TechRussia's Makeshift Barricades: Innovative Defense or Naval Quagmire?

Russia's Makeshift Barricades: Innovative Defense or Naval Quagmire?

Port in Novorossiysk

Images source: © Comunista, Lic. CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

6:02 PM EDT, April 6, 2024

The Russian Black Sea Fleet's numerous setbacks have prompted efforts to secure its ships in the last major Black Sea port, Novorossiysk. The fleet employs an inventive strategy to fend off Ukrainian attacks by unmanned sea drones.

Historically, the prosperity of ancient Byzantium hinged on a secure port in Constantinople. It was shielded from enemy vessels by a massive chain stretched across the entrance to the Golden Horn harbor.

Centuries later, the Russians adopted a similar approach to safeguard Novorossiysk, the remaining significant Black Sea port. Situated on the Black Sea's eastern coast, just south of the Kerch Strait, this port is now a bastion for their ships.

Defence 24 reports that the Russians plan to replace the historic chain with several large barges. When a threat looms, these barges would be maneuvered to obstruct the port's entrance, thus barring ships harbored within from leaving.

In search of a makeshift solution, the Russians find themselves in a quandary, as existing physical barriers are manufactured by an Israeli company, presumably unwilling to collaborate with Russia.

Consequently, the plan involves positioning four barges to span the port's approximately 885-foot entrance. This method comes with significant risks, particularly to the crew required aboard the barges during their deployment, who face grave dangers from unmanned sea drone assaults.

Moreover, the rest of the fleet is at risk. If a drone strikes one of the barges, causing it to sink at the port's mouth, it could trap the vessels inside. Maksymilian Dura from Defence 24 suggests that this could render the Black Sea's last theoretically secure Russian naval base increasingly perilous, potentially transforming it into a quagmire.