Ukraine weakens Russia's ability to rescue warships with drone strike on MPSV07 salvage vessel.

On September 10, 2025, Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) reported that a domestically produced combat drone struck a Russian Project MPSV07 multipurpose salvage ship near Novorossiysk. According to the statement, the drone impacted the vessel in the area of the bridge, where navigation and communication equipment are located. At the time of the strike, the Russian ship was said to be conducting radio-electronic reconnaissance and patrolling the approaches to Novorossiysk Bay, a key location where Russia bases remaining units of the Black Sea Fleet.
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Project MPSV07 multipurpose salvage vessels are intended for search and assistance to ships in distress, evacuation of people, refloating and towing of damaged vessels, off-ship firefighting, including fuel burning on water, oil spill response, and underwater technical work. (Picture source: Russian MoD and HUR)

The HUR released video footage of the attack and stated that the strike destroyed the vessel’s electronic reconnaissance systems and disabled it, making costly repairs necessary. The press release indicated that the ship had been commissioned in 2015 with an estimated value of $60 million and added that Russia operates four vessels of this type. The vessel is believed to be the Spasatel Demidov, one of the Project MPSV07 units registered at Novorossiysk. Its entry into service in December 2015 matches the information provided by HUR.

While Ukrainian officials did not formally confirm the vessel’s name, analysts noted that, based on the commissioning year, the ship was likely the Demidov. Reports also highlighted that open-source marine tracking placed the ship earlier near the Kola Peninsula, suggesting gaps in available position data. Ukrainian media, including The Kyiv Independent, noted that they could not independently verify the strike, underlining the limitations in confirming the event beyond official statements and the released video. In addition, the possible destruction of the vessel’s electronic reconnaissance equipment would reduce its intelligence-gathering role, thereby weakening Russia’s already small fleet of such units.

Salvage ships are critical support assets within a naval fleet because they provide the specialized capability to recover, tow, and stabilize vessels that have sustained damage, grounding, or mechanical failure, ensuring that such ships can be returned to service rather than permanently lost. Their missions include firefighting on board stricken vessels, containing hazardous spills, supporting submarine rescue, conducting underwater repairs, and recovering valuable equipment or sensitive technology from the seabed. When one of these ships is disabled, even temporarily, the Russian Navy loses part of its capacity to recover or stabilize damaged ships and to preserve scarce assets during prolonged operations. The absence of a salvage vessel, whether due to destruction or temporary removal for repair, can delay or prevent the recovery of other ships, increase the likelihood of losing vessels that could otherwise be salvaged, and reduce operational confidence by limiting how far a fleet can project power or sustain activity in contested waters. The impact is greater because the class consists of only a few operational units, and the loss of one restricts Russia’s ability to recover vessels that come under Ukrainian attack at sea.

The Project MPSV07 series of multipurpose salvage ships was developed by the Marine Engineering Bureau and built at Russian shipyards, including Nevsky Shipyard in Shlisselburg and the Zalyv Shipbuilding Yard in Kerch. These vessels are ice-strengthened to RS Arc5 standards and designed for unlimited navigation areas, including Arctic routes. They are intended for a wide range of functions, such as search and rescue, salvage, towing, firefighting on ships and burning fuel on water, oil spill containment and recovery, and technical underwater operations. They can support diving operations to depths of 300 meters and seabed inspections of damaged objects down to 1,000 meters using side-scan sonar and remotely operated vehicles. The vessels are equipped with dynamic positioning systems meeting DYNPOS-2 standards, stabilizing systems for sea states up to level 4, and oil recovery systems integrated into the hull design.

Each vessel measures 73 meters in length, with a beam of 16.6 meters and a draught between 4.5 and 5.1 meters, displacing approximately 2,525 tons. They are powered by four Wärtsilä 8L20C diesel engines driving two azimuth thrusters rated at 2,060 kW each, with two bow thrusters of 995 kW providing additional maneuverability, for a maximum speed of 15 knots. Bollard pull is recorded at 70 tons, and endurance is 20 days. They carry a crew of 20 with space for 12 additional personnel and capacity for between 69 and 81 rescued persons, depending on the source. The ships are equipped with two 20-ton cranes with outreach of up to 20 meters, high-capacity firefighting systems compliant with FF3 standards, specialized pumps for dewatering and firefighting, tanks for 668 cubic meters of recovered oil, and 94 cubic meters of cargo storage.

The class includes several units currently in service. The lead ship, Spasatel Karev, was delivered in 2012, followed by Spasatel Kavdeykin in 2013, Spasatel Zaborshchikov in 2014, and Spasatel Demidov in 2015, all built at Nevsky Shipyard. Spasatel Ilyin was delivered in May 2023 by the Zalyv yard, and Spasatel Gruzinskiy is under construction at Zelenodolsk. The vessels are operated by Russia’s Rosmorrechflot Marine Rescue Service and are registered in ports such as Saint Petersburg, Korsakov, Vladivostok, and Novorossiysk. They have participated in civil operations, including firefighting support for LNG carriers in the Sea of Azov in 2019 and cable repair in the Gulf of Finland in 2023. They have also been connected to military-related activities, even though they are formally registered under Russia’s Marine Rescue Service. For example, Spasatel Demidov was reported in March 2017 to have coordinated search and rescue operations in the Black Sea following the crash of a Russian Tu-154 military transport aircraft near Sochi.

Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.