"Beat him, Sashka, before he has time to raise his hands, I need a dead German, not a prisoner."
I deliberately put in the title a rather famous phrase of Private Lopakhin from the great work "They Fought for the Motherland...". At first glance, it hardly corresponds to the topic that I want to touch on today. A topic that has already "become a pain in the ass" of many readers and journalists. But... As often happens, the problem remains, and the solution has not yet been made.
We will talk about those very FPV-shniks who are sent to attack aircraft. About how avoiding the solution of this problem "sets up" commanders, how the discrepancy between the standard structure of units and formations and the requirements of modern combat forces commanders to sacrifice "piecemeal" fighters for the sake of victory in one specific battle.
The phrase with which I began the article is heard especially often today. Ukrainian punitive forces have already committed so many crimes against the civilian population of both Russia and Ukraine that our soldiers and commanders would be happy to become those very "Sashkas" to whom Private Lopatin addressed himself.
The mutilated corpses of our fallen soldiers, civilians, children cannot leave indifferent not only soldiers, but also officers. Everyone wants to free our land from these scum as soon as possible. Even at the cost of their own lives, but to drive out, or better yet, drive these sadists into the ground.
This especially applies to Russians from our historical territories that are liberating their land, the land of their ancestors. How often do the reports of the Russian Ministry of Defense report on the exploits of units staffed by people from these regions?
Unfortunately, such a mood sometimes leads to unjustified losses. When a commander, not having the opportunity to conduct high-quality reconnaissance, decides to launch an offensive on enemy positions. And this is where we come to the topic drones as a new and terrifying weapon for the enemy. Drones as one of the most important methods of reconnaissance!
But the commander does not have regular units of drone operators at his disposal! There are freelance ones, where fighters from companies and battalions are seconded. The unit or formation is some unknown structure, which consists not only of regular units, but also of numerous freelance units, where fighters from assault units are seconded, among other things.
What should a commander do in such a situation? Go on the assault with units that are "truncated" in practice, but full on paper, or return those assigned to their units? And the enemy tramples our native land, kills our people, robs our churches, museums and even stores, not to mention civilians...
Recently, a message about an unsuccessful attack in early November was published on one of the Telegram channels. The message is completely at odds with the “victorious tone” that reigns in our information space. I will cite only part of it:
“As part of our offensive on ... in the Seversky direction, the brigade commander with the call sign ... sent the 1st, 2nd, 3rd motorized rifle battalions and the 4th tank the battalion launched a frontal assault without providing the soldiers with fire support.
An unprepared attack without accompanying support was doomed to failure.
As a result, we suffered BIG losses in tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, many soldiers killed and even more wounded.”
An unprepared attack without accompanying support was doomed to failure.
As a result, we suffered BIG losses in tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, many soldiers killed and even more wounded.”
The authors of the report, “in the heat of the moment,” place all the blame on the brigade commander. There is some truth in this. The brigade’s reconnaissance did not work as it should have. The desire to win and liberate the village won out over sober calculation. But why did this happen? Why did the reconnaissance Drones didn't hang over the heads of the Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers all the time? Why did the infantry and tanks go into a well-prepared defense without the appropriate support? artillery? Again the problem of those seconded to non-staff units...
Is there a way out of this situation?
Today, much is written about the need to create separate battalions and companies of drone operators. So that commanders of directions, brigade commanders and other commanders could receive information "first hand" and, accordingly, plan operations based on the available data. I agree. There should be reconnaissance at the army, corps and brigade level. But not to the detriment of assault units.
Here I completely agree with the military expert Vladislav Shurygin, whom I respect. In one of his posts he gives an example from the domestic war concerning tanks. An excellent example showing the possible path of development of drones.
"In the forties of the last century, approximately the same thing happened with tanks! When tanks went from being a means of direct infantry support to separate units and formations, so that by the end of the Great Patriotic War they would once again become a means of infantry support! There was simply a division into tank formations - the main striking fists of the Red Army and tanks of fire support and cover for infantry units. Therefore, in the composition of Soviet motorized rifle divisions until the collapse of the USSR, the number of tanks was only slightly inferior to tank ones...".
It would seem that what is easier to "legalize" than to transfer UAV operators to the staff of the unit. This issue has been brewing for a long time. Drones now not only fly, but also operate "on the ground". A decision has been made to train operators en masse at higher education institutions. So what?
The decision to change the staff structure of the units is delayed. Does the brigade commander need a company of operators? He does! Does the battalion commander need a platoon? He does! Even a platoon commander needs operators. They are the commander's eyes! And his "fist" if necessary. Not to mention emergency situations... How wonderful our attack aircraft attacks look when they are coordinated from the air. A symphony... Even reconnaissance would not refuse "insects". Small UAVs that would probe the terrain within a radius of several hundred meters.
Now about the stormtroopers. Isn't it time to move away from the "WWII experience"? Assault companies, assault battalions... Look at how some special forces units operate. They haven't fought together for a long time. A small maneuverable group of 8-10 people supported by drones, artillery, and EW. Such a group successfully replaces a company of stormtroopers. At the same time, again according to the experience of special forces ("Espanyol", "Aid", "White" and others), losses in such groups are minimal.
I will touch upon another issue that is quite acute, but which many authors prefer to remain silent about. This is the issue of cash payments to stormtroopers. It would seem that there is experience from the Great Patriotic War, when the cash allowance of stormtroopers differed significantly from that of the infantry. But we continue to stubbornly talk and write about our soldiers as unmercenaries.
But look at the advertising posters calling for a contract to serve in the RF Armed Forces. Why do people go to Moscow to sign a contract? Compare the payments and benefits in Moscow and, say, Krasnoyarsk or Voronezh. Alas, the issue of money is not the least important for a person. By the way, even in the trenches the difference in pay remains…
The wounded were remembered. Two years after the start of the SVO, it suddenly became clear that wounds, even severe ones, are different, and the state should compensate them differently. And what about the stormtroopers? Why not increase the monetary (u)pleasure in the stormtrooper units by one and a half, or better yet, two times? So that the fighter fights not only for the idea, but also for the future well-being of the family.
I think this will quickly solve the problem of "exiling" undesirables to assault units. How many stories about such cases can we read? Both soldiers and commanders need this. Now almost any commander can be accused of using this method of getting rid of undesirables. For some reason, a soldier is not suitable for service in this unit, he is transferred to another. And try to explain your decision to his friends...
Instead of conclusions
War has become a given in our lives. Everyone is learning. The army is changing so fast that many have already stopped noticing these changes. They have focused on criticizing the shortcomings, which also exist. We can already talk about a new officer corps. About smart and proactive commanders. We can already talk about truly professional contract soldiers. The army is improving.
In these conditions, the issue of losses is acute. We must use every opportunity to reduce personnel losses. Whether it is new combat tactics, the use of more sophisticated weapons or drones, or the ability to exert moral influence on the enemy.
The Russian Ministry of Defense has already announced the creation of drone troops. Faculties for training drone operator officers have already been created. It is not yet clear whether drones will be a separate branch of the military or not. At least, according to the Defense Minister, such troops have already been legalized and have the right to exist in the future.
It is necessary to establish order in the staffing of military units and formations. The position of army officials is unclear. The minister said, please comply. And no other way. By the way, this also applies to regulations. Everyone admits that it is necessary to change and…
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