Going to Novorossia - part I
Reviewer "MIC" tells about what is happening in the area of hostilities
The corporate train “Tikhiy Don”, departing daily from Kazan Station, goes on the route Moscow - Rostov-on-Don, immediately striking the eye. There are many military men in his carriages, not only in uniform, but also in “citizen”.
Accompanying officers and sergeants are taking young recruits to their military units, representatives of various units and formations, as well as district headquarters, are returning from Moscow missions.
Passengers dressed in civilian clothes are striking, but with military bearing and, as they said before, with a characteristic “committee” face. Before departing, there are many police officers around the train, checking people whose clothes look like military, for example, wearing camouflage pants or a jacket, a tactical backpack instead of luggage, etc. Since the summer of this year, when Kiev started in the south-east of Ukraine, the so-called in the narrow circles, the anti-terrorist operation, the trains going from Moscow to Rostov-on-Don, came to be called “the road to war”.
Rostov route
You can get from Russia to the territory of the self-proclaimed Novorossia through several checkpoints located at the border. But one way or another, you will have to either go as far as Rostov itself, and from there - on the bar to the border, or go out in the town of Kamensk-Shakhtinsky. This route all summer and the beginning of autumn Russian volunteers traveled to Donetsk and Lugansk, and also carried humanitarian aid, which was then transferred to representatives of the Donetsk or Lugansk republics directly to the checkpoint.
Now, when the situation has more or less stabilized, humanitarian supplies are already being delivered by cars directly to the territory of the self-proclaimed republics. Representatives of the OSCE mission, who ensured that through the checkpoint "Izvarino", located in Donetsk, Rostov region, Russian troops did not enter the territory of Novorossia, for some reason decided to settle in a hotel in nearby Kamensk-Shakhtinsky. Twice a day, another change of observers on a white jeep with the inscription OSCE, accompanied by the Russian traffic police, leaves for the checkpoint.
Understanding what the work of observers is difficult. Jeep is on the Russian territory in front of the track, where passport control and check transport. In the work of the Russian border guards and customs "obsheshniki" do not climb. They silently observe what is happening and record everything on the cameras, which, together with laptops, are installed in the trunk of their jeeps, sometimes they mark something.
Even at the entrance to the Russian Donetsk catches the eye of a strange building, next to which are the Mi-2 helicopter and the "corncob" An-2 - this is a former airfield. All summer and almost all autumn, a refugee camp was located on a preserved airfield. It was closed relatively recently, at the end of September, when the stream of those fleeing from the war in the south-east of Ukraine almost stopped, and those who had already entered the Russian territory either returned home or were sent to other regions of Russia.
The checkpoint "Izvarino", several times coming under fire from Ukrainian artillery during the fighting near the border, is now working, according to the official representatives of the Russian border service, in a regular mode. There are almost no traces of fire, there are no armored vehicles or even armed fighters on its territory. On the other hand, the most amazing institution located on the territory of the checkpoint, the duty free shop (duty-free trade), is located exactly on the dividing line of the border.
On the Russian side, the queue of cars whose drivers want to get into the territory of Novorossia has stretched almost a kilometer. As locals say, there are days when the queue reaches several kilometers. Basically there are cars with Ukrainian numbers, Russian cars can be seen very rarely. As a rule, these are residents of nearby settlements who have come to purchase all kinds of goods, not only for themselves, but also for their relatives and neighbors. But there are also representatives of small businesses - owners of stalls and shops. The same length of turn from the Ukrainian side.
The place of the Ukrainian border guards and customs officers was taken by the fighters of the Luhansk People's Republic, who carefully check passports. True, compared to the Russian side, such control can be safely called formal. There are neither special means, nor electronic base, only the hands and eyes of the LC soldiers.
“In those days, when battles were fought and the dill was close, the Russian border guards simply opened the checkpoint and launched all the refugees, and already on Russian territory, they checked the documents, let them in, resettled,” says the Krasnodon commandant’s fighter.
The Ukrainian part of the checkpoint got much more from the war. Buildings damaged by artillery fire, on the pavement funnel. Literally in 10 – 15 meters from the exit from the checkpoint, civilians ’houses, broken by shells, begin.
There is an alternative checkpoint near the Izvarino - a bridge over the river, through which, bypassing customs, you can get from Russian to Ukrainian territory and back.
“Few people know, but our Donetsk before the war was the center of sugar smuggling from Russia to Ukraine. So much sugar was brought in here that if counted, it turned out: every resident of the city, including newborns, ate five kilograms per day. Now there are no such smuggling streams, but the secret trails remain, ”said a local resident.
True, the bridge already has a post of Russian border guards, checking the documents of all passing there and back.
Wartime traffic
Road traffic in Novorossia, with the exception of Donetsk and Makeevka, resembles computer games of the Mercenaries series - there are no traffic rules or speed limits, and in almost every car there are machine guns, pistols, grenades, even machine guns and grenade launchers. Compliance with traffic rules depends on the mood and life experience of the driver, as the first, when the fighting began, the employees of the road-guard service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine fled. Locals look at the inhabitants of Russia, habitually wearing their seat belts, as eccentrics.
In Donetsk, for example, former DPS officers who have gone over to the side of the militia are following the rules of the road. In particular, the post stands at the building of the Donetsk Regional State Administration and at the entrance to the city. Police officers in their old camouflage uniforms, but with chevrons of the DPR militia detachments, but in cars with the emblem of the road-patrol service of the Ukrainian Interior Ministry in the city of Donetsk, they cheerfully serve and stop violators with their usual striped rods. True, it is not clear whether they issue fines, and if so, how they are paid. It is also unclear what the violator should do if the rights were withdrawn from him. But I must admit: in the places where these posts stand, drivers drive in compliance with all traffic rules.
