navy appears about to withdraw its permanently deployed frigate in the Gulf, HMS Lancaster.

HMS Lancaster (F229), a Type 23 frigate, is approaching the much-delayed end to its working life, having been the forward deployed frigate home-based at the UK’s Naval Support Facility in Bahrain. Although the UK has had a naval base in Bahrain since 1935, the facility was rebuilt at the expense of the Kingdom of Bahrain in 2018, on the basis that HMS Juffair, as it was renamed, would be the permanent home station to at least one frigate. Until recently, besides the forward deployed frigate, the base also supported minesweepers of the 9th Mine Counter-Measures Squadron and a Royal Fleet Auxiliary logistics vessel.

When HMS Lancaster returns home within the next few months to be decommissioned, the only Royal Navy operational ship remaining in Bahrain will be the Hunt-class minesweeper HMS Middleton (M34), with the Sandown Class minesweeper HMS Bangor (M109) dry-docked locally for repair after a collision with USS Gladiator (MCM-11).

The withdrawal of HMS Lancaster, notwithstanding the political ramifications, has been necessitated primarily by the withdrawal of Type 23 frigates from service before their replacements - the Type 26 Global Combat Ship and the Type 31 frigate - start coming into service in 2028. Using rotational crews, service aboard HMS Lancaster has generally been popular, as the vessel is almost continual operational - on anti-smuggling duties and committed to keeping the Straits of Hormuz open under the watchful eyes of the Iranian Navy and IRGC. HMS Lancaster has made two major drug seizures in recent months. She has also been trialling the use of Peregrine remote-controlled mini-helicopters for broadening the swathe of its surveillance sweep out to 100 miles while at sea.

HMS Lancaster's crew carries out a drug bust, May 2025 (UK MoD)

Every July since 2017, St. Petersburg has held a massive Navy Day parade for Russian President Vladimir Putin and other members of Russia's senior leadership. This year, for the first time ever, the event was called off at the last minute - likely because of the threat of Ukrainian drones. 

Dmitry Peskov, Putin's spokesman, said Sunday that the parade was canceled due to unnamed "security reasons." While Peskov did not provide further details of the rationale, the UK Ministry of Defense assesses that it is almost certain that the parade - and all larger commemorative events across Russia - have been canceled due to force protection concerns. 

"Small ceremonies will highly likely take place and Navy Day remains a Russian national holiday," the UK MOD said in an intelligence assessment. 

The Navy Day parade is among Russia's biggest and best-publicized military events, and Putin will typically take part from a shoreside reviewing stand or aboard a VIP launch. Security precautions surrounding the event are stringent. 

The cancellation follows one day after a large-scale Ukrainian drone operation over parts of Western Russia. Ukraine has developed technology and operating methods to launch long-range drone attacks on targets deep inside of Russian territory, typically targeting weapons factories, airfields, rail lines, refineries and oil and gas infrastructure. 

In the area around St. Petersburg, higher-than-normal air-defense intercepts of Ukrainian drones prompted the regional airport to cancel flights for several hours overnight Saturday. Across Russia, about 100 drones were shot down Saturday night, Russia's defense ministry claimed. 

 

For the first time in more than a century iconic artifacts from a tragic WWI battleship are above the waves – recovered from the wreck in Scapa Flow.

Divers have brought the bell, badge and tampion – gun barrel cover – of HMS Vanguard from the bed of Scapa Flow to the surface.

It’s the first – and most important – step in plans to create a new exhibition and memorial in Orkney to the 843 souls lost in a cataclysmic explosion in July 1917.

All three items now need to undergo specialist conversation – including making use of the experts who worked on the Mary Rose and its thousands of objects – so they can be seen by the public for the first time since Vanguard was afloat.

The battleship blew up for reasons never accurately determined, but it is thought that a long-smouldering fire in a coal bunker caused cordite charges in an adjacent compartment to ignite.

A series of explosions shook the dreadnought before a final blast tore her to pieces, showering Scapa Flow – the wartime anchorage of the Royal Navy – with metal and burning debris, which also set the Orkney heather alight. Just two of the 845 souls aboard survived.

A dive team from the MV Huskyan - who surveyed the site nearly a decade ago as part of 100th anniversary commemorations of the Great War - again received special permission from the Royal Navy to both dive on the Vanguard and recover objects – as an official war grave, both activities are typically illegal.

