Nearly Sunk: A New Image Of The Russian Icebreaker "Purga" Has Emerged

• 28.03.2026, 13:15

Three days had passed since the attack, and work to salvage the patrol ship had not begun.

Three days have passed since the Ukrainian attack, but rescue work on the Purga Project 23550 Yermak ice-class patrol ship has probably never started. This is reported by "Militar" with reference to satellite images in the possession of the publication.

According to high-resolution satellite images taken on the morning of March 27, there is no activity near the damaged ship on the territory of the Vyborg Shipyard in the Leningrad Region.

When Ukrainian attack drones attacked military facilities in Vyborg on March 25, 2026, the ship had a roll to the left side of the ship of about 30-40 degrees.

According to experts, such a roll usually leads to rapid flooding of internal compartments and subsequent loss of stability. At the same time, in this case, the final capsize is prevented by a neighboring vessel - the oceanographic research vessel Vice-Admiral Burilichev.

Factually, the ship is holding on, leaning on its side, which prevents it from turning over 180 degrees and going completely underwater. If it were not for this support, the roll angle would probably be much greater and the ship could have already capsized.

Project 23550 ships - what is known

Universal patrol ships of Project 23550 are a series of Russian multipurpose patrol ships and ice-class border patrol ships for the Arctic, capable of performing the tasks of an icebreaker, tugboat, firefighting vessel and warship.

Advertising

According to the project, the ship is to have a 76-mm AK-176MA artillery installation, two 30-mm AK-306M six-barrel anti-aircraft guns, four 12.7-mm machine guns and MANPADS.

Four Project 23550 ships were scheduled for construction as of fall 2025. Three were built - one was already in the Russian Navy at the time.