Roads mostly in terrible condition. During the fighting, they got not only from artillery fire, but also from armored vehicles. And it is clear that road works are hardly included in the top list of priorities of the new government, as there are more pressing matters. Not only on all roads, but also on district and even village roads there are roadblocks, where the militiamen check cars and drivers' documents. It cannot be said that road users have become accustomed to such “road tests”, but they do not express their displeasure.
Surprisingly, local authorities are making every effort to operate public transport. Even in such a small town as Krasnodon, there are trolley buses and regular buses (not only local, but also intercity).
Frontline geography
The terrain in the territory of the Lugansk and Donetsk republics, where the fighting unleashed, cannot be called a plain, as described in some media: "The Endless Ukrainian Steppe." In most cases, these are small flat areas surrounded by hills, which are problematic to bypass. Therefore, all the fighting basically went along the roads.
The territory of Novorossiya is in fact a continuous urban agglomeration, where some settlements, mostly villages and towns with a population of 20 – 30 thousand people, turn into others. The distance between them very rarely exceeds one or two kilometers, and more often it is no more than half a kilometer or not at all. It should be noted that the forests in those areas are rare, it is either small groves or plantations that protect the fields from the wind.
In the area of Anthracite and Red Ray, a lowland begins, passing after the Snowy into the so-called Donetsk ridge. In the area of the Seversky Donets River on the north bank begins a plain with forests of a fairly large area. If you stand on the high southern bank of the river near the cities of Happiness, Slavyanoserbsk and the village of Sokolniki, the terrain in the northern direction is viewed very far. Therefore, when, as a result of the August offensive, the Ukrainian troops were driven out from positions on the southern coast of the Seversky Donets, and also lost the already mentioned Slavyanoserbsk, Sokolniki and Merry Mountain, and later the 32-th checkpoint, the Lugansk Republic militias gained a significant advantage both in defense, and in the case of renewed offensive. Similarly, in the DPR, the retention of Saur-Grave, one of the most noticeable heights in the Donetsk ridge, ensured the formation of a “southern boiler”, and in many ways disrupted the offensive in the Snezhniy area.
Not far from the war
It cannot be said that the whole of New Russia lies in ruins, whatever the media broadcast on this issue. But many settlements got very much. Not only in the villages, but in most cities there is still no light, although in September and October the leadership of the republics made every effort to organize the work of the social infrastructure and at least somehow organize the life of ordinary citizens. But if in big cities the situation improves a little, then in the villages it’s still the same. Most grocery stores, not to mention the salons of household appliances and other things, are closed. In the working stalls, for the most part, they are empty, but everything you need can be bought in natural markets. True, trade there is only up to 15 – 16 hours.
A night trip on the roads of the NPT and the LC did not leave the most pleasant impression. Rarely burning road lights, dark settlements. Even if electricity is supplied to the house, the tenants try to hang the windows so that the lights cannot be seen from the street.
At the same time, Donetsk can be called the “city of contrasts”. If we are still approaching him, in Snezhniy, where there are a large number of broken and burnt houses, the “breath of war” is felt, then already in Makeyevka - normal life, there is light, there are shops and cafes in the evenings. Donetsk has not at all turned into a pile of rubble, since under shelling of Ukrainian artillery, located at the airport and in the village of Peski, only a part of the city’s territory will fall. It is worth noting that the dear guests are accepted by the five-star fashionable Ramada HOTEL with the price of 800 hryvnia per day (approximately 2,5 thousand rubles), in which representatives of foreign and domestic media live comfortably and with excellent nutrition. In Donetsk, banks continue to operate, part of grocery stores with a fairly wide range of products.
But the Kiev, Kuibyshev and Kirov districts of the city are constantly subjected to gunfire. A sad spectacle is now represented by the famous Donbass Arena, heavily damaged by artillery. Most of all went to the village Gorlovka, actually destroyed by fire. But in general, life in the Donetsk Republic can still be called tolerable.
But what is happening now in Lugansk, without any exaggeration, is called a humanitarian catastrophe. Water and electricity are only two or three hours a day, there is no heating in the houses, there are no shops. Destruction in the city is very serious. Especially got to the central quarters, where the market and a number of residential buildings around the administration building were completely destroyed, as well as the northern regions, which were subjected to continuous shelling from the Ukrainian positions, located near Metalist. Most locals still can not understand why the ATO artillery purposefully tried to destroy the building of the Lugansk circus.
“They probably shot for a week until they could cover it. In what the military value of this building, for us, remains a mystery, ”says a representative of the local administration.
Lugansk under siege
August of this year was for Ukrainian security officials in the Lugansk Republic the blackest month of the entire anti-terrorist operation. Although at first, for the units and subdivisions operating there, everything was going pretty well.
Even at the beginning of the ATO, military transport aircraft aviation National Guard units, as well as the 80th airmobile brigade from Lviv were transferred to Lugansk Airport. About nine 122 mm D-30 howitzers were deployed. But still, these forces were clearly not enough to capture or block the city, and in mid-July, an offensive from the city of Happiness, using the road to the Metalist, switched to a group of Ukrainian forces, the basis of which was the 1st separate tank brigade from the Chernihiv region, which was considered before the war the best combined arms formation of the Ukrainian ground forces. Strengthened the brigade of the unit from the volunteer battalions, in particular the infamous “Aydar”.
The level of combat training of the Ukrainian security officials, acting on the part of Happiness, turned out to be quite high. Despite the short distance to Lugansk, they walked slowly, passing no more than two or three kilometers in a day during daylight hours, while all the fortification works were immediately performed on the newly occupied positions. It is noteworthy that in the area of Saur-Grave, the Snow or Lugansk airport was not as well prepared, created for all the requirements of engineering manuals of defensive positions. As the militia say, the Ukrainian security forces brought machines with concrete from Happiness to strengthen their fortifications. It is worth noting that the Ukrainian positions move to the side of the road no more than one or two kilometers.