HMS Vanguard, 1909 (Royal Navy)

HMS Vanguard's ship's badge (Marjo Tynkkynen / Royal Navy)

The bell – which weighs 25 kilos and was damaged by the explosions – was the most challenging item to recover, but the divers brought all three objects to the surface in a single day’s work, despite poor visibility on the seabed.

All three objects were immediately transferred to sealed containers of salt water, which they’ll remain in while conservation work begins, while a minute’s silence was held over the wreck and wreaths dropped to conclude the operation.

“The objects are in phenomenal condition considering their age, the violent destruction of the ship and the long period of immersion,” said Nick Hewitt, naval historian and culture team leader for Orkney Council. “They are also tremendously emotive – look at the bell and you will immediately feel what happened to that ship because it is distorted by the explosion and missing the crown which should be on top. This has been an amazing journey – three years of effort to date, and the whole recovery operation has been a great success. We’re absolutely thrilled. Mission accomplished.”

It will cost around $16,000 to conserve the three objects – after a century under water, each needs to be desalinated, cleaned and carefully dried before they can go on display, hopefully in around 18 months’ time.

Once treated, the recovered objects will form the centerpiece of a new exhibition dedicated to the ship and the men who served in her at the Scapa Flow Museum, alongside the life stories of those lost as part of the Vanguard Crew Photographs Project.

“We think the museum will become a focus for Vanguard commemoration, much like the Marwick Head memorial is for Kitchener and HMS Hampshire, and the Royal Oak memorial at Scapa Beach,” Nick added.

This article appears courtesy of the Royal Navy and may be found in its original form here. 

CM Technologies (CMT), a leader in advanced condition monitoring solutions, is calling on shipowners and managers to join collaborative trials designed to capture vital data on one of the shipping industry's most costly problems: cylinder liner scuffing in two-stroke engines.

Scuffing, a form of sudden severe wear, can result in catastrophic engine damage and vessel downtime. And while it’s a well-known issue, typically affecting large two-stroke diesel engines found on bulkers, tankers, and large container ships, the root causes are difficult to pin down. Operators, OEMs, and service providers have long struggled to predict or prevent the phenomena.

Germany-based CMT, however, has developed a system that can alert operators to early onset cylinder damage, but see seeks trial partners for critical data gathering aimed at validating the sensor’s predictive capabilities and to prevent engine damage before it occurs.

“Scuffing is a silent killer. It can occur suddenly, and the damage can be extensive,” said Uwe Krüger, Managing Director at CM Technologies. “Despite the prevalence of this issue, even engine manufacturers don’t fully understand why it happens. What we do know is that it’s linked to a combination of factors, like lubrication failure, drastic load changes, recent overhauls, amongst other things. Our goal is to better understand the acoustic fingerprint of scuffing so we can prevent failures before they happen.”

CMT’s recently developed Scuffing Sensor system – a “stethoscope for cylinder liners” – uses high-frequency acoustic emission (AE) technology to detect the earliest signs of friction and wear from outside the cylinder.

Unlike other methods that rely on visual inspection or oil analysis performed weeks apart, this approach captures real-time acoustic data without interrupting engine operation. By identifying wear-related noise patterns, the system provides a potential early-warning signal before damage occurs.

Trial partners are invited to deploy the system onboard vessels equipped with two-stroke diesel engines. Ideally, these vessels will call at ports in Northern Europe, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium or France, where CMT engineers can easily access them to install and retrieve data-logging equipment.

The system itself is unobtrusive, requires no modifications to engine internals, and is non-invasive. Mounted externally using magnetic brackets, the sensors require no disassembly, no drydock visit and no interruption to the ship’s voyage.

“There’s no need to open the engine or stop operations. The sensor system is magnetic, sits externally on the cylinder, and records data quietly in the background,” said Krüger “We’re looking for operators that will let us place this technology onboard for one to three months. The process is simple, and the benefits could be significant.”

By participating in the trials, ship operators and managers stand to gain early insight into the scuffing risks on their engines, while helping CMT further develop the breakthrough diagnostic tool for the wider industry.

“If we can collect enough data from a range of engines, we can build a reliable library of friction noise patterns,” Krüger said. “This will enable us to deliver early warnings when problems are brewing, long before current monitoring methods can detect them. The benefits will be lower maintenance costs, less downtime, and better protection of what is undoubtedly the most critical, high value asset onboard a ship, aside from the crew.”

