Cruiser Moskva Destroyed: Ukraine’s Historic Strike in Black Sea
The Cruiser Moskva Destroyed became one of the most symbolic naval blows of the war. On April 13, after 4:00 PM Kyiv time, Ukrainian forces struck the Russian missile cruiser Moskva with two Neptune missiles in the Black Sea near Odesa.
The enemy had planned to use the cruiser Moskva to cover amphibious landings on the Ukrainian coast, particularly in the Odesa region. It was supposed to provide air defense for landing troops. Its deck carried numerous S-300 naval-based systems, which also served as an “umbrella” for other Black Sea Fleet units.
The Orcs’ Pride
The destroyed cruiser measured 186.5 meters in length and displaced 11,500 tons. It could reach speeds up to 32 knots, with a range of up to eight thousand miles. The vessel was essentially a military base on water, armed with:
- AK-130 artillery system;
- Two Osa-MA air defense systems;
- Two 533mm torpedo tubes;
- Six AK-630 anti-aircraft artillery systems;
- Eight P-1000 Vulkan anti-ship cruise missile launchers;
- Eight S-300F Fort air defense systems;
- A Ka-27 helicopter based on deck;
As you can see, it carried up to 16 cruise missiles. This was the pride of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet. Russian propaganda called it an “aircraft carrier killer,” and the commander of the Orcs* navy claimed such ships were built to fight in the ocean:
From a military perspective, this cruiser was designed for the ocean, not for the Black Sea — it’s too small for it. Because the forces and means installed on it, primarily cruise missiles with a range of 500 kilometers…
The cruiser participated in many 21st-century conflicts: for example, the war against Georgia, or the war in Syria, where dictator putin supported dictator Assad. Specifically in the Syrian war, the ship’s air defense systems covered the Russian Khmeimim airbase. Flying from there, Russian bombers struck civilian cities across Syria’s Idlib province.
Between 2018 and 2020, the ship underwent extensive and expensive repairs and modernization.
Russian Warship, Go Fuck Yourself
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The crew of the cruiser Moskva issued a surrender demand to Ukrainian defenders on Snake Island. In radio communications, Russian sailors called themselves a “Russian military ship”. They threatened to deliver a “bombing strike” against Ukrainian border guards. The Ukrainian border guards’ response became legendary: “Russian warship, go fuck yourself“. This became a worldwide meme and one of the symbols of Ukrainian resistance.
And as a result, the ship ended up almost exactly where Ukrainian border guards sent it — Cruiser Moskva Destroyed — and Ukraine became the only country on the planet to destroy an enemy missile cruiser during wartime.
What Commander of the Ukrainian Naval Forces says:
Hoping the cruiser would sink — that was truly lucky. It was afternoon, the admiral’s hour, as they say in the fleet. Plus, the missile hit the crew’s mess hall, the largest space on the cruiser, beneath which the engine room is located. The forward engine room, as far as I remember, and nearby is the central damage control post. Right there — the main command post in the adjacent compartment.
So it’s like, you know, an Achilles’ heel. Plus, above this crew mess hall sits the AK-630 complex with ‘cellars,’ meaning two detonated six-barrel AK-630 installations, which have their own ammunition. I understand that it detonated, adding more trouble to the enemy from one missile. The second missile went into the stern section.
Another quote of the Commander of the Ukrainian Naval Forces Oleksiy Neizhpapa:
You know, within a day — and it took almost a day to sink — everyone called me. “Has it sunk or not? Has it sunk or not?” I said: “I can’t track it, I’m not next to it.”
We knew it was still afloat. We tried to track it but didn’t have complete information. Some came from Russia’s own open sources, some information we got from radio intercepts. But first and foremost, we understood there was damage when they reported to me that all ships near the cruiser very quickly started moving toward it. And it itself, let’s say, went adrift, meaning stopped moving. Then we understood we’d hit it.
Cruiser Moskva Destroyed: Step by Step to the Bottom
- April 13, around 4:00 PM: Ukrainian military detected the Russian missile cruiser Moskva in the Black Sea. The vessel was standing 120 kilometers offshore near Snake Island.
- Immediately after verification and target acquisition, operators executed a launch with two R-360 missiles.
- Evening of April 13: Ukrainian media began publishing statements about the strike. Reports confirmed that two Ukrainian-made Neptune missiles had hit the missile cruiser Moskva.
- Several hours later, April 14: Russia’s ministry of defense announced a fire aboard the cruiser. The statement claimed that ammunition detonated due to the fire. The Russian MOD didn’t name the cause of the fire. They stated only that it was “being determined”.
- Later, Russian propaganda claimed they had contained the fire aboard the cruiser Moskva. They said the vessel was being towed to an unspecified port, possibly to the naval base in Sevastopol. All this happened against a backdrop of unconfirmed claims that the ship had actually sunk.
- Same day, April 14: The first photo of the mangled ship appeared online. Someone took it from aboard the Russian rescue tug Shakhter, which arrived to assist the Moskva.
- Around midnight, April 14: The occupiers’ ministry of defense reported that during towing to the destination port, due to hull damage, the ship lost stability and sank in stormy seas.
We won’t comment on Russian propagandists’ lies. If they claim “there was a fire” or “the cruiser sank due to a storm” — let the Orcs believe such nonsense. After all, we know the truth: Cruiser Moskva Destroyed — that’s not “bad weather”, that’s justice.
Neptune: Made in Ukraine
The Ukrainian Neptune missile system sent the Black Sea Fleet flagship to the bottom. It’s one of the newest weapons developed and deployed by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The war with Russia began in 2014, and the system was created after that. The Luch Design Bureau in Kyiv developed it.
The Neptune cruise missile (R-360) is the first Ukrainian missile that can be launched from various carrier types: coastal systems, ships, or aircraft. It has a warhead weighing 150 kg and flies at extremely low altitudes (several meters above sea level). The total weight of one missile is 870 kg, and the maximum firing range reaches up to 280 km. In the final flight segment, the missile drops to 3-5 meters above the sea surface to remain undetected in ship radar fields as long as possible.
This is the first destruction of a ship this size in combat actions since 1982, when the British submarine HMS Conqueror sank the Argentine cruiser General Belgrano during the Falklands War.
*Orcs – a common term for Russians who support or participate in the armed aggression against Ukraine. Dehumanizing? Yes. Accurate? Also yes.
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