Oleksandr Boichuk. Photo: Bogdan Kutiepov Facebook
Oleksandr Boichuk, a senior midshipman and former commander of Ukraine’s only minesweeper Henichesk – destroyed by Russian forces – has returned from Russian captivity as part of a new prisoner exchange.
Source: journalist Bohdan Kutiepov on social media
Details: Kutiepov reported that Boichuk is a defender of Mariupol who went missing at the start of the full-scale invasion. For the first year, he was not even listed among the living, but his wife continued to believe and wait for him. She and their sons also joined the armed forces.
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Quote from Kutiepov: “Oleksandr Boichuk – the legendary commander of Ukraine’s only minesweeper (now destroyed), who sailed the ship away during the annexation of Crimea in 2014 – is coming home! This is incredible joy! Believe, all of you who have lost hope! Miracles happen.”
More details: Boichuk appeared in Kutiepov’s 2017 documentary Henichesk, for which the filmmaker spent two days at sea with the ship’s crew. The film tells the story of “the adventures of a ‘Banderite commander’ and the crew of a small but proud minesweeper Henichesk”.
Boichuk is originally from Volodymyr in Volyn Oblast. He was transferred to the navy in 2009.
During the annexation of Crimea in March 2014, Russian forces blockaded Ukrainian ships at their bases. Despite refusing to surrender or join Russia, most of the fleet – 51 ships – was seized. Only a small fraction of Ukraine’s navy remained loyal.
Oleksandr Boichuk starred in Kutiepov’s documentary Henichesk, which was released in 2017.
Photo: Bogdan Kutiepov Facebook
Boichuk was also offered to defect in exchange for social benefits, but he pretended to consider the offer, gaining time for a manoeuvre. The Ukrainian crew attempted to escape with the minesweeper but were intercepted and severely beaten.
Henichesk was one of the few vessels Russia returned to Ukraine, deeming it fit only for scrap due to its expired service life. However, Ukrainian sailors, using their own initiative, repaired the ship without modern equipment. Despite its age, Henichesk continued to serve and took part in joint exercises with NATO vessels.
The minesweeper was destroyed in August 2022, when Come Back Alive Foundation director Taras Chmut reported that the vessel was sunk during a mission after being hit by cruise missiles launched from occupied Crimea.
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