CMT believes this collaborative approach is key to cracking one of shipping’s most persistent maintenance problems.

“We’re not asking shipowners to shoulder any risk, just to let us listen to their engines. Together, we can create something that protects engines, saves money, and sets a new benchmark for condition-based maintenance.”

Shipowners or managers interested in participating in the scuffing detection trials are invited to contact CM Technologies at info@CMTechnologies.de
 

 

In a groundbreaking development for the global marine fuels industry, leading shipping and bunkering companies have come together to launch a Bunkering Services Initiative focused on solving the widely reported issues of fuel quantity shortages and fuel quality opacity across the marine fuel supply chain. By addressing these market distortions marine fuel buyers can make optimal procurement decisions and suppliers can operate on a level playing field.

Open Participation

The Initiative is voluntary, and participation is welcome from all marine fuel buyers and suppliers who commit to adopting and complying with its standards and governance.

Scale from Day One

At the outset focused on Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA), the world's second-largest bunkering hub, the Initiative represents 20% of ARA market volume comprising several thousand deliveries each year. Founding participants include some of the most prominent names in the industry, including Cargill, Frontline, Hafnia, Hapag-Lloyd, Mercuria, Minerva Bunkering, Oldendorff, Trafigura, TFG Marine, Unifeeder, and Vitol, as well as other key players in energy and shipping.

Self-Regulation

The concept is uniquely designed to be self-regulating, leveraging powerful data-driven insights to monitor participant behaviour and adherence to standards – thereby advancing the objectives of regulatory authorities without requiring their administration.

Gold Standard

The Initiative defines a new gold standard of technology-enabled bunkering operations, with seamelss integration of mass flow meters, digitalized workflows over the blockchain, traceable fuel quality measurements throughout the supply chain, full accounting of quantity balances, and real-time reporting to participants.

Commitment to Accountability

To ensure accountability to the Initiative's objectives and standards of operation:

• Lloyd's Register has been appointed as the System Auditor, responsible for qualifying participating bunker barges, conducting unannounced physical barge inspections, and verifying compliance with Initiative standards and data integrity (lr.org).
• ADP Clear Pte Ltd has been appointed as the Initiative's technology provider, facilitating multi-party workflows, real-time reporting, and verifiable performance metrics for all stakeholders (adpclear.io).

Join Us

Any marine fuel buyers and suppliers engaged in the ARA market and interested in participating in the Initiative can direct their inquiries to initiative@adpclear.io.

 

[By: Wärtsilä]

Technology group Wärtsilä’s retrofit package for the Corsica Linea ferry ‘Pascal Paoli’ has resulted in fuel savings of up to 22 percent. This significant gain in energy efficiency on each trip has been made possible by the installation of a new twin screw controllable pitch propeller (CPP) system with blades optimised for the ship’s operating profile, the Wärtsilä EnergoProFin energy saving propeller cap, a controls retrofit, and combinator curves for the ship’s various operating modes. 

These upgrades, which were completed at the end of 2024, were validated through CFD (computational fluid dynamics) open water simulations, and confirmed during sea trials with the chief engineer. In monetary terms, the fuel savings equate to an estimated 7,700 US Dollars per trip. The related reduction in emissions represents a massive step in Corsica Linea’s decarbonisation journey, allowing the company to remain compliant with the stricter requirements on carbon emissions. 

“We are extremely happy with the efficiency improvements resulting from this Wärtsilä retrofit package,” says Xavier Esnault, Energy transition project manager at Corsica Linea. “The fuel savings are important, both from a cost perspective, as well as supporting our decarbonisation strategy to reach a reduction of 40% of our CO2 emissions by 2030.” 

The ‘Pascal Paoli’ is a 174-metre long RoPax ferry operating between Marseille and Bastia. Ferries are on the front line of the energy transition and are among the first sectors to target net zero-carbon operations. At the same time, operators are expected to provide a reliable, efficient on-time service, while keeping operating costs under strict control. 

“Ferry operators, such as Corsica Linea, are looking to leverage technologies that offer minimal service disruption and a maximised return on investment, all while reducing their carbon footprint. For this reason, the fuel efficiency upgrade carried out on the ‘Pascal Paoli’ was done with the aim of supporting Corsica Linea with achieving these goals,” comments Andrey Dudko, Product Manager, Propulsion – Wärtsilä Marine. 

