Intelligence officers disclosed details of raid preparations in Crimea
16 November, 2023 Ukrainian special forces during preparations for a raid in occupied Crimea. Photo credits: DIU The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine released footage of the operation preparation and conduct in occupied Crimea.
The press service of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine published the video. Intelligence officers presented unique footage of the preparation and implementation of the October raid on the territory of temporarily occupied Crimea, carried out by the Stuhna and Bratstvo fighters as part of the Timura special unit of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine. "We landed on the territory of the Crimean peninsula and inflicted fire on the Russian invaders," the Defense Intelligence reported.
The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine did not disclose the exact location of the incident. However, the agency later reported that the unit had lost one soldier as a prisoner of war.
The Russian Defense Ministry then stated that the Ukrainian military had landed near Cape Tarkhankut.
Intelligence officers coordinate the details of the operation on a map. Photo credits: Defence Intelligence of Ukraine
Conducting an operation
To land on the coast of the occupied peninsula, the intelligence officers used Sea-doo GTX 300 jet skis and Sea Force 1100 motorboats adapted for military operations. Another video demonstrates that one of the boats was armed with a 40mm Mk.19 automatic grenade launcher.
It is worth noting that the jet skis were equipped with additional 20-liter fuel canisters. They appeared to be connected directly to the fuel tank to increase the range. The jet skis of this model have a 70-liter fuel tank, which provides a range of up to 100-150 kilometers, depending on the operation mode.
With additional fuel tanks, this could be enough to travel independently from the mainland to the peninsula and back.
Sea-doo GTX 300 jet ski with several spare fuel canisters. Photo credits: Defence Intelligence of Ukraine
According to the footage, the special forces were well-equipped with small arms, including PKM and MG5 machine guns and BREN 2 rifles. The footage captured drones with thermal imaging optics providing support and coordination during the movement at sea and landing.
The video shows the use of a Mavic 3 drone.
Ukrainian intelligence officers travel in the Black Sea on boats and jet skis. Photo credits: Defence Intelligence of Ukraine
What is known about detachments?
The Bratstvo battalion that participated in the operation has long been involved in sabotage operations in the Russian rear. It was founded by Ukrainian writer and public figure Dmytro Korchynsky.