Retired British couple Jane Kelvey and her husband Alan were on their way to northern France when the incident happened.
A British woman onboard a yacht in the English Channel which sailors on a Russian warship fired warning shots near to “prevent a possible collision” said the incident was “a bit scary”.
Jane Kelvey, 68, and her husband Alan, 70, were on their 40ft yacht, Bright Future, travelling from the south coast of England towards France when shots were fired several times from the Russian frigate Admiral Grigorovich.
“It was a bit scary,” Mrs Kelvey told The i Paper. “I crouched down. I didn’t think our safety was in danger. But it was certainly unusual. As we sailed away, we said to each other, what the hell just happened?”
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the Russian vessel fired warning shots after making attempts to contact the yacht, which was about 20 nautical miles south of the Isle of Wight, outside the UK’s territorial waters.
An MoD spokesperson said: “These (shots) were not aimed at the vessel and were an attempt to prevent a possible collision.”
The warship had been drifting rather than being manoeuvred under power, it is understood.
Mrs Kelvey, who retired in 2023 alongside her husband, said the shots were “totally unnecessary”, adding: “We didn’t have any contact from them (Admiral Grigorovich) on our radio.”
Russian warships passing through the English Channel are routinely shadowed by the Royal Navy, with offshore patrol vessel HMS Mersey monitoring the Admiral Grigorovich at the time of the incident on Tuesday.
The British couple said they contacted the UK Coastguard before a boat from HMS Tyne, another patrol vessel, was sent to the yacht to gather details and check they were safe.
The MoD spokesperson added: “We assess that this is an isolated incident and not linked to the UK’s interception of the Smyrtos this weekend.”
A translation of a statement posted on the Telegram channel for the Russian defence ministry said the yacht had been on a “dangerous approach” and the warning shots were fired after attempting to draw the attention of the yacht’s crew through signal flares and sound signals.
It said the Russian sailors had acted “in strict accordance” with international shipping regulations.
The Russian statement named the couple’s yacht, saying it was en route to Cherbourg, France.