The ’Pascal Paoli’ operates with two Wärtsilä 46 engines per shaftline. It has a number of operating modes, including sailing and manoeuvring with one or two engines per shaft line. The changes resulting from the retrofit project did not impact the vessel’s manoeuvrability. 

This upgrade comes at a time when ferry operators are under increasing pressure to decarbonise. The IMO’s new Net-Zero Framework through the GHG fuel intensity (GFI) provides a clear incentive for operators to invest in energy-efficiency solutions, such as the technologies leveraged for this retrofit project. By placing an explicit price on GHG emissions, the IMO has sent a strong market signal that energy efficiency technologies and alternative fuel solutions must be part of every shipowner’s toolkit. This framework encourages industry stakeholders to invest in immediate operational improvements, explore onboard abatement solutions, and accelerate the roll-out of sustainable fuels.

[By: ClassNK]

ClassNK has released 'ClassNK Technical Journal No.11 2025 (?)' . This issue features the title 'Latest Technological Trends for Protection of the Marine Environment', providing the particularly well-received presentations on 'Underwater Noise from Ships' and 'Safe Decarbonization’ from 'ClassNK R&D Forum 2025', which was attended by more than 200 participants.

'ClassNK Technical Journal', has been published to contribute to the advancement of technology and society through the outcome of R&D and technical activities. The contents of the latest issue are as follows:

Special Feature Articles on 'Latest Technological Trends for Protection of the Marine Environment'

• Guidelines for Underwater Noise from Ships and Trends in the IMO, Etc.-
• Development and Application of Ship Underwater Radiated Noise Estimation Tool for Preservation of the Marine Environment
• Measurement of Ship Noise in Shallow Sea Area
• Recent Information on the Development of IMO Guidelines for the Safety of Ships Using Ammonia as Fuel and Initiatives of ClassNK for Practical Application of Ammonia-Fueled Ships
• Research to Develop Safety Assessment Measures of Alternative Fuel/New Cargo Transportation
• Commentary on ‘Bayesian Estimation of Ammonia Leak Frequency for Risk Assessment of Ammonia-Fueled Vessels’

Technical Topics

• Revealing a Fuel-Saving Tip for Main Engine Operation in Rough Sea Conditions-
• Introduction of Examples of the Use of AIS Data
• Recent Topics at IMO 

ClassNK Technical Journals are available to download via ClassNK’s website: https://www.classnk.or.jp/hp/en/research/rd/giho.htm

[By TOTE Group]

 

TOTE Group, a recognized leader in transportation and logistics overseeing some of the most trusted companies in the U.S., announced the appointment of Jason Grear, CPA, as its Chief Financial Officer (CFO), effective today. Grear brings over 20 years of accounting and finance experience to the organization.

“Beyond Jason’s impressive credentials, what stood out most was his collaborative approach, people-first mindset, and shared commitment to our values,” said Tim Nolan, President and CEO of TOTE Group. “We’re excited to welcome Jason to our leadership team and look forward to the impact he will make on our organization.”

As CFO, Grear will lead the TOTE financial organization, helping to drive long-term vision, stability, and performance, while partnering across all business units to support strategic decision-making.

In his previous roles as Chief Accounting Officer and EVP of Accounting and Finance for U.S. Xpress, Grear provided pivotal leadership in taking U.S. Xpress public in 2018 and in the acquisition of U.S. Xpress by Knight Swift in 2023. Before joining U.S. Xpress, Jason had over 12 years of public accounting experience, most recently as a senior manager at EY.

The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) intends to retire eight warships that have been instrumental in coastal surveillance and patrol for more than three decades. It is the latest move in the Navy’s ongoing plan to modernize its fleet to meet evolving maritime threats.

RCN announced that before the end of the year, eight Kingston-class Maritime Coastal Defense Vessels (MCDVs) will be decommissioned. The eight vessels are part of the 12 Kingston-class warships built and launched in the 1990s, with each being 55.3 meters (181 feet) long, about 970 tonnes displacement, and with a crew capacity of 40. The ships are powered by diesel-electric engines with a reported speed of 15 knots. The first ship, HMCS Kingston was commissioned in 1996 and the last, HMCS Summerside, in 1999.

For three decades, their primary task has been carrying out coastal surveillance and patrol duties, including general naval operations and exercises, minesweeping, search and rescue, law enforcement, resource protection, and fisheries patrols. The ships have also conducted nuclear submarine escorts, national and international exercises, and have supported the training of several naval occupations.