3 August in Lugansk was released about 950 mines, shells and missiles of the MLRS. On the same day, the Ukrainian security forces, almost pushing aside the militia to the suburbs, made a detour from the west, reinforcing the airport garrison and starting the assault on the settlement of Novosvetlovka, which stands on the road connecting the territory of Russia with the capital of the LC.
The fighting lasted several days, and Novosvetlovka was taken. Lugansk was surrounded.
“I was breaking out of Novosvetlovka on the way to Krasnodon on the Chinese car Gilley Grand. It was probably 190 kilometers per hour when the Ukrainian Bulat tank began shooting at me. I recognized him by the characteristic tower. Although he has an automatic target tracking, he didn’t get into me. The projectile exploded behind four meters, but still the back of the car threw up very strongly. For a few seconds I drove almost exclusively on the front wheels, ”the Russian volunteer shouts with the call sign“ Crow ”.
Later, the Krasnodon highway was called the “death road” by locals. Ukrainian security forces bombarded all passing vehicles from tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and artillery, and also sent several sniper and reconnaissance and sabotage groups to the area, covering not only the main road, but all the back roads.
In Novosvetlovka, the Ukrainian military and the fighters of the “Aydar” battalion, having driven the civilians into the church building, went to rob nearby houses. Eyewitnesses and victims recall that they carried everything away - televisions, clothes, jewelry, refrigerators and even furniture were taken away.
To be honest, I didn’t believe in these stories first, until I visited the houses myself and did not see traces of the presence of Ukrainian security officials. “Well, we managed a few days before we closed the ring to take the orphans with cerebral palsy out of the orphanage in Lugansk,” recalls the militia fighter.
Surrounded by Lugansk spent about two weeks. Almost all infrastructure was destroyed in the city, it was left without electricity, water and food.
Air Harbor Fight
But in mid-August, new militia forces entered the battlefield with armored vehicles, and most importantly, with trained and well-equipped artillery units. The first blow fell on Novosvetlovka, where the Ukrainian military was less than a day's defense. In the battle mainly by artillery fire several dozens of Ukrainian tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers and vehicles were destroyed.
The militia forces, completing the rout of the enemy and actually removing the blockade from Lugansk, turned west and entered the airport area from the side of the village of Peremozhny, and a little later from the north, actually surrounding the air harbor and its defenders. The storming of the airport was preceded by several days of artillery preparation.
In contrast to the Ukrainian forces operating from Happiness, the security forces were unable to prepare normal positions at the airport, confining themselves to strange barricades from improvised garbage. Most wheeled vehicles — various trucks, tankers, and so on — were set up in neat rows on the platform behind the terminal building. The first blow of the artillery of the militia destroyed the whole structure. A little later, the collapsed terminal building buried under the rubble the little that remained intact.
The storming of the airport came from two directions - from the side of Peregozhny and from the main entrance. “The fighters of the 80 th“ aerogony ”, as we called it later, the brigades, as well as the company of the“ Aydar ”battalion, strongly resisted. These were ready for close combat, very determined guys, ”said“ The Crow ”, who participated in the battles at the airport.
But by lunchtime, almost the entire airport was cleared from the Ukrainian security forces, except for the bunker, where the last of them remained. To cover the waste of which they were used, according to various estimates, from three to six ballistic missiles "Tochka-U".
“My legs saved me, the carrier part to which the shrapnel is attached (the striking parts of cluster munitions. - Approx. A. R.), fell from me about three meters into the field. A few seconds passed, but there was no explosion. I look up and look at the sky. And there are characteristic haze, I had already been familiar with “shrapnel” and understood everything at once. I jump over the fence with a shout: “Shrapnel!”. In normal life, a person does not run as fast as I ran. Only the Cossacks of Ataman Kozitsin run faster, when shelling begins. Fish dive into the well. I didn’t reach the bottom, as I heard that the shrapnel is breaking. To the right of me was the house, its fragments almost demolished. And in the well, according to the law of meanness, right in the middle armature sticks out, which I hit. I do not know how I was not killed. In flight, although I had grouped, I also made my back against the wall, ”says one of the participants in the storming of the airport, sharing the experience. “But he stayed alive, but the guy with the call sign Tatarin from our squad died then.”
However, as a result of the shelling by the “Dots”, the Ukrainian paratroopers who left the bunker with a fight, suffered greatly, the remnants of which could make their way into the Lutugino area.
After liberation by the militiamen of Novosvetlovka and Lugansk airport, the surviving Ukrainian military retreated to the village of Khryaschevate and the town of Lutugino. In fact, they were disorganized gangs, which consisted of fighters from the 80 airborne and 1 separate tank brigades, as well as several territorial defense and national guard battalions, including the notorious Aydar. At the same time, the Ukrainian units advancing on Lugansk from Happiness continued to operate under a single leadership and remained combat-ready.
Even during the storming of the airport by the militias, the Ukrainian command attempted, if not to unblock the garrison located in it, then at least to strengthen it, from estimates from the company to the battalion tactical group. But the breakthrough to the air harbor failed. The enemy was stopped in the area of Georgievka, and then defeated by artillery.
It is worth noting that before the shelling of the Lugansk airport began, the Ukrainian military organized an air bridge. Helicopters daily delivered ammunition, fuel, food to the garrison, evacuated the wounded.
“The gunner operator remained in his place, he can be identified by the remaining teeth”
“Ukrainian spinners flew at first. At the airport behind the terminal, a temporary platform was deployed. We flew at night. True, then one helicopter was shot down from our ambush and the air bridge was closed. We flew to the airport only Mi-8, "crocodiles" (Mi-24) we did not see. Neither stormtroopers, nor Ukrainian bombers during those battles either. Even when the storming of the airport began, Ukrainian aviation never appeared, ”says the Russian volunteer with the call sign“ Crow ”.
