On February 24, based on the last message sent by the Russian tug Churov, we learned that the vessel, which had been anchored for several days off the coast of Sollum, Egypt, had resumed its journey eastward. A post by the Spanish Navy later confirmed that the submarine Krasnodar was continuing its navigation alongside the tug.
La fragata F-101 #AlvaroDeBazan, desplegada en la Agrupación Naval Permanente de la @NATO #SNMG2, realiza actividades de seguimiento de buques y unidades rusas en aguas del mediterráneo oriental. Protegemos los espacios marítimos de la Alianza. #MOPS @Armada_esp pic.twitter.com/yHX7evsdIN
— Estado Mayor Defensa 🇪🇸 (@EMADmde) February 27, 2025
The messages sent by the Churov included, among other things, a brief weather bulletin with the coordinates of the tug at the time of the report and its speed. The communications were transmitted in Morse code. Since then, the Churov and its travel companion have disappeared.
In reality, the Churov has still shown “signs of life,” but only through encrypted messages, without revealing its location.
What happened to the Churov? The main hypothesis is that the tug, along with the Krasnodar, is merely transiting through the Mediterranean, with the Suez Canal as its destination to enter the Red Sea. If that is the case, the tug may have already crossed the canal (though visual confirmation is nearly impossible). Alternatively, it could still be in the eastern Mediterranean, but without visual confirmation, this remains speculation.
UPDATE
Exactly 7 minutes after our post was published, the tug Churov sent a new message indicating its current position.
Why ? What is the purpose of a submarine being escorted by a tug ??
Could it be the tugs noise masks the submarine when it leave the immediate area ??