The 'Moskva' - For those in peril on the sea
I'd like to make some comments based on a New York Times article on the sinking of the 'Moskva', one on the dire situation of so-called journalism of corporate MSM in the West, other comments on reported rescue operations and also on the total information blackout by the Russian MoD.
The times that I've attended special services for those lost at sea, for those who died in WWII and have the sea as their grave, to sing the the hymn, "for those in peril on the sea", invariably brought a lump to my throat. Hence the title of this article.
Last reported position of Moskva as shown on Sentinel satellite imagery.
In short, although the NYT piece on the Mosvka is a medley of information from 'anonymous' officials & unverifiable information. Trying to make some sense of it, is really not worth the effort, however there are some elements that are interesting to note.
The premise that the Moskva' was used to launch "high precision missiles" against Ukraine is just a ridiculous assertion. Is it beyond the capacity of journalists to check Jane's or even Wikipedia? Even the Daily Mail infographic outlines the equipment and armament onboard the 'Moskva', none are cruise missiles that are designed to strike land targets.
NYT don't let a riveting rip roaring yarn get in the way of some basic verifiable facts, shall we? The article is a clear example of gathering up informations, notably from U.S. officials and sweeping it up into an article, aka stenographer journalism at work, so beloved of the corporate MSM outlets.
Source: The Daily Mail April 2022
One line from the NYT is nevertheless intriguing: "Russian sailors who survived & were seen being picked up by lifeboats" (U.S official) Seen by whom? Visual, satellite, SIGINT interceptions reworded and sanitised? Probably a combination. Certainly, NATO and U.S. intelligence-gathering flights in the region were present as always during and after the sinking of the 'Moskva', as part of the efforts to support Kiev. Here's a list of those logged by OSINT social media accounts:
Intelligence-gathering flights
14 April - RQ-4 Global Hawk Black Sea
13 April - US Navy P-8 Romania
12 April - -US Navy P8 Poseidon
-US Navy EP-3E Aries II
-French Air Force ISR B350
-USAF RQ4 Global Hawk Romania and Black Sea
So it is quite likely, that the event and sinking was recorded using a range of intelligence and data gathering platforms. Yet, NATO is keeping a low profile and also is Kiev, oddly. Questions... indeed, very little information has seeped out relating to the circumstances of the sinking of the 'Moskva', other than the US Pentagon confirming being hit by two missiles.
Timelines of events - (according to Western reports on social media). Unverified information but gives an idea of the sequence of events.
xx? local time - catastrophic event - explosion and fire onboard;
18h52 Sentinel-1 satellite passes over - image of large vessel with others around it - rescue / fire-fighting operations + evacuation of some crew.
After that - possible towage operation underway as well damage control / fire-fighting parties still onboard tackling the fires on and below decks.
01h05 - distress signal is sent out.
01h14 - the Moskva is reported to be on its side or severely listing.
01h45 - total loss of power - uncontrolled flooding of machinery spaces.
Russian Ministry of Defence statement: “The cruiser ship Moskva lost its stability when it was towed to the port because of the damage to the ship’s hull that it received during the fire from the detonation of ammunition. In stormy sea conditions, the ship sank.”
2am - a Turkish ship is reported to have evacuated 54 sailors, (Turkish authorities deny this claim).
3am The Moskva sinks.
Commercial shipping and mines
Another aspect to consider regarding the above line from the NYT: the area of operations was:
NAVAREA III 0092/2022
×BLACK SEA - NORTHWESTERN PART
1.- DUE TO MINE DANGER NAVIGATION PROHIBITED UNTILL FURTHER NOTICE
NAVAREA III 0124/2022
×BLACK SEA
1. WAR RISK AREA, IN NORTHWESTERN PART OF BLACK SEA TO NORTHERN OF LINE
45-12.2N 029-41.1E
45-11.5N 029-41.4E
45-11.5N 033-10.5E
FROM 19 MAR 22 UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE
Given the particular risk of drifting mines, civilian ships wouldn't have been in the area, especially at night in stormy conditions. So, the word 'lifeboats' is intriguing, given that commercial shipping principally have lifeboats, not combat ships, (some naval auxiliaries have them though). Presumably it actually was referring to Fast Rescue Crafts, (FRC), dedicated rescue boats that both naval and commercial ships have onboard. But, what did an U.S. official mean by 'seen'? What was the timeframe for this, hours?
The Daily Mail published an article with satellite imagery that apparently shows the 'Moskva' on fire and nearby ships, just after 18:30 local time on the 13th April. The U.S Pentagon, John Kirby, had previously reported that the Moskva had managed to move under her own power, before sinking.
The location of the 'Moskva' wasn't near to any of the oil offshore platforms in the region. As such, help didn't come from those standby ships, so it leaves other warships, (which there would have been as part of the 'picket' line) and may be also Russian Navy auxiliary ships. The social media and punditry rumours mentioned that a Turkish ship picked about 54 survivors, unconfirmed information relayed first by Arvydas Anusauskas, Lithuanian Defence Minister on Facebook. Yet the BBC said: "Speaking with the BBC's Turkish Service, a Turkish official has denied claims that one of their country's ships helped to recover crew members from the Russian cruiser Moskva."
The timeline of events as described by the Lithuanian minister is inconsistent with the later reports by the Pentagon, Russian MoD and satellite imagery.
Information blackout
What I find incomprehensible is the lack of information on the fate of the crew of the 'Moskva'. No further information had been forthcoming by the Russian MoD or naval authorities, which only adds to unbound rumours going around and adding unnecessary anguish. With Sevastopol as a the main naval city, with many families and residents with naval connections, this is simply undignified and disgraceful that no official announcement has been made and I'd thought the longer the silence is kept, the worse the public relations outcome will be. People did come to mourn the loss of the 'Moskva' in Sevastopol.
16th April NOTE: The Russian MoD has released a video of a parade, in which the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy Admiral Nikolai Evmenov and the command of the Black Sea Fleet met with the crew of the missile cruiser "Moscow" in Sevastopol. (Note the brand new uniforms worn). There are about 200 members of the crew, all uninjured.
🇷🇺 Главнокомандующий ВМФ адмирал Николай Евменов и командование Черноморским флотом провели встречу с экипажем ракетного крейсера «Москва» в Севастополе ➡ https://t.co/6NzXtt3tlc pic.twitter.com/igIHxA0lE6
- Минобороны России (@mod_russia) April 16, 2022
Still pretty woeful communication on the part of the Russian MoD, not indicating any casualties (deaths/ wounded). It will only serve to break general confidence in military circles. Even the Pentagon mentioned very serious damage resulting from a catastrophic explosion and fires.
As Captain North stated on twitter: "I think it will be very difficult for the Ministry of Defense to hide the number of crew members killed at sea."