It cannot be said that the Ukrainian military, who defended the airport, were sitting and watching indifferently how they were surrounded. By no means. They constantly attacked Peremozhny and Pyatigorovka, where the militiamen concentrated before the start of the assault.
“They operated the so-called mobile groups - a few machines with installed mortars. We left the airport, went beyond the Peremohnoe and processed our positions. We then stood in Pyatigorovka. The Lvov paratroopers even had time to come to us in Peremozhnoye behind the corpses of their fighters who had burned down in an armored troop-carrier, ”recalls a participant in the fighting.
But be that as it may, the airport was taken by the militias. “They left in the direction of Lutugino, where they were finished off. These are those who defended the airport, and those who rushed to them. It was remembered that for some reason, the “dill” at the airport had RCBZ units. What they did there, I do not know. But the documents "chemists" I personally found. The “Aidar” battalion was at the airport, but not in full force. Probably about the company. The mercenaries were at the airport, as far as I know, even from Turkey. The 80 Brigade paratroopers turned out to be the most efficient, they actually went to hell there. Were them very well and cruel, but they stood. Tanks and BMP were from 1-th selection. “Lions” is written on them, on many armored personnel carriers that we took from the 80 of the “aerogony” is also an inscription “Lions”, says one of the militiamen.
Many local residents remember that the soldiers and officers of the Ukrainian armed forces who survived in the battles for Novosvetlovka and retreating to Khryashchevatoe weapons in their hands they defended them from the infidels from the Aydar battalion. It was not possible to find reliable evidence that this was the case. But the armed conflict, which grew into a battle between the servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and volunteers, did take place. And with losses on both sides.
Having unblocked Lugansk from the south and southeast, the militia went north. Ukrainian units that held positions on the road Happiness - Metalist - Lugansk, stood, surprisingly, to the last. Helped them competently prepared position. But the militia were ready to storm the Ukrainian fortifications.
Self-defense artillery turned out to be more prepared for such battles than the enemy. One thing is to shoot the Lugansk circus for a week and quite another when it is necessary to demonstrate all the skills and abilities, often working dangerously close to your troops. Ukrainian "funny gunners" were not ready for this.
For a few days the enemy was thrown to Happiness. The militias liberated Slavyanoserbsk, Sokolniki and Crimea. Virtually all Ukrainian units have been ousted for Seversky Donets. They managed to hold positions only in the village of Bold.
But on September 5, the Minsk agreement on a cease-fire and the creation of a buffer zone was signed. All field commanders, and even simple militia fighters, with whom they were able to talk, have a very negative attitude towards this treaty. Many do not hide the indignation, and some tears that they could not finish off the "dill" and avenge the dead comrades, destroyed cities and towns, killed civilians.
It was from 5 of September that the “strange war” began, when the truce officially operates, but every day the Ukrainian military fire not only militia responding to them with their artillery, but also settlements, social infrastructure and civilian houses.
Checkpoint number 32: triumphant escape
Against the background of high-profile events in Debaltsevskiy protrusion and Donetsk airport, incessant clashes around Slavyanoserbsk, the village of Trekhizbenka and the so-called number checkpoints are not so noticeable. But the events taking place there, although they do not attract the attention of the general public, in fact play a decisive role in the fate of Novorossia.
If you look at the map of hostilities, the protrusion formed by Pervomaisk and Slavyanoserbsk immediately catches the eye. Now he is busy with the militias. They and the Ukrainian military shares in this place Seversky Donets. In the event of a resumption of the ATO forces, the river will become a natural boundary, which will be very difficult to force, since most of the bridges either have already been destroyed or can be blown up at any time. The western flank of the Severodonetsk militia group in the Pervomaisk region looms over the Debaltsevsky ledge. If the militiamen go on the offensive, then, acting from this area, they will not only easily make a “pot” out of the protrusion, but also continue the offensive. In the west - on Soledar and Artyomovsk, in the north - on Lysychansk and Severodonetsk.
Therefore, in September and October, the Ukrainian military constantly attempted to maintain their positions at any cost on the southern bank of the Seversky Donets, in the area of the villages of Smelye and Crimea. The basis of the defense of the ATO forces here are numbered roadblocks, which run from Frunze to Gorsky. If at the beginning of September after the August counterattack of the militia, the Ukrainian military wanted little - to retain these positions at any cost, then in October, having recovered their strength and resources, they decided to knock out the militias from Slavyanoserbsk and completely clear the southern coast of the Seversky Donets from them. The key element of this plan was the checkpoint number 32 near the village of Bold.
At the end of August, the 32 Cossack battalion and the battalion of St. George the Victorious arrived in the area of checkpoint No. 2. True, they didn’t manage to knock out the Ukrainian military before the truce began. According to the Minsk agreements, this territory was to come under the control of the militia, but the Ukrainian military were in no hurry to leave.
“As soon as we reached the 32 block, we were immediately offered to“ fennel ”to either leave or give up. Those seemed to be in words were ready to leave, but in fact they were dragging time and did not move anywhere. Ukrainian commanders told us that the units that stand behind them will not be missed and shot. Like, at the roadblock some conscripts and they do not want to fight. It lasted a month, all this time, our intelligence also worked. And we had doubts that ordinary conscripts were standing at the checkpoint. It turned out they had jeeps there, and the personnel had too free behavior. All the "dill" at the checkpoint spoke only in Russian. Then they sent us a note, ”says the commander of the 2 Cossack battalion of the Great Don Cossacks.
