British Warship Collided With Russian 'Hunter-Killer' Submarine, Claims UK Defence Ministry

The "collision" news comes amid ongoing claims by Western media outlets and officials that Russia is preparing "an invasion" of Ukraine, allegations that Moscow rejects as unsubstantiated.

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has claimed that a Russian "hunter-killer" submarine collided with a Royal Navy warship, which was on a patrol mission in the North Atlantic a couple of years ago.

A spokesperson said that "in late 2020 a Russian submarine being tracked by HMS Northumberland [Type 23 frigate] came into contact with her towed array sonar", adding, "the Royal Navy regularly tracks foreign ships and submarines in order to ensure the defence of the United Kingdom".

A view taken 06 May 2007 shows the Royal Navy frigate, HMS Northumberland

© AFP 2023 / NELLY FLORES

The Defence Ministry released a comment on the incident after a video emerged allegedly showing the moment. It was caught on camera by a Channel 5 TV crew who were shooting for the show "Warship: Life At Sea", which airs on Monday evenings.

In the video capturing the moment of impact, believed to be the first collision between Russian and British vessels since the Cold War, a crew member of HMS Northumberland is heard shouting "what the f*** have I just hit?"

The footage also showed the warship's commander, Thom Hobbs, saying that his vessel was "very close to the submarine" and that "if they were on the surface we would definitely see faces".

The Sun cited an unnamed Royal Navy source as saying that "[the sonar device] was badly chewed up and unusable" as a result of the incident, arguing that "the crew of the submarine would have sh*t themselves".

The source described the collision as a "million-to-one chance event", which they claimed must have been an accident that reportedly occurred 200 miles (321 kilometres) north of Scotland.

Last year, UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace warned that Russian submarines are allegedly "circling Britain's entire coastline", a claim that was preceded by then-US Second Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Andrew Lewis asserting in 2020 that the US Navy no longer feels uncontested in the Atlantic.

"We are seeing an ever-increasing number of Russian submarines deployed in the Atlantic, and these submarines are more capable than ever, deploying for longer periods of time and with more lethal weapon systems", Lewis said at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

As for the "collision" incident, it comes amid ongoing tensions between Russia and the West, who accuse Moscow of preparing "an invasion" of Ukraine. The Kremlin denies the accusations as unsubstantiated, pointing to NATO's increased military activity near Russia's borders.