Lighthouses of Ukraine: Sea of Azov

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the northwestern coast of the Black Sea became part of the independent republic of Ukraine. Except for a brief period of independence during the Russian Revolution (1917-20), Ukraine had been part of Russian or Soviet empires since 1654. However, the coastline of the Black Sea was mostly under the control of the Ottoman (Turkish) Empire until it was taken by Russia during a series of wars in the second half of the 1700s.

The Ukrainian coast is in three sections. In the west is the bight of Odessa, named for Ukraine's largest port. In the center is the diamond shaped peninsula of Crimea. To the east is the Sea of Azov, connected to the rest of the Black Sea by the very narrow Kerch Strait. The Sea of Azov occupies a shallow elliptical basin about 225 km from east to west and 140 km from north to south (140 by 90 miles). The Gulf of Taganrog extends from the northeastern corner of the sea and forms the lower estuary of the River Don. The northwestern 60% of the sea lies in Ukraine and the southeastern 40% lies in Russia. Lighthouses of the Russian shore are listed on the Southern Russia page. The Ukrainian coast features four long sand spits projecting to the south.

Lighthouses in Ukraine are maintained by Gosgidrografiya, the hydrography and navigation service of the Ministry of Transport and Communications.

The Ukrainian word for a lighthouse is mayak, identical to the Russian word. As in Russia, the provinces of the country are called oblasts.

ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. UA numbers are the Ukrainian light list numbers as reported by Ukrainian Lighthouses on the Air. Admiralty numbers are from volume E of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 113.

General Sources
Ukrainian Lighthouses on the Air (ULA)
This web site by Ukrainian amateur radio operators has valuable information about the lights and many photos. The ULA lighthouse list is available here.
Lighthouses in Ukraine
The ARLHS Ukraine listing; photos contributed by Ukrainian amateur radio operators are available for many of the lighthouses.
Gosgidrografiya - Lighthouses
A dozen unlabeled photos of Ukrainian lights, posted by Gosgidrografiya.
Russische Leuchttürme auf historischen Postkarten
Historic postcard images posted by Klaus Huelse.

