0
Views

Ukraine Knocks Out Kerch Strait Ferry, Disrupting Russian Fuel Supplies

Burning fuel tanks near the ferry landing at Kerch, Crimea (via Russian social media)
Burning fuel tanks near the ferry landing at Kerch, Crimea (via Russian social media)

Published Jun 21, 2026 10:48 PM by The Maritime Executive

Ukraine has launched another attack on the ferry crossing at Kerch Strait, forcing the operator to shut it down and divert military truck traffic onto the Mariupol-Melitopol highway - where it will be within range of constant Ukrainian drone strikes. 

Overnight Saturday, Ukraine's drone forces hit the port at Kerch, Crimea, destroying the majority of the fuel tanks at the marine terminal. Fires were also reported at Kavkaz, on the opposte side of the strait. 

Drones also struck at least one ferry, the Elena II, a commercial rail-ferry that state enterprise Rosmorport purchased from a Greek operator in 2024. It had been in operation on the Kerch Strait route since mid-2025. 

Unverified bystander video footage suggests that at least one other vessel was also hit, and local reports indicate that the ferry service is now out of commission. Fuel trucks are reportedly being diverted from the ferry crossing to the "R-280" road from occupied Mariupol to Crimea, where they will be targeted by Ukraine's medium-strike drone forces. 

Russia has another alternative in the form of the Kerch Strait Bridge, a first-rate road and rail crossing adjacent to the ferry route. But the Russian military has been reluctant to use this symbol of Russian presence for the purpose of moving munitions and fuel, as Ukraine has proven adept at leveraging secondary explosions and fires to cause outsize damage. In an attack in 2022, rail tank cars of fuel burst and burned for hours, likely weakening the rail span. The rail bridge's maximum weight capacity was reduced as a precautionary measure. After this hard-earned lesson, the Russian military has made every effort to keep its cargoes of artillery shells and diesel fuel off of the bridge, using the ferries at Kerch as an alternative for hazardous goods (until now). 

The R-280 road is itself a poor substitute: in addition to strikes on trucks on the roadway, Ukrainian forces have systematically destroyed road bridges near Crimea, slowing down truck movements. As a consequence of the logistics breakdown, fuel supplies on the peninsula are growing scarce. Russian authorities announced new rationing measures on Sunday, restricting fuel distribution to military and government use only.