He still keeps it in the armband pocket of camouflage jackets. A wiped piece of paper from a notebook, or maybe from a regular notebook, in which, in a beautiful handwriting in Russian without a single grammatical or syntactic error, it is written that the garrison of the 32 checkpoint does not bombard the Cossack militia. And some people who do this are driving in jeeps at their checkpoint and shooting at both the Ukrainian garrison and the militia. At the end of the message, the staff of the roadblock offers to meet on neutral territory and discuss what to do.
In fact, all this time, the Ukrainians accumulated forces at the checkpoint No. 32, pulled up tanks and other armored vehicles, and strengthened their personnel. But the Ukrainian command did not take into account one fact: by this time, the militia had already learned how to successfully use improvised unmanned reconnaissance aircraft - ordinary civilian quadcopters with installed cameras.
The Cossack battalion commander of the 2-th Battalion keeps pictures of the autumn events from the BLA in the laptop, where you can clearly see how the enemy’s machinery is being pulled, how the fortifications are being dug.
The first move was made by the Ukrainian military: they first tried to destroy the checkpoint of the Cossacks standing opposite them with tank guns and then went on the attack. But the militia were ready for this and fought back. Having suffered losses in manpower and technology, the enemy attempted to circumvent the position of the 2 Cossack battalion from the north, but failed there as well. It was necessary once again to change the direction of the offensive. They tried to bypass the unyielding Cossacks already from the south, striking at the checkpoint of the battalion of the name of St. George the Victorious. But even there, the Ukrainian military could not succeed. At this time, a militia detachment under the command of a fighter with the call sign “Hooligan” walked around the southern flank of the 32-th checkpoint and with a sudden blow cut it off and attacking the Bold Ukrainian tactical group from the 31-th checkpoint, virtually blocking the enemy in the “cauldron”.
“Dill” drove the tanks and tried to destroy our roadblock with direct fire. In response, we burned two tanks. Without expecting such an answer, they dashed away at the Bold, where they were also met with dignity. In total, we then 22 units "ukropskoy" armored vehicles burned. Ukrainian artillery worked with Kryakovki, with Orekhovo-Donetsk and Trekhizbenki. It is clear that they wanted - knocking down our checkpoint, go to Slavyanoserbsk and clear the southern coast of the Seversky Donets from us. At 32's checkpoint in that battle, we destroyed more than two hundred people, and our casualties were five wounded. At that moment, an armored group came to reinforce, and the “dill” left us alone, having begun to attack not on our positions, but on the battalion of St. George. They shot down one checkpoint and began to move along the route to cut off my battalion. At this time, the “Hooligan” nahuliganil - bypassed the “dill” and 32-th checkpoint, cut the route, and we were full of them. But then, instead of giving the order to finish off the "ukrov", the command took and released them. Now the “dill” right pride, what they are heroes, came with equipment and flags. It was necessary not to let them out, but to finish them off immediately when they refused to surrender, ”the commander of the 2 Cossack battalion was annoyed.
Now in the area of Slavyanoserbsk, Sokolnikov and the village of Crimean are constantly shooting. Ukrainian military probe the defense of the militia, conduct reconnaissance in force. Artillery operates.
Iraq swore in vain
Sokolniki is a small village, just one street, it’s the road connecting Slavyanoserbsk and Crimea. Houses stand in one row, behind them begin small fields and so characteristic for those places hills-heights. A few hours before my arrival there was a battle. The Ukrainian military on the BTR-80 tried to break along the road. Where - is unknown. It is possible, expected that the militia left the village. But they were mistaken, for which they paid with their lives.
An armored personnel carrier came under fire from the LNG-9 militiamen, and having received a grenade exactly in the middle of the cab, between the commander’s and the driver’s workplaces, caught fire. While the Ukrainian fighters were pulling out their wounded, the BTR-4, which for some reason was called a “Polish” by the militia, approached from behind. With his onboard weapons, he was able to press the LNG-9 crew, but in turn fell under the RPG of the Cossacks, whose grenades not only knocked down the “bed” protective grid, but also severely damaged the armored personnel carrier.
The "Pole" lost his turn, stopped, oil spilled from it. At this time, the militia tanks approached the battlefield, firing high-explosive fragmentation shells.
But the BTR-4 also got help - the Ukrainian T-64. True, the tank battle did not take place. “Dill”, according to the militia, threw cables and in a matter of seconds, dragged down a padded “Pole”, on which the militia fired at last a few more fragmentation shells.
The burnt-out Ukrainian BTR-80 stands exactly in the middle of the road. He still smells of burnt iron, plastic. There is also an almost elusive smell of burnt meat in the air, intensifying at the open side hatch to the troop compartment. The gunner operator remained in his place. In the troop compartment which has burnt out to zero, it can only be recognized by the remaining teeth. For some reason the survivors didn’t pull out the 200.
A few meters behind the armored personnel carrier, on the road lies a package of used universal dressing bag, which is on supply in most NATO countries, also called Israeli, and used ampoules of anesthetic nalbuphine. It is noteworthy that the “Israeli” bandage itself, judging by the marking, is quite fresh, from the factory.
A little further on the road, the whole security grille with the BTR-4 lies down. The bullets fired from the small arms of the militias knocked whole pieces out of armor. So Iraqi claims on the quality of the BTR-4 body armor were valid. Even under the fire of "shooter", it crumbles, pieces of three to five centimeters in size fly off.
Nearby is an electronic surveillance device shot down from the "Pole". Literally a stone’s throw away from the place where the BTR-4 was stalled, another platform where assistance was provided. Most likely, the crew of the "Pole" got hard from the fire of the militia. True, instead of the “Israeli” dressing package, there are already ordinary Soviet ones in a tarpaulin package and packs of a spent hemostatic (hemostatic) sponge.