Berdyansk Verkhniy Light
Berdyansk Verkhniy Light, October 2010
photo copyright Valentin Osadchenko; used by permission
Donetsk Oblast Lighthouses
Azovstal Range Front
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 22 m (72 ft); continuous green light visible only on the range line. 22 m (72 ft) square skeletal tower carrying a white slatted daymark with a black vertical stripe. No photo available, but Google has a satellite view. Port Azovstal, located about 5 km (3 mi) east of Mariupol's traditional waterfront, serves the giant Azovstal steel works, the largest steel plant in Ukraine and one of the largest in the former Soviet Union. Located on the east side of the mouth of the Kalmius River. Site and tower closed. ARLHS UKR-085; UA-4720; Admiralty E5510; NGA 18756.
Azovstal Range Middle
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 53 m (174 ft); continuous green light visible only on the range line. 37 m (121 ft) square skeletal tower carrying a white slatted daymark with a black vertical stripe. No photo available, but Google has a good satellite view. Located beside the main railroad line in the middle of the steel plant. Site and tower closed. ARLHS UKR-086; UA-4721; Admiralty E5510.1; NGA 18760.
Azovstal Range Rear
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 66 m (217 ft); continuous green light visible only on the range line. 34 m (112 ft) square skeletal tower carrying a white slatted daymark with a black vertical stripe. No photo available, but Google has a satellite view. Located beside the highway entrance on the east side of the steel plant. Site and tower closed. ARLHS UKR-087; UA-4722; Admiralty E5510.2; NGA 18764.
Mariupol' East Entrance Range Front
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 20 m (66 ft); red light, 1 s on, 1 s off, visible only on the range line. 19 m (62 ft) square skeletal tower, painted black. No photo available; the shadow of the tower is believed to be centered in a Google satellite view. Located at the foot of a pier about 1 km (0.6 mi) northeast of the West Entrance Range Front Light. Site and tower closed. ARLHS UKR-089; UA-4665; Admiralty E5484; NGA 18724.
Mariupol' East Entrance Range Rear
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 41 m (135 ft); continuous red light. 13 m (43 ft) square tower on a white "dwelling," according to NGA. No photo available. The light may be centered in this Google satellite view. The location of this light is about 200 m southwest of the West Entrance Range Middle lighthouse. Site status unknown. ARLHS UKR-090; UA-4666; Admiralty E5484.1; NGA 18728.
Mariupol' West Entrance Range Front
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 27 m (89 ft); two continuous green lights, one above the other, visible only on the range line; for general navigation there is also a white light, 1 s on, 1 s off, at a focal plane of 19 m (62 ft). Approx. 24 m (79 ft) square skeletal tower, painted black. The tower also carries a large slatted daymark painted white with a black vertical stripe. Vadim Tolbatov has a photo showing the lower half of the tower, and Google has a satellite view. Located on a building materials quay, not far from the Old Gate mole lights. Site and tower closed. ARLHS UKR-024; UA-4530; Admiralty E5478; NGA 18732.
* Mariupol' West Entrance Range Middle
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 57 m (187 ft); a continuous red light is shown on the range line, but for general navigation a red light with one brighter flash and one occultation every 4.5 s is shown. 23.5 m (77 ft) square cylindrical masonry tower with lantern and gallery, rising from the front of a 2-story masonry keeper's house. Lighthouse painted white with a black vertical stripe. No photo available, but Google has a good satellite view. Located a short distance north of the Port Mariupol' waterfront. Site open, tower closed. UA-4531; Admiralty E5478.1; NGA 18736.
Mariupol' West Entrance Range Rear
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 86 m (282 ft); two continuous red lights, one above the other, visible only on the range line. 21 m (69 ft) triangular pyramidal skeletal tower, painted black. No photo available. Located about 1 km (0.6 mi) north of the middle light. Site status unknown. ARLHS UKR-091; UA-4532; Admiralty E5478.2; NGA 18740.
Port Mariupol' (Old Gate) North Mole
Date unknown (station established 1891). Active; focal plane 9 m (30 ft); green flash every 3 s. 9 m (30 ft) hexagonal tower with lantern and gallery, attached to a 1-story equipment house. Entire lighthouse painted green. No closeup photo available, but the lighthouse is seen at the extreme right in Vadim Tolbatov's photo of the harbor entrance (click on the photo for a better view) and rather poorly in a Google satellite view. Huelse has a postcard view of one of the original lights, but we don't know which mole it was on. Mariupol' is a major port just inside the entrance to Taganrogsky Bay, an estuary at the northeast corner of the Sea of Azov that forms the mouth of the Don River. Port Mariupol' is an industrial harbor on the south side of the city. The narrow entrance between the two moles is called the Old Gate. Located at the northern end of the detached South Breakwater. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. Admiralty E5490; NGA 18720.
Port Mariupol' (Old Gate) South Mole
Date unknown (station established 1891). Active; focal plane 9 m (30 ft); red flash every 3 s. 9 m (30 ft) hexagonal tower with lantern and gallery, attached to a 1-story equipment house. Entire lighthouse painted red. No closeup photo available, but the lighthouse is seen in Vadim Tolbatov's photo of the harbor entrance (click on the photo for a better view) and in a Google satellite view. Located at the northern end of the detached South Breakwater. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. Admiralty E5492; NGA 18716.
* Belosaray (Belosarayskiy Kosa)
1836. Active; focal plane 21 m (69 ft); white light,1.5 s on, 1.5 s off, 1.5 s on, 4.5 s off. 19 m (62 ft) octagonal stone tower with lantern and gallery, attached to the seaward side of a 1-story masonry keeper's house. Lighthouse painted white. Andrew Butko's photo is at right, Arkady Dremov also has a photo, and Google has a satellite view. This lighthouse, the oldest on the Sea of Azov, was built at the end of the easternmost of the four major sand spits on the north side of the sea. Since 1836, however, the spit has lengthened westward about 2.5 km (1.5 mi). Located about 28 km (17.5 mi) southwest of Mariupol'. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS UKR-002; UA-4300; Admiralty E5472; NGA 18680.
Belosaray Light
Belosaray Light
Wikimedia Creative Commons photo by Andrew Butko

