2014 Russia-Ukraine War

Project 773 Polnocny-C landing ship in the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War

Ukraine's Project 773 landing ship Yuri Olefirenko remained in wartime service during Russia's full-scale invasion, with official Ukrainian sources describing its combat role and open-source naval reporting documenting it under Russian fire near Ochakiv in June 2022.

Weapon profileProject 773 Polnocny-C landing ship
SideUkraineRoleMobility & LogisticsFire SupportAir Defense
Project 773 Polnocny-C landing ship, Medium landing ship, Naval Systems - 2014 Russia-Ukraine War
Image source: Yuri Olefirenko ship 1971 media category

Evidence Map

ClaimSources
Yuri Olefirenko was the Ukrainian Project 773 Polnocny-C landing ship documented in the conflict.

Sources: Ukrainian Navy Ship In Dramatic Escape, Survives Russian Artillery Attack, Decree No. 434/2022 on the For Courage and Bravery Honorary Award

The ship survived a documented Russian artillery or rocket attack near Ochakiv in June 2022.

Sources: Ukrainian Navy Ship In Dramatic Escape, Survives Russian Artillery Attack, Timeline of Ukraine Invasion: War In The Black Sea

Ukrainian official material describes the ship's artillery combat section engaging shore and air targets while repelling Russian aggression.

Sources: President Presented Cross of Military Merit Awards on Ukrainian Statehood Day

Russia claimed a May 2023 strike on Yuri Olefirenko at Odesa, but contemporary reporting treated the claim as unverified and unconfirmed by Ukraine.

Sources: Russia Claims to Have Destroyed Ukrainian Landing Ship, Russia Says Destroyed Ukraine's Last Warship

Timeline

Project 773 Polnocny-C landing ship In 2014 Russia-Ukraine War

  1. Yuri Olefirenko filmed under Russian artillery fire

    Naval News reported that drone footage showed the Ukrainian Project 773 landing ship Yuri Olefirenko narrowly escaping a Russian artillery barrage near Ochakiv.

    Sources: Ukrainian Navy Ship In Dramatic Escape, Survives Russian Artillery Attack

  2. Ukrainian presidential award to the ship

    President Volodymyr Zelenskyy awarded the medium landing ship Yuri Olefirenko the For Courage and Bravery honorary distinction for the defense of Ukraine.

    Sources: Decree No. 434/2022 on the For Courage and Bravery Honorary Award

  3. Artillery combat section described in Ukrainian service

    The Ukrainian presidency described personnel from Yuri Olefirenko's artillery combat section repelling Russian aggression and engaging shore and air targets.

    Sources: President Presented Cross of Military Merit Awards on Ukrainian Statehood Day

  4. Russia claimed a strike on Yuri Olefirenko at Odesa

    Maritime Executive and The Moscow Times reported Russia's claim that Yuri Olefirenko had been struck at Odesa, while noting the claim was not immediately verified and was not confirmed by Ukraine.

    Sources: Russia Claims to Have Destroyed Ukrainian Landing Ship, Russia Says Destroyed Ukraine's Last Warship

Documented Use

Direct proof of use

The documented Project 773 Polnocny-C ship in Ukrainian service during the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War was Yuri Olefirenko, a Ukrainian Navy medium landing ship. Naval News identified Yuri Olefirenko as a Project 773 Polnocny-C landing ship and reported that drone footage showed it narrowly escaping a Russian artillery barrage near Ochakiv on June 3, 2022; the same article said later confirmation showed the ship was still operational.

Official Ukrainian sources provide additional direct support for wartime service. A June 23, 2022 presidential decree awarded the medium landing ship Yuri Olefirenko the honorary distinction For Courage and Bravery for the defense of Ukraine. A later presidential account of Cross of Military Merit awards described an artillery combat section from Yuri Olefirenko participating in repelling Russian aggression and engaging shore and air targets.

Sources: Ukrainian Navy Ship In Dramatic Escape, Survives Russian Artillery Attack, Decree No. 434/2022 on the For Courage and Bravery Honorary Award, President Presented Cross of Military Merit Awards on Ukrainian Statehood Day

Timeline

The ship's wartime record is clearest in mid-2022. Covert Shores' Black Sea timeline lists Yuri Olefirenko as a Ukrainian Navy landing ship attacked by Russian rockets near Ochakiv on June 10, 2022, and describes it as the largest remaining Ukrainian Navy ship surviving the attack. Naval News dated the underlying attack footage to June 3, 2022 and reported that at least 16 rounds landed close to the ship without showing a direct hit or sinking.

On May 31, 2023, Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that Yuri Olefirenko had been struck at Odesa. Maritime Executive and The Moscow Times both reported the Russian claim while noting that it could not immediately be verified and that Ukraine had not confirmed the ship's destruction.

Sources: Timeline of Ukraine Invasion: War In The Black Sea, Ukrainian Navy Ship In Dramatic Escape, Survives Russian Artillery Attack, Russia Claims to Have Destroyed Ukrainian Landing Ship, Russia Says Destroyed Ukraine's Last Warship

Narrative

Yuri Olefirenko entered the full-scale invasion as one of Ukraine's few larger surviving surface combatants. Naval News reported that the ship had been returned to Ukrainian custody after Russia's 2014 seizure of Crimea, escaped early 2022 claims of capture, and remained active about 100 days into the invasion.

In the conflict record, the ship's use was not only amphibious transport. The Ukrainian presidential account of the ship's decorated personnel specifically tied its artillery combat section to fire against shore and air targets, which supports the catalog role package of mobility-logistics, fire support, and air defense. The May 2023 Odesa reports should be treated as a Russian strike claim, not a confirmed loss, because the contemporary reporting emphasized that the assertion was unverified and not confirmed by Kyiv.

Sources: Ukrainian Navy Ship In Dramatic Escape, Survives Russian Artillery Attack, President Presented Cross of Military Merit Awards on Ukrainian Statehood Day, Russia Claims to Have Destroyed Ukrainian Landing Ship, Russia Says Destroyed Ukraine's Last Warship

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Sources