18 crew members rescued from Greek-owned CONTSHIP JET after drone attack

All 18 crew members of the Greek-owned container ship CONTSHIP JET are safe after the vessel was attacked by three unmanned surface vessels (drones) in the Black Sea off the Bulgarian coast on Wednesday, October 28.

Naftemporiki contacted the shipowning company, which confirmed the attack and the rescue of the crew, comprising four Ukrainian and 14 Filipino seafarers. According to Bulgarian media reports and maritime security company Diaplous, the incident occurred about 16 nautical miles south-east of Cape Kaliakra, near Balchik, while the vessel was sailing from Haifa, Israel, to Constanta, Romania.

How the attack unfolded

A military aircraft operating in the area warned the captain that three maritime drones were heading towards the vessel, urging him to change course to avoid the attack.

Despite manoeuvring to evade them, the CONTSHIP JET was struck by one of the drones, sustaining damage. Bulgarian authorities subsequently launched a rescue operation, with warships approaching the scene to evacuate the seafarers. According to information gathered by Naftemporiki, two Bulgarian warships took part in the rescue, while the CONTSHIP JET was subsequently hit twice more by maritime drones.

By the time the crew had been evacuated, the vessel had developed a list of approximately 20 degrees.

Bulgaria’s Defence Ministry also confirmed that the vessel had been attacked by a total of three maritime drones.