Black Sea Drone Attack Near Bulgaria: 18 Crew Rescued as Hazardous Containers Drift

The 18 crew members of the Liberian-flagged container ship CONTSHIP JET were rescued after three maritime drones struck the vessel in the Black Sea, while more than 20 containers containing hazardous materials drifted at sea, Bulgarian authorities and maritime news outlet Maritime.bg reported.

The ship was attacked at around noon about 16 nautical miles east of Cape Kaliakra, outside Bulgaria’s territorial waters but within its contiguous zone. According to Commander of the Naval Forces Rear Admiral Kiril Mihaylov, a French Navy Atlantique patrol aircraft monitoring the Black Sea first detected two unmanned surface vessels about 30 nautical miles east of Cape Kaliakra, followed by a third approximately 50 nautical miles away.

The drones were moving west toward several vessels passing through the area north of Cape Kaliakra, Mihaylov said. Information about the threat was immediately passed to maritime traffic control authorities, who were asked to warn ships in the area. The French aircraft also broadcast warnings over Channel 16 and continued tracking the drones, while updates were relayed through the French maritime command for the Mediterranean and Black Sea.

The first strike on the CONTSHIP JET occurred at approximately noon, followed by two more attacks. After a French aircraft reported that the crew was abandoning the vessel, the Naval Forces launched a search and rescue operation. Three naval vessels took part, and all 18 crew members had been rescued by 1:45 p.m., according to the Defense Ministry.

The ship remains afloat at the site of the attack and is drifting. Mihaylov said the vessel sustained three breaches on its port side, with the drones approaching from the east and hitting the western side. He credited the warning given to the crew with helping ensure that everyone survived.

"The crew was warned, which I believe played a crucial role in ensuring there were no casualties and that everyone was rescued," Mihaylov said.

The admiral declined to identify where the drones had originated, saying their point of departure was unknown. He said they had been detected in the area and that the third drone was the farthest away. The vessels approached at approximately 26 knots, he added.

Around 20 containers fell from the ship, prompting the Naval Forces to issue timely notices to mariners. Maritime.bg subsequently reported that more than 20 containers were drifting in the Black Sea and warned that they posed a hazard to navigation. A notice to mariners said the containers held "flammable gases, non-toxic non-flammable gases, flammable liquids, and other hazardous substances."

According to the ship’s captain, the cargo included various fuels and other hazardous materials. The Environment and Water Ministry later listed lithium-ion batteries, corrosive liquids and acids, flammable liquids including ethanol solutions, household chemicals and plastics, alongside food products, construction materials, timber, machinery and industrial components.

Mihaylov said the response window had been extremely short and that no assets or forces were close enough to intercept and destroy the drones in time. He also noted that the attack occurred in international waters.

Varna Regional Governor Mario Smurkov said there were no reports of injuries or fatalities among the crew. He told journalists that the sailors were conscious and that the Rescue Center had not reported any casualties, while acknowledging that they had likely experienced significant stress.

Smurkov praised the rescue effort by the Naval Forces and Border Police. The rescued crew members, all from the Philippines, were expected to undergo medical examinations before staying at a hotel arranged by the shipowner. The governor declined to discuss the cargo or possible environmental risks, but said the ship was listing heavily and there was no information indicating that it had sunk.

The Environment and Water Ministry reported that an initial inspection around Shabla and Bolata Bay, near Cape Kaliakra, had found no visible oil slicks, changes to the water surface or other apparent signs of pollution. The ministry said the findings were preliminary and would be supplemented by laboratory tests.

Teams from the Black Sea Basin Directorate and the Executive Environment Agency were scheduled to collect seawater samples from five coastal locations: Durankulak, Shabla, Cape Kaliakra, Byala and Sozopol. The samples will be tested for petroleum products, polychlorinated biphenyls, metals and other physicochemical indicators of water quality. Defense Ministry teams had already taken samples from two locations within Bulgaria’s territorial waters, and the Environment and Water Ministry said the results would be made public.

The CONTSHIP JET, built in 2007, was sailing under the Liberian flag from Haifa, Israel, to Constanța, Romania. The vessel is 160 meters long and 25 meters wide, and is managed by Greek companies, according to Equasis.

The attack is the latest in a series of incidents involving aerial and maritime drones targeting commercial vessels near the Bulgarian and Romanian coasts during October. France had deployed an Atlantique 2 maritime patrol aircraft to Romania’s Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base at Bucharest’s request because of the deteriorating security situation in the Black Sea. The aircraft has been conducting reconnaissance and surveillance missions in the western part of the sea from October 18 to November 6 to identify navigation hazards and improve protection of critical infrastructure in Romania’s exclusive economic zone.

The deployment forms part of NATO-backed deterrence operations and complements increased patrols by the Romanian Naval Forces using ships, helicopters and unmanned systems, along with warnings to mariners about hazards and recommended routes.

Separately, debris believed to belong to a Russian “Geran” combat drone was found along the coast near Arapya campsite, close to Tsarevo, according to a social media post by Alex Dimov of the podcast “Third of March 1918.” Dimov said photographs of the remains showed the inscription “Geran,” a designation used for Russian strike drones. The person who discovered the debris asked to remain anonymous, while Dimov said he could vouch for the source.

In his Facebook post, Dimov called for an investigation and public disclosure of the findings, raising questions about Bulgaria’s security and the response of the authorities. He also asked for the positions of Radev and Yotova, writing: "Bulgarian citizens deserve answers, transparency, and institutions that protect national security and uphold our country's commitments to our European allies!" He added: "Bulgarian national security is not open to compromise!"

In response to an inquiry from OffNews, the Defense Ministry press office said a team from the Burgas Naval Base had conducted an operation on October 21 to inspect and recover unmanned aerial vehicle debris found along the shoreline at Popski Beach in Tsarevo. The remains were transported to the naval base.