Judging by the remnants of camouflage in the characteristic "figure", as well as the Ukrainian body armor and a protective helmet that remained after the battle, most likely they were the National Guard men. Striking degree "Svidomo." On the front plate of the bulletproof vest on the back side is a sign “Glory to Ukraine!”, And on the back - “Heroes of Glory!”. The BTR-80 is still preserved, even though in some places it is burnt, tied to the antennas and railings of the yellow blakitnye bows. On the remnants of camouflage and insulation on each armband pocket again the Ukrainian flag.
I am shown on the phone a photo of a trophy chevron taken from the remnants of the camouflage of the deceased member of the ATO a few days before. On the background of the mountains is a lying wolf, and along the circumference is the inscription “The battalion of the name of Dzhokhar Dudayev”.
We pass the battlefield, and after a hundred meters Sokolniki ends. We stop in the yard of the last house, abandoned by the owners. Ahead, just in a couple of hundred meters, the first houses and the road sign are already visible, indicating that you are entering the Crimea, controlled by the Ukrainian military. True, according to my attendants, the “dill” hold positions, like the militia in Sokolniki, in the depths of the village.
We reach the first houses of the Crimea. Everything is calm, there are no traces of Ukrainian positions. True, pieces of armor and parts falling from the "Pole" are lying on the road. It is risky to go further, so we return with all precautions.
Locals left Sokolnikov with the start of the fighting, abandoning everything. In the courtyards there are cars, pets go, clucking chickens, mooing cows. Militias do not touch the economy of residents. If they still occupy houses, they behave carefully, do not touch the harvest, do not spoil the property.
In one of the courtyards next to the booth sits a shepherd and does not go anywhere. The hosts fled, leaving her on a leash. The dog was dying of hunger when the militiamen noticed it. Untied. But she still sits next to the house. The Cossacks feed her and, as they can, greet her, but she still does not leave her court.
In the village, along with the 2-m Cossack battalion, there are also militia tanks. The commander of one of them is an elderly peasant about sixty years of age, of the same age and his gunner-operator, who had served in the GSVG on T-62 in Soviet times. An amazing picture: on the bench next to the house are two grandfathers, shod in warm boots so much loved by the villagers, and argue absolutely peacefully about something of their own. The idyll is broken by the AKS-74, each of them hangs on the shoulder, and the tank standing next to it is destroyed in battles.
Merry Mountain is located next to the bridge over the Seversky Donets, leading to Happiness. From her, there is a beautiful view of the city itself and the Lugansk TPP next to it, which during the August battles was promised to be blown up by the commander of the Aydar battalion Sergey Melnichuk.
Immediately behind the bridge is a Ukrainian checkpoint, seemingly abandoned. According to the accompanying, the Ukrainians react painfully if someone appears on the mountain. Sometimes they begin to handle the height of mortars or sniper shooting. But so far, calm. At the same time, through binoculars it can be seen that the Ukrainian roadblock only seems abandoned, behind the rubble there are people in insulated dark-colored jackets - most likely the National Guard under or soldiers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. We stare at each other through binoculars for a while.
A few minutes later, the whistle of the first mortar mine is heard, but far enough from us. It is clear that our visit is not welcome. It's time to go.
Every night in the area of Happiness, the Ukrainian military organize a “light show” especially for the militia. Their units begin to fire at each other. The most active in the fight with neighbors, as always, "Aydar".
Saur-Grave, once again about the food
Fighting in the Saur-Graves area is no longer going on - Ukrainian troops have been driven back far enough. According to local militias, occasionally there appear only reconnaissance and sabotage groups trying to monitor the road leading from Luhansk to Snezhnoye, Makeyevka and Donetsk.
The height itself is small. At first glance, there can hardly be placed two motorized rifle platoons without armored vehicles. You can get on it in two ways. The first - through the village of Petrovskoe, the second - through the Snow. The Ukrainian military attacked from the western direction from Amvrosiyivka, so their path lay through Petrovskoye, which went very strongly. It can be said that there is no settlement as such. A large number of houses, shops demolished by artillery and tank fire, burned equipment. Between the positions of the militias and the Ukrainian troops storming them, only 100 – 150 meters.
At Saur-Tomb we were on a clear sunny day. It should be noted, the view from there is amazing. In the south, the settlements are already visible on Russian territory, and in the west, the suburbs of Donetsk are well visible, not to mention Shakhtersk, Torez, and Snezhniy. It even seemed that the Sea of Azov flashed in the south-west.
The militia took up positions around the monument, at the same time, Ukrainian soldiers were sitting in the neighboring buildings - the outbuildings of the memorial.
It is noteworthy that the Museum of military equipment, standing at the central staircase, was almost not affected. Got only heavy T-10M, which board is punched in one place. The very same staircase along which the boards with the names of the Red Army soldiers who died here during the Great Patriotic War were completely destroyed, however, as well as the bas-reliefs with the names.
From the monument to the soldier was left only a boot, pierced in several places by shrapnel and bullets. After the stela had fallen, a kind of shelter was formed from its foundation, which the militia used when defending.
In all positions of the Ukrainian troops with rare exceptions, an incredible number of packages from dry rations. Green - Ukrainian, light brown - American or German. Many broken glass jars, which kept the fat. Another sure sign that the positions of the Ukrainian military were - scattered toothbrushes, tubes of toothpaste, disposable razors. At Saur-Grave, it seems that the Ukrainian military, who had stormed the height, drew suhpaks and lard right in the course of the battle.
The corporate train “Tikhiy Don”, departing daily from Kazan Station, goes on the route Moscow - Rostov-on-Don, immediately striking the eye. There are many military men in his carriages, not only in uniform, but also in “citizen”.
Accompanying officers and sergeants are taking young recruits to their military units, representatives of various units and formations, as well as district headquarters, are returning from Moscow missions.
