Defence Minister: No Drone Debris Found near Sunken Ship in the Black Sea

Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov on October 9 said that Bulgaria has enough companies manufacturing anti-drone systems. He stressed, however, that these systems are not a panacea, as their development is lagging significantly behind technological advances in drones, which are constantly being improved.

• EXCLUSIVE: Only a BNT crew filmed the operation from aboard a “Cougar” helicopter

Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said that damage caused by a surface drone was visible from the air, but no unmanned aerial vehicle debris had been found. He added that speculating about whether the drone was Russian or Ukrainian was inappropriate when it comes to national security.

Dimitar Stoyanov, Minister of Defence: “It is entirely possible that the drone was Ukrainian, just as it is entirely possible that it was Russian. Unfortunately, we were unable to find any drone debris that would allow us to identify it. The impact was above the waterline, which means it was a surface drone, and the entire engine room is flooded. This was also confirmed by our colleagues who were there at the scene.”

At present, no one can say whether the ship will sink, despite being partially flooded

• Exclusively for BNT: Just a few minutes ago, an inspection operation was conducted on the drone-struck ship “Able”

Admiral Kiril Mihaylov, Chief of the Bulgarian Navy: “The ship is currently in a stable condition, at least according to the external inspections we carried out yesterday and today. There is no spill around it.”

According to Minister Stoyanov, the intensity of attacks in the exclusive economic zones of Romania, Bulgaria and Türkiye is increasing.

• Military personnel inspected the ship “Able,” which had been carrying wheat; no drone debris was found

Dimitar Stoyanov, Minister of Defence: “Anti-drone systems are not a panacea. They are constantly being improved, and anti-drone systems follow those developments, but much more slowly. Many people have asked why Bulgaria did not detect the drones that were 130 kilometres away. There is no system capable of detecting them at that distance, especially when it comes to surface drones.”

Admiral Kiril Mihaylov, Chief of the Bulgarian Navy: “Security along our coastline has been sufficiently strengthened, but the war is being fought in the Black Sea, close to us. Today we destroyed another drone, 15 nautical miles east of Sinemorets. Such drones will continue to appear as long as Ukraine and Russia continue exchanging strikes using these systems.”

A Bulgarian Navy vessel remains in the area of the incident and will continue to monitor and survey the 'Able'.