 

 

Over their lifetime, the warships have been deployed in various operations in the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean, West Africa, European waters, and across Canadian waters. The warships have also been deployed off the coast of Haiti in response to the growing national security crisis in that country.

This fall, HMC Shawinigan, Summerside, Goose Bay, Glace Bay, Kingston, Saskatoon, Whitehorse, and Brandon will be retired with the Navy intending to carry out “paying off” ceremonies in Halifax and Esquimalt, B.C. After the decommissioning ceremony, ownership of the vessels will then be transferred from the RCN to the Department of National Defense for eventual disposal.

Four other Kingston-class vessels, Yellowknife, Edmonton, Moncton, and Nanaimo, will remain in service by consolidating under Canadian Fleet Atlantic. They are set for decommissioning from 2026 through 2028.

RCN highlights that the impending retirement of the warships falls in line with its fleet modernization program to meet the evolving needs of a security environment that has become increasingly dangerous and complex. Part of the modernization includes the building of 15 River-class destroyers at Halifax-based Irving Shipbuilding with the first ship expected to be delivered in the early 2030s.

 

 

“Kingston-class vessels have provided the RCN with a significant, impactful, and flexible capability throughout their many years of service. As we move towards the future of the RCN, I want to recognize the service of these ships and extend my tremendous gratitude to all who have sailed within them,” said Vice-Admiral Angus Topshee, RCN Commander.

RCN is ensuring a seamless transition with the Kingston-class roles being transferred to existing ships. The naval mine counter-measure roles will be carried out by the diving units, and remote and autonomous systems operated from other RCN vessels, while roles like counter-narcotics operations will be handled by the Harry DeWolf-class Arctic and Offshore Vessels. The training role will be assumed by an expanded fleet of Orca-class vessels.
 

[By: Lloyd's Register]

Lloyd's Register (LR) has enhanced its Fatigue Design Assessment (FDA) methodology by updating worldwide trading patterns for containerships and gas carriers based on comprehensive analysis of Automatic Identification System (AIS) data from the past 11 years.  

This major revision represents the first update to FDA trading routes in over 12 years. The updated trading patterns reveal encouraging results for vessel operators, with the revised analysis showing increases in predicted fatigue life of up to 10-15% for containerships and up to 10% for gas vessels.  

These improvements result from incorporating routing factors obtained from extensive AIS data analysis, delivering more accurate structural assessments that reflect actual vessel operations rather than relying on historical estimates. LR's updated approach enables more precise fatigue life calculations, supporting better-informed decisions regarding vessel design, maintenance scheduling, and operational planning. 

LR has also refined its containership categorisation to reflect the segmentation of modern container vessels. The updated classification system now includes Ultra Large Container Vessels (ULCVs) with capacity of 14,501 TEUs or greater, alongside revised categories for New Panamax (10,000-14,500 TEUs), Post-Panamax (5,101-10,000 TEUs), Panamax (3,001-5,100 TEUs), Feedermax (2,001-3,000 TEUs), and Feeder vessels (1,001-2,000 TEUs). 

Nick Gross, Global Containerships Segment Director, Lloyd's Register, said: “This comprehensive update to our Fatigue Design Assessment methodology represents a significant advancement in how we evaluate vessel structural integrity. Our analysis of extensive AIS data revealed that ships are operating quite differently from our previous models, particularly in terms of route optimisation and weather routing. This translates directly into improved fatigue life predictions that shipowners can rely on for better operational and maintenance planning.” 

For more information about LR’s enhanced FDA methodology, visit: https://www.lr.org/en/knowledge/lloyds-register-rules/shipright/fatigue-design-assessment-fda/

 

The Royal Bahamas Police Force provided additional details about an incident between two crewmembers on Royal Caribbean International’s cruise ship Icon of the Seas. The report clarified the widely covered media report of a crewmember “falling” overboard and being recovered by the cruise ship. 

Initial, erroneous media reports said a crewmember had “fallen” from the massive cruise ship, Icon of the Seas (248,663-gross ton cruise ship) while the ship was cruising off San Salvador in the Bahamas on Thursday, July 24. (People do not “fall” off cruise ships unless they are doing something risky and/or are extremely intoxicated, as the vessels have high rails and other precautions.) 

According to the statement from the Bahamas police, shortly before 7:30 p.m. local time, a 28-year-old female South African crewmember was allegedly stabbed multiple times by a 35-year-old male South African crewmember. Following the incident, the police were told the man had fled from the scene and jumped overboard. 

