A sailor realising he had hit something, a submarine, a sailor making notes on a clipboard. The Navy collided with a Russian submarine when its array sonar line hit the vessel in what could be the first collision since the Cold War.
The dramatic collision was captured on an episode of Warship Life at Sea (Footage: Channel 5 / EPA)

A British warship hit a Russian submarine in what could possibly be the primary collision because the Chilly Warfare.

A Royal Navy ship, the HMS Northumberland, was despatched round 200 miles north of Scotland to trace a Russian submarine believed to be within the North Atlantic in direction of the top of final yr – as is routine for the Navy.

Sailors despatched out an array sonar line – a cable with hydrophones throughout it – to pay attention out for submarine alerts from Moscow’s hunter-killer.

However they needed to abort the mission and return house after the cable got here again ‘badly chewed up and unusable’, in keeping with a supply quoted by The Solar.

The cable, which is as thick as a drainpipe, had apparently been ‘dragged over the submarine’s hull’.

Whether or not this was ‘deliberate or an accident’ on the Russian’s half is unknown.

Former frigate captain Commander Tom Sharpe mentioned: ‘Ship and submarine detection is just not a precise science. It may have been a detailed cross gone mistaken.’

A Russian submarine breaching the water. The Navy collided with a Russian submarine when its array sonar line hit the vessel in what could be the first collision since the Cold War.
The Ministry of Defence mentioned the Navy repeatedly tracks ships and submarines (Image: Wikipedia)

The entire thing was filmed throughout an episode of Channel 5’s Warship Life at Sea.

HMS Northumberland had been ‘tailing the Russians all night time’ earlier than deciding on a ‘new tactic’ – the array sonar line.

Footage exhibits an alarm abruptly going off as a sailor mentioned: ‘What the hell was that?’

One other crew member shouted: ‘What the f**ok have I simply hit?’ It was solely later that they realised what had occurred to the array sonar line.

The Ministry of Defence confirmed what occurred, including: ‘The Royal Navy repeatedly tracks overseas ships and submarines with a view to make sure the defence of the UK.’

A map showing where the submarine was when HMS Northumberland collided with it. The Navy collided with a Russian submarine when its array sonar line hit the vessel in what could be the first collision since the Cold War.
HMS Northumberland was monitoring the submarine when its array photo voltaic line was returned broken
A sailor realising HMS Northumberland had hit something. The Navy collided with a Russian submarine when its array sonar line hit the vessel in what could be the first collision since the Cold War.
The crew appeared frightened when the alarm abruptly went off to sign they'd hit one thing (Image: Channel 5)

The information comes as tensions stay excessive between the UK and Russia as an estimated 100,000 Russian troops have gathered on the Ukrainian border.

This, together with the army tools they've introduced with them, has sparked fears the superpower is planning to invade the nation it has seized earlier than.

Russia has denied that is its plan however submitted an inventory of calls for to the North Atlantic Treaty Group (NATO).

The US has mentioned it wants to complete its discussions with its European allies, together with Ukraine, earlier than responding.

Overseas Secretary Liz Truss instructed MPs on Thursday that ‘Russia is the aggressor right here’ and has ‘no justification for its bellicose stance in direction of Ukraine’.

She instructed the Commons: ‘We stand with our good friend in opposition to hostile actors and we'll defend democracy on the frontier of freedom in jap Europe and all over the world.

‘Any Russian army incursion into Ukraine can be an enormous strategic mistake and would come at a extreme price.

‘They've falsely solid Ukraine as a menace to justify their aggressive stance. They falsely accuse NATO of provocation – this might not be farther from the reality.

‘They've massed an enormous variety of troops alongside the Ukrainian border and in illegally annexed Crimea.

‘It's unprovoked and it's a part of a wider sample of behaviour by the Kremlin, reliant on disinformation and distrust to hunt to realize an higher hand.’

Metro.co.uk has contacted the Russian embassy in London for remark.

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