Zim Confirms Loss of Containership Attacked in Black Sea off Bulgaria
Officials in Bulgaria reported the Greek-owned containership Contship Jet, which was operating under charter to Zim, sank around midnight on October 29, approximately 12 hours after the ship was attacked. It is at least the fifth commercial ship attacked in Bulgaria’s EEZ in recent weeks, with military officials addressing the growing concerns for maritime safety.
Zim issued a brief statement confirming the charter and saying the owner, Contship Management, had informed it that the crew was rescued and is now in Bulgaria. The company referred to the vessel as a “small containership carrying a limited number of containers” and said the expected financial damage is minimal. It said it was aware of several similar attacks on ships in the area and that it was working to secure a replacement vessel and maintain service to its customers.
Bulgaria sent teams to the site when the ship went down, approximately 17 nautical miles east of Varna. It said there were no immediate signs of pollution from the ship.
The Contship Jet (18,000 dwt) went down with 421 containers onboard after it was struck by three sea drones. The ship had a capacity for up to 1,267 TEU. The reports said the manifest reflected that the ship had been transporting lithium-ion batteries, corrosive liquids, acids, and other industrial components.
KARADEN?Z’DE SALDIRI ANI KAMERADA! Bulgaristan aç?klar?nda üç insans?z deniz arac?n?n hedef ald??? Liberya bayrakl? CONTSHIP JET konteyner gemisi batt?. Gemideki 18 denizcinin tamam? kurtar?ld?. Sald?r?n?n ard?ndan yakla??k 20 konteyner denize dü?tü. #Karadeniz #CONTSHIPJET https://t.co/hL3BrQcE61
— The Maritime Voice (@MaritimeVoice) October 29, 2026
???? WATCH: A ZIM vessel sailing from Haifa to Bulgaria sank in a drone attack in the Black Sea, involving at least three drones. Dramatic footage shows the ship sinking. All crew members were rescued unharmed. The vessel and its 421 containers carrying valuable equipment were completely lost at sea. Oren Caspi, chairman of ZIM’s workers’ committee, said the circumstances of the unusual attack remain unclear and are still being investigated.
— ??? ?????? Guy Azriel | Diplomatic Correspondent (@GuyAz) October 29, 2026
The media are saying that, based on the videos, it appears to be a new type of drone. Government officials would only say that they were collecting and analyzing evidence and again declined to name any suspects in the attack.
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Military leaders who interviewed with Bulgarian TV denied reports that the country had been caught unprepared for the latest attack. They confirmed that a French patrol plane had spotted the drones and issued a warning. Bulgaria’s outgoing Chief of Defense, Admiral Emil Eftimov, said on bTV they had planes on standby. However, he asserted that the drones had not entered Bulgaria’s territorial waters, and they legally could not act while the drones were in the EEZ. He said, in addition, bad weather conditions had hampered their efforts.
Admiral Eftimov said that since the summer the “Bulgarian Navy responded to more than 100 reports of drones and aerial and maritime debris.” He said they were in constant contact with NATO’s military command and closely monitoring the increased activity. Yesterday, Bulgaria, along with Romania and Turkey, denounced the continuing attacks and said they were aligning their efforts to increase security in the Black Sea region.