Passengers reported that crewmembers seeing the man jump threw life preservers to mark the spot. As the world’s largest cruise ship, Icon of the Seas required time to slow and turn, even though it was likely moving at a relatively low speed after a day at sea approaching the company’s private island, Coco Cay, for the Friday port stop.

The crew launched one of the vessel’s go-fast rescue boats and was able to locate the male crewmember. According to the captain’s announcement, the male was “recovered.” Later reports said he was unconscious when they found him and pronounced him deceased when they got back to the cruise ship.

The female had been stabbed multiple times in her upper body. The Royal Bahamas Police Force reports she was treated. They said she is in stable condition. The police report that an autopsy has been scheduled to determine the cause and any contributing factors for the male crewmember’s death.

Royal Caribbean International confirmed in a statement to the Florida media that there had been an incident “involving two crew members in a personal dispute,” and that its onboard security team had responded. Crewmembers work and live aboard these ships in notoriously small cabins and tight quarters. The Icon of the Seas has approximately 2,350 crewmembers onboard. When full, it can also be carrying approximately 7,600 passengers.

 

Iran and Russia have concluded a short naval exercise in the Caspian Sea, which both nations may have regarded as an opportunity to shore up relationships in a region where both have recently lost friends. Iran, in particular, felt let down by the lack of Russian support during the 12-Day War with Israel - she received some support from China, but none from Russia. Iran is also at present highly nervous about porous border security, and wants to demonstrate heft in this area.

CASAREX 2025 commenced on July 21 and concluded two days later, under the direction of Commodore Mohsen Razzaghi. He announced via IRNA that the Nedaja, the IRGC Navy (Nedsa), and Iranian law enforcement forces would take part, alongside vessels from the Russian Navy. Observers would also participate from the three other Caspian Sea littoral nations - Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan. 

 

 

In a video released by IRNA, the only evidence seen of Russian involvement has been the presence of the civilian rescue tug SB 738 (MMSI: 273544130). Nedaja vessels participating (at least in the end of the exercise parade) were Sina Class fast attack craft Paykan (P224), Joshan (P225), Derfash, and Separ (P234). Also present was the IRGC Navy’s Nasser Class auxiliary Martyr Basir (117), which appears to be equipped with Zafar/C704 anti-ship missiles and normally operates from the Samen al-Hojaj Naval Base at Babolsar, Mazandaran Province. 

 

The IRGC Navy’s Martyr Basir (Tasnim - CC BY 4.0)

 

There was no evidence of the participation of the observers, and the Iranians have an established record of announcing the involvement of other nations in their exercises without their consent or participation. The Caspian Post, an Azeri media outlet, covered the exercise but made no mention of Azeri participation.

Relations between Russia and Azerbaijan are particularly stretched at the moment. Azerbaijan is furious about a series of arrests made of Azeris working in Russia, and still seething about the deaths of 38 passengers following the missile attack on an Azerbaijan Airline Flight 8243 coming in to land at Grozny on Christmas Day 2024, heightened by the Russians’ callous handling of the incident. Nor are Azeri relations with Iran much better, following Iranian suggestions of Azeri complicity in the Israeli air attacks on Iran during the 12-Day War.

Both Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan have grown tired of Russian bullying. Much of this springs from the Ukraine war and Russia’s assumption that it is still owed duties by these former Soviet states. At the St. Petersburg Economic Forum in June 2024, President Tokayev of Kazakhstan, on stage with President Putin, refused to recognize Russian annexations in Ukraine and Georgia. He also stated his country would respect Western sanctions on Russia, and he turned down a request to provide Kazakh troops to fight in Ukraine. Most of Kazakhstan’s oil production is exported through the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) network, which pipes through Russia and terminates at Novorossiysk on the Black Sea. However, Russia also uses the CPC network to export its Urals oil from Omsk and Kazan through Kazakhstan to China. Uncomfortable in this mutual inter-dependency, the Kazakhs have been developing their capability to export instead across the Caspian from Aktau to Baku, using shallow draft tankers built with Abu Dhabi Ports Group specially for Caspian operations. From Baku, the Kazakh oil can then use the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, thereby avoiding Russian territory. 

