ARTICLE
Putin’s £100m yacht flees to Arctic
Fri, July 3, 2026 at 12:17 PM EDT
https://www.yahoo.com/news/world/articles/putin-100m-yacht-flees-arctic-161731229.html
A £100m super-yacht believed to be owned by Vladimir Putin is fleeing Europe to avoid Ukrainian drone attacks.
The 82m Graceful is traversing the coast of Norway on course to reach the northern Russian port of Murmansk in the coming days, according to maritime intelligence data and satellite imagery analyzed by The Telegraph.
It is sailing under the escort of two Russian naval vessels and under the watchful eye of Nato.
The yacht has been pictured sailing with anti-drone nets covering its deck.
It is being shadowed by a heavily armed Russian I-class destroyer, the Severomorsk, as well as a 7,500-ton Russian salvage and patrol ship, the Voevoda, in the latest demonstration of Putin’s growing paranoia.
The convoy is being monitored by Nato, while German and Danish Navy patrol ships shadowed the vessels on their voyage through the Baltic, according to a senior Nato source.
Putin is understood to have taken numerous trips aboard the yacht, including a 2021 voyage in the Black Sea with Alexander Lukashenko, the president of Belarus, according to US government filings.
The vessel is equipped with both saltwater and freshwater pools, a helipad, gym, and secure government communications systems.
It was relocated from the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg, Germany, to the Russian shipping enclave of Kaliningrad 17 days before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The luxury yacht has been pictured sailing with anti-drone nets covering its deck
The luxury yacht reportedly has anti-drone nets covering its deck - Frank Behling/Kieler Nachrichten
Four months later, the US designated the yacht as blocked property under sanctions, forcing the vessel to rename itself the Kosatka, meaning “Killer Whale” in Russian.
I wonder if Putin’s family are on board.