Zaporizhia Oblast Lighthouses
Berdyansk Nizhniy
1860. Active; focal plane 24 m (79 ft); white light, 4.5 s on, 3 s off. Approx. 22 m (72 ft) octagonal masonry tower with lantern and gallery, attached to a 2-story masonry keeper's house. It appears that the light is now displayed from the gallery rail. Lighthouse painted with red and white horizontal bands. Olya Usova's photo is at right, Ivan Antipoff has a 2008 photo, another 2008 photo is available, Huelse has a historic postcard view, and Google has a fuzzy satellite view. Located at the end of a long, hook-shaped spit about 10 km (6 mi) south of Berdyansk. Accessible only by boat and perhaps by 4WD. Site status unknown. ARLHS UKR-003; UA-4280; Admiralty E5454; NGA 18640.
* Berdyansk Verkhniy (1)
Date unknown. Inactive. Approx. 11 m (36 ft) square cylindrical masonry tower rising from the front of a 1-story brick keeper's house. Tower painted white; the house is unpainted red brick. A photo (evidently taken from the top of the newer lighthouse) is available, and Google has a satellite view. We don't know the present use of the building. Located about 100 m (110 yd) northeast of the active lighthouse. Site open, tower closed.
* Berdyansk Verkhniy (2)
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 72 m (236 ft); three red flashes every 9.4 s. 33 m (108 ft) octagonal masonry tower with lantern and gallery, painted with red and white horizontal bands. Valentin Osadchenko's photo is at the top of this page, and Google has a good satellite view. Berdyansk is a substantial port on the central north coast of the Sea of Azov, due north of the Kerch Strait. Located on a bluff about 400 m (1/4 mi) north of the beach and about 2.5 km (1.5 mi) northwest of the port area of Berdyansk. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS UKR-004; UA-4187; Admiralty E5458; NGA 18648.
* Novokonstantinovskiy (Camp Myaak)
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 31 m (102 ft); white flash every 6 s. 22 m (72 ft) square cylindrical skeletal tower with gallery, mounted at one end of a 3-story dormitory building. Tower painted red. John Samples has a photo, amateur radio operator UR6QR has a page with photos, and Google has an indistinct satellite view. At the time of Samples's photo, this former Soviet facility was in use as a Christian summer camp operated by an American charity. Its current status is not known. Located on the coast at Novokonstantinovka, about 35 km (22 mi) southeast of Melitopol. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS UKR-094; UA-4170; Admiralty E5448; NGA 18628.
Berdyansk Nizhniy Light
Berdyansk Nizhniy Light, July 2009
Panoramio Creative Commons photo by Olya Usovaツ

Kherson Oblast Lighthouses
Biryuchiy (Ostrov Biryuchiy)
Date unknown (station established 1882). Active; focal plane 27 m (89 ft); two long (1.5 s) white flashes every 7.5 s. 25 m (82 ft) octagonal masonry tower, painted white. Alexander Nikishin has a closeup photo, a 2008 photo is available, two additional photos are available (halfway down the page), and there's a distant view from the sea, but the tower is hard to see in Google's satellite view. Located at the tip of a long sand spit (westernmost of the four on the north coast of the Sea of Azov) about 15 km (9 mi) southeast of Henicesk. May be accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS UKR-005; UA-4135; Admiralty E5436; NGA 18608.
* Genicheskiy (Geniches'k)
1879. Active; focal plane 21 m (69 ft); white flash ever 5 s; there is also a continuous red light with a lower focal plane. 12 m (39 ft) square cylindrical masonry tower rising at the front of a 2-story masonry keeper's house. Lighthouse painted white with a black vertical stripe. A 2007 photo is available, Wikimapia has a photo, Huelse has a historic postcard view, Michel Forand has the same postcard view, and Google has a satellite view. According to a Ukrainian Wikipedia article on Geniches'k, the lighthouse was "illegally occupied" by Russian troops, but we don't know if that is still the case. Located on the beach at Geniches'k, a town at the extreme western end of the Sea of Azov. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS UKR-019; UA-4140; Admiralty E5438.

Information available on lost lighthouses:

Notable faux lighthouses:

Adjoining pages: East: Russia Black Sea | West: Crimea

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Posted February 19, 2007. Checked and revised September 13, 2011. Lighthouses: 17. Site copyright 2011 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.