Explosives-Packed Jet Ski Drone Appears Off Turkish Coast

A highly-modified jet ski loaded with explosives has been found off the Turkish coast near Istanbul. The uncrewed vehicle is likely part of a growing armada of Ukrainian kamikaze drone boats that have been notably effective in disrupting Russian Navy activities in the Black Sea and have sunk or damaged multiple warships.

According to reports in the Turkish media, the adapted jet ski was found drifting off the coast of the district of Çatalca, close to Istanbul. Photos of the craft show that’s fitted with an electro-optical sensor turret and a planar satellite communication antenna, as well as other antennas. The jet ski’s hull is augmented for additional buoyancy via a wrap around inflatable fender system. Various electronic boxes are also strapped to the personal watercraft. Reports state that the jet ski was found fitted with two warheads. A Transformers sticker is seen placed prominently on the drone boat’s top cowling.

Independent naval analyst H.I. Sutton has identified the basic craft as being a Yamaha WaveRunner design.

Bearing in mind the distance between the Turkish shore and the craft’s likely area of operations in waters around Crimea, at the other end of the Black Sea, it’s highly probable that the craft was at sea for some time before being recovered. That would also be consistent with the battered paintwork, with areas of gray paint already peeling away.

The craft is now being examined by the Turkish Gendarmerie.

Presuming this is a Ukrainian craft, this would be among our best views so far of this kind of uncrewed surface vehicle (USV). However, it wouldn’t be the first time that Ukraine has adapted a jet ski as a kamikaze drone.

A similar but different design emerged in July 2023, when examples were apparently used in an attack on the major Russian Black Sea Fleet naval base at Sevastopol in Crimea, and on the Kerch Bridge that connects Crimea to the Russian mainland.

Ukraine has also used jet ski components in other one-way attack USV designs. One of the first such drone boats noted in September 2022 combined water jet propulsion often found on personal watercraft and small jet boats with a specially made hull.

More recently, however, increasing use appears to have been made of commercial off-the-shelf jet skis with more limited changes, chiefly relating to the guidance system and warhead. In the past, Ukraine’s modified jet skis have had their handlebars removed, but the example found off the Turkish coast retains these, although the seat has been taken off.

As seen in the photo below, the latest modified jet ski also features a large white box where the seat cushion would normally be found.

Since these adapted personal watercraft started showing up in Ukraine, there has been a growing trend for USVs built on jet ski platforms, including in the United States. Ukraine’s widespread use of adapted jet skis, among other small USVs, as kinetic weapons has sparked huge interest overall for similar capabilities by militaries large and small.

This is also all part of a growing focus on jet skis for a wide range of covert missions, also with future conflicts in the Pacific theater in mind.

Along with carrying explosives for one-way attack missions, jet skis adapted as USVs can undertake missions such as personnel infiltration/exfiltration, logistics support, and surveillance.

At the same time, Ukrainian forces have also made plenty of use of crewed jet skis for military operations against Russia. In particular, these craft have been a popular choice for carrying out commando raids behind enemy lines, as you can read more about here, in an exclusive interview with operatives from the Stugna unit. Using jet skis for these kinds of military operations, and others, is also well-established, within (especially) special forces units around the globe.

Generally, jet skis are readily available on the commercial marketplace and can be fairly easily adapted for a range of tasks. Small, highly maneuverable, and fast, they are very tricky targets for hostile forces to deal with. It’s no surprise that Ukraine has made use of them to take on the Russians and that their success in this theater has spurred a wider interest.

With that in mind, Ukrainian military adaptations of commercially produced jet skis will likely continue for both crewed and uncrewed missions, including kamikaze drone attacks.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com