Passengers dressed in civilian clothes are striking, but with military bearing and, as they said before, with a characteristic “committee” face. Before departing, there are many police officers around the train, checking people whose clothes look like military, for example, wearing camouflage pants or a jacket, a tactical backpack instead of luggage, etc. Since the summer of this year, when Kiev started in the south-east of Ukraine, the so-called in the narrow circles, the anti-terrorist operation, the trains going from Moscow to Rostov-on-Don, came to be called “the road to war”.
Rostov route
You can get from Russia to the territory of the self-proclaimed Novorossia through several checkpoints located at the border. But one way or another, you will have to either go as far as Rostov itself, and from there - on the bar to the border, or go out in the town of Kamensk-Shakhtinsky. This route all summer and the beginning of autumn Russian volunteers traveled to Donetsk and Lugansk, and also carried humanitarian aid, which was then transferred to representatives of the Donetsk or Lugansk republics directly to the checkpoint.
Photo: Alexey Ramm
Now, when the situation has more or less stabilized, humanitarian supplies are already being delivered by cars directly to the territory of the self-proclaimed republics. Representatives of the OSCE mission, who ensured that through the checkpoint "Izvarino", located in Donetsk, Rostov region, Russian troops did not enter the territory of Novorossia, for some reason decided to settle in a hotel in nearby Kamensk-Shakhtinsky. Twice a day, another change of observers on a white jeep with the inscription OSCE, accompanied by the Russian traffic police, leaves for the checkpoint.
Understanding what the work of observers is difficult. Jeep is on the Russian territory in front of the track, where passport control and check transport. In the work of the Russian border guards and customs "obsheshniki" do not climb. They silently observe what is happening and record everything on the cameras, which, together with laptops, are installed in the trunk of their jeeps, sometimes they mark something.
Even at the entrance to the Russian Donetsk catches the eye of a strange building, next to which are the Mi-2 helicopter and the "corncob" An-2 - this is a former airfield. All summer and almost all autumn, a refugee camp was located on a preserved airfield. It was closed relatively recently, at the end of September, when the stream of those fleeing from the war in the south-east of Ukraine almost stopped, and those who had already entered the Russian territory either returned home or were sent to other regions of Russia.
The checkpoint "Izvarino", several times coming under fire from Ukrainian artillery during the fighting near the border, is now working, according to the official representatives of the Russian border service, in a regular mode. There are almost no traces of fire, there are no armored vehicles or even armed fighters on its territory. On the other hand, the most amazing institution located on the territory of the checkpoint, the duty free shop (duty-free trade), is located exactly on the dividing line of the border.
On the Russian side, the queue of cars whose drivers want to get into the territory of Novorossia has stretched almost a kilometer. As locals say, there are days when the queue reaches several kilometers. Basically there are cars with Ukrainian numbers, Russian cars can be seen very rarely. As a rule, these are residents of nearby settlements who have come to purchase all kinds of goods, not only for themselves, but also for their relatives and neighbors. But there are also representatives of small businesses - owners of stalls and shops. The same length of turn from the Ukrainian side.
The place of the Ukrainian border guards and customs officers was taken by the fighters of the Luhansk People's Republic, who carefully check passports. True, compared to the Russian side, such control can be safely called formal. There are neither special means, nor electronic base, only the hands and eyes of the LC soldiers.
“In those days, when battles were fought and the dill was close, the Russian border guards simply opened the checkpoint and launched all the refugees, and already on Russian territory, they checked the documents, let them in, resettled,” says the Krasnodon commandant’s fighter.
The Ukrainian part of the checkpoint got much more from the war. Buildings damaged by artillery fire, on the pavement funnel. Literally in 10 – 15 meters from the exit from the checkpoint, civilians ’houses, broken by shells, begin.
There is an alternative checkpoint near the Izvarino - a bridge over the river, through which, bypassing customs, you can get from Russian to Ukrainian territory and back.
“Few people know, but our Donetsk before the war was the center of sugar smuggling from Russia to Ukraine. So much sugar was brought in here that if counted, it turned out: every resident of the city, including newborns, ate five kilograms per day. Now there are no such smuggling streams, but the secret trails remain, ”said a local resident.
True, the bridge already has a post of Russian border guards, checking the documents of all passing there and back.
Wartime traffic
Road traffic in Novorossia, with the exception of Donetsk and Makeevka, resembles computer games of the Mercenaries series - there are no traffic rules or speed limits, and in almost every car there are machine guns, pistols, grenades, even machine guns and grenade launchers. Compliance with traffic rules depends on the mood and life experience of the driver, as the first, when the fighting began, the employees of the road-guard service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine fled. Locals look at the inhabitants of Russia, habitually wearing their seat belts, as eccentrics.
In Donetsk, for example, former DPS officers who have gone over to the side of the militia are following the rules of the road. In particular, the post stands at the building of the Donetsk Regional State Administration and at the entrance to the city. Police officers in their old camouflage uniforms, but with chevrons of the DPR militia detachments, but in cars with the emblem of the road-patrol service of the Ukrainian Interior Ministry in the city of Donetsk, they cheerfully serve and stop violators with their usual striped rods. True, it is not clear whether they issue fines, and if so, how they are paid. It is also unclear what the violator should do if the rights were withdrawn from him. But I must admit: in the places where these posts stand, drivers drive in compliance with all traffic rules.
Roads mostly in terrible condition. During the fighting, they got not only from artillery fire, but also from armored vehicles. And it is clear that road works are hardly included in the top list of priorities of the new government, as there are more pressing matters. Not only on all roads, but also on district and even village roads there are roadblocks, where the militiamen check cars and drivers' documents. It cannot be said that road users have become accustomed to such “road tests”, but they do not express their displeasure.
