Maritime attack
Drones strike cargo ship Chelsea 3 off Byala, Bulgaria; crew of 15 rescued
Black Sea, about 18 nautical miles east of Byala (Bulgarian exclusive economic zone), Bulgaria13 Oct 2026 · event dateapproximate location You are viewing revision 1 as published on 13 Oct 2026. The dossier text, evidence states, claims and sources of this revision are fixed; catalogue context such as cost estimates is not shown here. View the current version
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said the Maltese-flagged cargo ship Chelsea 3 was hit by three aerial drones about 18 nautical miles east of Byala, in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea, during the night of 12 to 13 October 2026. All 15 crew members were rescued.
AttributionNot established
What we know
The Border Police rescued all 15 crew members (seven Ukrainian and eight Azerbaijani nationals) and took them to Varna; five received treatment for minor injuries, according to BTA and BNT, while Sega reports six hurt, mostly with light burns. The ship, sailing empty from Giresun (Türkiye) to Giurgiulești (Moldova), stayed afloat and was at anchor.
Drone involvement rests on the statement of Bulgaria's prime minister, whose country is not a party to the war, and on the crew, who described three strikes on the deck and side. The national news agency BTA and the public broadcaster BNT report the statement; Sega adds the ship's route and management. A distress signal reached Bulgaria's maritime rescue centre at about 01:30 (Sega: 01:57). Sources give the distance as 15 or 18 nautical miles off Byala.
What remains unknown
Who launched the drones and from where is not established. The exact time of the strike is not given in the cited sources.
Operator attribution: Not established. Not established. Radev said there was no solid, clear evidence against any party, while arguing that the outcome benefits the Russian Federation; he said he would summon Russia's ambassador for talks.
How the story changed
A distress signal from the Chelsea 3, about 18 nautical miles east of Byala, reached Bulgaria's maritime rescue centre at about 01:30; the Border Police rescued the crew of 15 and took them to Varna. [2]
Prime Minister Radev called the attacks absolutely unacceptable, convened the Security Council of the Council of Ministers and said he would summon the Russian ambassador. [1]
Editorial changes
- Revision 1 · 13 Oct 2026Curated dossier created after checking the cited sources line by line.
Cite this dossier
DroneLedger. “Drones strike cargo ship Chelsea 3 off Byala, Bulgaria; crew of 15 rescued.” Dossier chelsea-3-drone-strike-off-byala-2026-10-13, revision 1, updated 13 Oct 2026. https://droneincidents.com/incident/chelsea-3-drone-strike-off-byala-2026-10-13/
Cite the revision you used: later revisions may change evidence states.
Curated dossier · sources checked line by line on 13 Oct 2026
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