Main Kazakh oil pipelines (data from Kazakhstan-China Pipeline LLP/CJRC)

The geography of the Caspian means that Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan, which have not enjoyed close relations hitherto, are being drawn into closer cooperation. Controlling the middle section of the Caspian, working together these three nations could impede shipping between Iran and Russia. This is an unlikely prospect for now, but a risk with some growth potential. Ukraine would be keen to spread discontent, so as to disrupt arms supplies flowing up the Caspian from Iran into Russia. 

Russia controls the only access to the Black Sea through the Volga-Don canal. For now, the 28-strong Caspian Flotilla remains dominant, comprising the two Gepard Class frigates damaged in a Ukrainian attack on November 6 last year, plus 16 corvettes and minesweepers. The Iranian Northern Fleet, forming its 4th Naval Region, is led by Moudge Class frigate IRINS Deylaman (F78) with the four Sina Class fast attack craft, each armed with a 76mm gun and C-802 anti-ship missiles, which participated in CASAREX 2025. Together, Russia and Iran are much stronger than Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan. But the Azeris have of late been militarily clever, upgrading their navy with Israeli and Turkish assistance; they also operate Triton Class midget submarines, the only such craft stationed in the Caspian.

Bilateral relations will not have been improved, and the Russians may have been tempted to return home somewhat earlier than planned, having heard the Iranian version of the Russian anthem as SB 738 was welcomed into port. Sailors worldwide will have endured similar ordeals on port visits, but this rendition of the Russian National Anthem was even more insulting (in the opinion of the Maritime Executive’s correspondent) than the famous Egyptian and Saudi salutes to President Putin in 2015 and 2019, respectively.
 

Russia’s state environmental organization, Rosprirodnadzor, alleged in court this week that the operator of the two tankers that were lost in December 2024 had multiple violations. The latest accusations of expired licenses came as the environmental watchdog is seeking further compensation and actions from the tanker operator to address the environmental impact of the dual casualties.

The river sea tanker Volgoneft 212 sank in a wintertime storm in December 2024, transporting 4,300 tonnes of oil. A second tanker of the same operator, Volgoneft 239, ran aground around the same time in the area near the Kerch Strait. Together, the two vessels were carrying approximately 9,200 metric tons of heavy fuel oil. The authorities estimate that half of the fuel was released in the two incidents, and days later, a third Volgoneft tanker, 109, also reported a leak while it was in port.

As part of the suit, the Russian authorities told the court that the captain of Volgoneft 239 was operating the vessel with an expired license. It said the unnamed master’s license was expired for “several days” prior to the vessel getting underway and encountering a winter storm in the Kerch Strait region. Some media reports had previously claimed the helmsman aboard the tanker was operating the ship alone, something that has been repeatedly denied.

Russian authorities further said that the operator of the tankers, Volgoneft, was not certified to operate the vessels in open waters during the winter months, according to a report in the Moscow Times. The company blames heavy winter weather in the region for both of the casualties.

The reports highlight that the vessels are based on a 1950s Soviet-era design. They were primarily built for river and calm water transport. The vessels are each approximately 133 meters (435 feet) long and 4,000 to 5,000 dwt. Reports said they were originally designed for seas less than seven feet, but reports contend the 239 was encountering 25-foot waves in December 2024 when it was lost.

Rosprirodnadzor is suing the tanker operator, saying it is its responsibility to pay for the cleanup and salvage of the tankers. The bow section of 239 remains submerged, which led to a dispute over its conditions. The court reports said the bow section continues to leak oil, and the next efforts at recovery and sealing the leaks are not scheduled till October. 

The agency, however, quickly issued a denial saying that no current leaks were detected. It said, however, it remains the responsibility of the operator and acknowledged the potential environmental dangers from further leaks. Volgoneft has been suing to prevent the Russian authorities in Crimea from taking over the salvage efforts as the tanker operator contends that it would lead to inflated costs. Russian authorities wanted the remaining fuel pumped from the bow section of the vessel.

They told the court that the Anapa region has spent more than 211 million rubles (approximately $2.7 million) on cleanup efforts. It said that nearly 200,000 metric tons of contaminated sand have been removed and over 310 miles of coastline have been cleaned. The city has sued the operator separately for its costs.

Ukraine has also said it would seek to prosecute for the damages it received from the drifting oil.

The Russian authorities in February 2025 launched an inspection program for all the Soviet-era river-sea tankers. The reports said there were over 500 tankers built in the 1960s and 1970s that they would be inspecting, and none could return to service before they had been inspected.