Final communication from the Moskva cruiser: “Two holes, lying on its side”
OLENA ROSHCHINA - SUNDAY, 15 MAY 2022, 13:17
Pivden (South) Operational Command has posted a recording of communications from the Moskva cruiser that took place as the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet was sinking.
Source: audio recording on the Pivden Operational Command page on Facebook
Quote: "The final recording of communications aboard the Moskva cruiser: shouting about two hits, rolling to the side, need to save the crew."
Details: The communications officer informs the tugboat that there is an emergency on the ship: "Moskva-1 - two holes, propeller stalled, sinking, lying on its side."
The man shouts that there is a hole below the waterline and a roll of 30 degrees.
He says "there is no way to get closer" to the tugboats.
"We’re doing our best to save the crew," he says from the Moskva cruiser.
Background:
- In the evening of 13 April, it became known that Ukrainian Neptune anti-ship missiles had hit the Moskva missile cruiser, the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet. After that, the cruiser with its 16 cruise missiles was forced out of action and sank.
- Experts analysed satellite images and determined the exact coordinates of the Moskva cruiser at the time when it was hit by the Ukrainian Neptune missile and concluded that half of the crew had been killed or wounded.
- CNN and The New York Times reported that the US had allegedly helped Ukraine with intelligence regarding the location of the Moskva cruiser. The Pentagon denied this: "The Ukrainians have their own intelligence capabilities to track and target Russian naval vessels, as they did in this case."
- Investigative journalists believe that the crew of the Moskva cruiser may have been two-thirds conscripts. Relatives of the Moskva sailors searched for them and were told that the cruiser was not on a combat mission and the sailors were missing in action. Survivors, however, said that the cruiser was on its way to Odesa with a landing force.
- Forbes estimated that the sunk Moskva cruiser was worth US$750 million.
- The Ukrainian postal service issued stamps commemorating the sinking of the cruiser that included the Ukrainian border guards’ phrase "Russian warship, go f#ck yourself".
