Zeynep Dilara Akyürek / Milliyet.com.tr – The ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia was spreading to surrounding countries as civilian targets were hit. In addition to civilian vehicles shot down on land, passenger planes shot down by mistake, and merchant ships hit by Ukrainian UAVs every month, all of these were causing an ever-growing avalanche. Moreover, this avalanche carried the war in the north of the Black Sea to our country on the southern shores of the Black Sea. Many ships ran aground on our country's borders, Turkish ships were damaged and even Turkish sailors were injured. In addition to the safety of life and property, ships running aground were also taking the future further away from us every day. Current or weather conditions played a decisive role in the damage the ship suffered and where it would drift uncontrollably. However, considering that 40 percent of the coastline belongs to Turkey, it was inevitable that many ships would run aground on our shores. In addition to a major environmental disaster, this situation also caused great financial losses. But is there a solution to the UAV attacks that harm our seas, our tourism potential and the successful maritime trade carried out with our ships? Kocaeli University Maritime Faculty Lecturer and Tanker Captain Assoc. Dr. Ozan Hikmet Arıcan told Milliyet.com.tr about the fate of the Black Sea becoming a ship graveyard.
UNARMED SHIPS ARE THE TARGET OF ARMED DRONES!
More than once, countless civilian ships had been the target of the war in the north of the Black Sea. Ukraine's UAVs and drones were constantly damaging the ships of a third country, and the ships were running aground with severe damage and material damage or drifting uncontrollably. According to Ukraine, these were just accidents. So no ship was hit on purpose. So much so that the Ukrainian side was warned in many 'accidents'. However, these cases have increased especially in the last year during the war that has been going on for 4 years. If the attacks continued like this, the rough coasts of the Black Sea could become the graveyard of giant ships hit by small UAVs. Because the sea conditions and the locations of the attacks were dragging the damaged ghost ships towards our country. Assoc. Dr. According to Ozan Hikmet Arıcan, "The ship that was hit first was hit somewhere close to Russia. It came to our country in 5 days. If there is a southern weather and a wind from south to north, of course this ship will head towards the north. But since the wind is stronger from the north, there is an 80 percent probability that the ships that were hit will move south, towards the Black Sea coast of our country." So, can these ships be prevented from creating a ship graveyard on our coasts? Assoc. Dr. Ozan Hikmet Arıcan explains:
"These ships are hit and the sailors on the ship 'abandon ship'. Then the stray ships drift from north to south with the wind and currents. What happens at the end of this? For example, the ship that was hit 5 days ago runs aground in Samsun. Especially when it is a tanker, the cargo it carries can be very dangerous chemicals. Sea pollution becomes a very high risk. If the ship's hull, which is damaged by waves day by day, causes cargo tanks to be damaged, it can lead to a major environmental disaster. So what should we do? We must detect those ships in advance. We need to pull them out and anchor them before they run aground. Expert teams can go, 3-4 sailors can anchor that ship before it gets serious damage and becomes unusable. In fact, all that needs to be done is to monitor the ghost ships, detect them in advance and tow these ships to appropriate places. We know that if the owner of the ship accepts these costs, it will be towed to the designated area. "We can say that it is a saving solution for the ports. When a large pile of iron wanders around the Black Sea, it affects ship traffic and the damage that may occur on the coastline. Tourism and fishing activities of the people there may be negatively affected, but this situation can be solved before it grows so much."
THEY ARE CONTINUOUSLY RUNNING AWAY! '3 OF 10 SHIPS ARE COMING'
Ships with Turkish flags, especially those hit by Ukrainian rogue drones, are becoming unusable one by one. In addition, uncontrolled ships create a dangerous environment in terms of navigation safety at sea. Moreover, the ghost ships abandoned after being hit are drifting to the shores like bullets that are unknown where they will hit. Most of them are on Turkish coasts... Eventually, as in Sakarya, Şile and Samsun, ships run aground and suffer severe damage and pose an environmental risk. But how many of the dozens of ships that were hit could come to Turkey? Assoc. Dr. Ozan Hikmet Arıcan explained the possibilities as follows:
"In this course, as the attacks continue, the number of beachings will increase and the damage will become severe. For example, if the personnel on the ship are abandoning the ship, many of them are forced to do so because of the deaths and injuries they witness. If 25 percent of the ships that are hit are unmanned and the ships are drifting, if 10 ships are hit per month, 3 ships will move towards this direction. Ships frequently land on our lands, and I think this situation will increase even more. The uncertainty in the course of the war also triggers this."
THE INVOICE FOR A SINGLE SHIP MAY REACH 150 MILLION DOLLARS! 'WE SHOULD NOT GO THERE'
While ships remaining out of the system for even a single day means millions of liras of damage, if they become completely unusable, costs of up to 150 million dollars arise. However, if the ships were anchored and kept out of harm's way before running aground and suffering severe hull damage, the damage could be one-twentieth of this amount. So what happens to ships that are beyond repair? Assoc. Dr. Ozan Hikmet Arıcan explains: "We see sinking more often in military ships. It is more common for commercial ships to be sent to scrap. However, when nothing is done when they can be saved without going to the scrapyard, the cost increases. When these ships are damaged and abandoned or nothing is done until they run aground, the extent of the damage and therefore the cost increases. The shipowner thinks, 'I cannot make any profit from this ship, let me stop the commercial activities of this ship, send it to the scrapyard, let me pay my losses. "Let me reduce it." So, if drones cannot be stopped, how will ships be protected?
