ED Shipping Withdraws Fleet as Black Sea Drone War Claims 31 Lives

Cargo crews in the Black Sea now face a different routine. They check their phones for radar pings, listen for the hum of sea drones, and keep life jackets zipped while the ship rolls in heavy swells. The danger has moved from the horizon to the hull.

Turkish carrier ED Shipping has idled 19 of its 26 vessels, a decision that halts most of its fleet. Chief Financial Officer Demre İşcen told the company is losing millions of dollars each month while ships sit in port. The carrier withdrew from the route after a June 5 attack on its vessel, the Circon, in the Sea of Azov, which killed two crew members.

Maritime risk firm Ambrey recorded more than 500 attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov this year. The firm attributes 40 of 45 strikes recorded in October to Russia. Moscow’s Ministry of Defence has acknowledged hitting dozens of ships this month, claiming the targets supported Ukraine’s military. Ukraine countered that the vessels carried stolen grain, military cargo, and fuel.

The toll on human life is rising. At least 31 seafarers have been killed or are missing. On Oct. 13, a drone struck the hull of the cargo ship HS Dignity. Chief Officer Ashraf Mamdouh, 42, ordered the 16 Syrian and Egyptian crew members to abandon the 123-metre vessel. A second drone rammed the ship as they tried to launch lifeboats. Mamdouh survived in a life raft for four hours before a passing vessel picked him up. Eleven crew members, including 18-year-old Hamza Suleiman, remain missing.

Khaldoun Nabelsi, head of the Syrian Seafarers Association of the U.K., has counted at least 18 Syrian seafarers killed. "Nobody is forced to take these jobs, but in other ways you are forced," he said. The Philippine government has barred its citizens from boarding vessels in the northern Black Sea. Romanian President Nicușor Dan blamed Russia for a recent attack on a Comoros-flagged ship near his country’s waters.

Survivors are waiting in Bulgaria for new travel documents to return home. Mamdouh said he will not sail in the Black Sea again. His crewmates are processing their papers to fly out of the region. The ships remain in port while the carriers wait for a safer corridor to reopen.