29 votes

French military boards Russia-linked oil tanker suspected of launching drones that closed Denmark airports

Posted by smoontjes
Tags: politics, france, russia, denmark, military, geopolitics, warfare.hybrid, drones, aviation, security.national, transport, maritime, ships, tankers.oil, dark fleet, author.dan sabbagh, source.the guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/oct/01/france-oil-tanker-russia-drone-denmark

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Title
France investigates oil tanker suspected of being part of Russia's shadow fleet
Authors
Dan Sabbagh
Published
Oct 1 2025
Word count
815 words

3 comments

  1. smoontjes
    Link
    The timing of this is very curious because a EU summit is being held in Copenhagen, Denmark as we speak. From the article: Previous Tildes discussions here and here and here

    The timing of this is very curious because a EU summit is being held in Copenhagen, Denmark as we speak.

    From the article:

    French military personnel have boarded an oil tanker named on a list of Russia’s “shadow fleet” vessels and suspected of being a launchpad for mystery drone flights that forced the closure of airports in Denmark last week.

    Photos showed navy personnel on the deck of the tanker, known as the Boracay, which has used numerous identities and was one of four Russia-linked vessels in the seas near Denmark at the time of the drone sightings on 22 and 24 September, which so far have not been fully explained.

    Stéphane Kellenberger, the public prosector in Brest, in western France, said an investigation was taking place after the crew’s “failure to justify the nationality of the vessel” and “refusal to cooperate”.

    Previous Tildes discussions here and here and here

    16 votes
  2. [2]
    KapteinB
    Link
    Are they able to recover the drones then, or are they single-use? What about the catapult; would it still be on the ship, or is it likely they dumped it too after use to get rid of the evidence?

    One line of inquiry is that the drones – almost certainly larger delta or fixed-wing craft – were launched from a ship or ships near Denmark, giving the country’s military little time to respond. Though the drones’ identity is not known definitively, such drones can be launched from a catapult that could easily be carried on a large ship.

    Are they able to recover the drones then, or are they single-use? What about the catapult; would it still be on the ship, or is it likely they dumped it too after use to get rid of the evidence?

    3 votes
    1. CptBluebear
      Link Parent
      I don't think it matters if they're recoverable. There are many fixed wings that aren't single use but perhaps cheap enough to lose one in some light probing. Even so, I think these may have been...

      I don't think it matters if they're recoverable. There are many fixed wings that aren't single use but perhaps cheap enough to lose one in some light probing. Even so, I think these may have been Gerberas. Russia's Gerbera are fixed wings and they frequently use those cheap constructs as decoys for their glide bombs and cruise missiles.

      No idea about the catapult. Those tend to be glorified slingshots so who knows? Wouldn't be too expensive to throw overboard.

      3 votes