Russia Launched Drones from Shadow Fleet to Spy on European Nuclear Bases: Report

Russia utilized its fleet of sanctioned shadow oil tankers to deploy surveillance drones over sensitive nuclear weapons installations in Britain and continental Europe, according to a report by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

The maritime espionage campaign spanned 15 months and 13 European nations, systematically probing gaps in NATO air defenses between August 2024 and February 2026.

The intelligence operations targeted military bases, airports, and critical civilian infrastructure.

Targeting Strategic Air and Naval Bases

The IISS analysis mapped specific drone incursions against the precise locations of Russian shadow fleet vessels.

Among the primary targets was RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, a U.S. airbase preparing to store nuclear ordnance, which experienced a week-long series of drone breaches in November 2024 alongside three other U.S. installations in England.

Strategic nuclear infrastructure across continental Europe was subject to similar surveillance.

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) targeted France’s highly restricted Île Longue submarine base in Brittany, which hosts the bulk of the French nuclear deterrent, alongside nuclear-capable airbases located in Belgium and the Netherlands.

The Mechanism of Maritime Espionage

The mass expulsion of Russian intelligence personnel from European capitals after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine severely degraded Moscow's traditional human espionage apparatus on the continent.

In response, the Kremlin adapted by transforming sanctioned commercial maritime vessels into covert launch platforms.

Analysts identified the sanctioned Russian tanker Hav Dolphin as a primary asset in the campaign.

The vessel was docked near Hull during the Suffolk airbase incursions and was later tracked near Portsmouth during the December 2025 security breach at the French naval base.

The Hav Dolphin is suspected of acting as a mobile carrier for sophisticated, long-range military UAVs such as the Orlan-10.

These compact, multi-purpose platforms possess an operational range exceeding 300 miles, allowing vessels to launch operations while remaining in international waters or commercial shipping lanes.

Coordinated Actions and Blackout Tracking

The IISS report detailed additional coordinated maritime operations, including an incident where drones were deployed directly from a Russian intelligence vessel toward a French aircraft carrier.

The geographical distribution and timing of the sightings indicate a highly organized state program rather than isolated occurrences.

A separate incident occurred in the Irish Sea on December 2, 2025, coinciding with a diplomatic visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Dublin.

Four large, military-specification UAVs operated for two hours over an Irish naval vessel, the LÉ William Butler Yeats, before flying toward the coast.

During the Dublin incursion, the Maltese-flagged vessel Vezhen, previously detained by Swedish authorities over damage to Baltic undersea fiber-optic cables, was loitering 37 miles away.

Satellite data confirmed a second, unidentified vessel operating nearby with its transponder deactivated to evade monitoring.

Strategic Vulnerabilities and NATO Response

Western political leadership and defense officials initially minimized the significance of the airspace incursions, hesitating to formally attribute the activity to Moscow.

Security experts warn that this hesitation has exposed a critical gap between Western defensive capabilities and political will.

NATO's Allied Maritime Command stated that the alliance is actively analyzing emerging maritime-launched threats.

Officials emphasized that allied forces maintain continuous surveillance across the maritime domain and possess the necessary capabilities to respond to both infrastructure sabotage and vessel-launched drone operations.