Surprisingly, local authorities are making every effort to operate public transport. Even in such a small town as Krasnodon, there are trolley buses and regular buses (not only local, but also intercity).
Frontline geography
The terrain in the territory of the Lugansk and Donetsk republics, where the fighting unleashed, cannot be called a plain, as described in some media: "The Endless Ukrainian Steppe." In most cases, these are small flat areas surrounded by hills, which are problematic to bypass. Therefore, all the fighting basically went along the roads.
The territory of Novorossiya is in fact a continuous urban agglomeration, where some settlements, mostly villages and towns with a population of 20 – 30 thousand people, turn into others. The distance between them very rarely exceeds one or two kilometers, and more often it is no more than half a kilometer or not at all. It should be noted that the forests in those areas are rare, it is either small groves or plantations that protect the fields from the wind.
In the area of Anthracite and Red Ray, a lowland begins, passing after the Snowy into the so-called Donetsk ridge. In the area of the Seversky Donets River on the north bank begins a plain with forests of a fairly large area. If you stand on the high southern bank of the river near the cities of Happiness, Slavyanoserbsk and the village of Sokolniki, the terrain in the northern direction is viewed very far. Therefore, when, as a result of the August offensive, the Ukrainian troops were driven out from positions on the southern coast of the Seversky Donets, and also lost the already mentioned Slavyanoserbsk, Sokolniki and Merry Mountain, and later the 32-th checkpoint, the Lugansk Republic militias gained a significant advantage both in defense, and in the case of renewed offensive. Similarly, in the DPR, the retention of Saur-Grave, one of the most noticeable heights in the Donetsk ridge, ensured the formation of a “southern boiler”, and in many ways disrupted the offensive in the Snezhniy area.
Not far from the war
It cannot be said that the whole of New Russia lies in ruins, whatever the media broadcast on this issue. But many settlements got very much. Not only in the villages, but in most cities there is still no light, although in September and October the leadership of the republics made every effort to organize the work of the social infrastructure and at least somehow organize the life of ordinary citizens. But if in big cities the situation improves a little, then in the villages it’s still the same. Most grocery stores, not to mention the salons of household appliances and other things, are closed. In the working stalls, for the most part, they are empty, but everything you need can be bought in natural markets. True, trade there is only up to 15 – 16 hours.
A night trip on the roads of the NPT and the LC did not leave the most pleasant impression. Rarely burning road lights, dark settlements. Even if electricity is supplied to the house, the tenants try to hang the windows so that the lights cannot be seen from the street.
At the same time, Donetsk can be called the “city of contrasts”. If we are still approaching him, in Snezhniy, where there are a large number of broken and burnt houses, the “breath of war” is felt, then already in Makeyevka - normal life, there is light, there are shops and cafes in the evenings. Donetsk has not at all turned into a pile of rubble, since under shelling of Ukrainian artillery, located at the airport and in the village of Peski, only a part of the city’s territory will fall. It is worth noting that the dear guests are accepted by the five-star fashionable Ramada HOTEL with the price of 800 hryvnia per day (approximately 2,5 thousand rubles), in which representatives of foreign and domestic media live comfortably and with excellent nutrition. In Donetsk, banks continue to operate, part of grocery stores with a fairly wide range of products.
But the Kiev, Kuibyshev and Kirov districts of the city are constantly subjected to gunfire. A sad spectacle is now represented by the famous Donbass Arena, heavily damaged by artillery. Most of all went to the village Gorlovka, actually destroyed by fire. But in general, life in the Donetsk Republic can still be called tolerable.
But what is happening now in Lugansk, without any exaggeration, is called a humanitarian catastrophe. Water and electricity are only two or three hours a day, there is no heating in the houses, there are no shops. Destruction in the city is very serious. Especially got to the central quarters, where the market and a number of residential buildings around the administration building were completely destroyed, as well as the northern regions, which were subjected to continuous shelling from the Ukrainian positions, located near Metalist. Most locals still can not understand why the ATO artillery purposefully tried to destroy the building of the Lugansk circus.
“They probably shot for a week until they could cover it. In what the military value of this building, for us, remains a mystery, ”says a representative of the local administration.
Lugansk under siege
August of this year was for Ukrainian security officials in the Lugansk Republic the blackest month of the entire anti-terrorist operation. Although at first, for the units and subdivisions operating there, everything was going pretty well.
Even at the beginning of the ATO, military transport aircraft aviation National Guard units, as well as the 80th airmobile brigade from Lviv were transferred to Lugansk Airport. About nine 122 mm D-30 howitzers were deployed. But still, these forces were clearly not enough to capture or block the city, and in mid-July, an offensive from the city of Happiness, using the road to the Metalist, switched to a group of Ukrainian forces, the basis of which was the 1st separate tank brigade from the Chernihiv region, which was considered before the war the best combined arms formation of the Ukrainian ground forces. Strengthened the brigade of the unit from the volunteer battalions, in particular the infamous “Aydar”.
The level of combat training of the Ukrainian security officials, acting on the part of Happiness, turned out to be quite high. Despite the short distance to Lugansk, they walked slowly, passing no more than two or three kilometers in a day during daylight hours, while all the fortification works were immediately performed on the newly occupied positions. It is noteworthy that in the area of Saur-Grave, the Snow or Lugansk airport was not as well prepared, created for all the requirements of engineering manuals of defensive positions. As the militia say, the Ukrainian security forces brought machines with concrete from Happiness to strengthen their fortifications. It is worth noting that the Ukrainian positions move to the side of the road no more than one or two kilometers.
3 August in Lugansk was released about 950 mines, shells and missiles of the MLRS. On the same day, the Ukrainian security forces, almost pushing aside the militia to the suburbs, made a detour from the west, reinforcing the airport garrison and starting the assault on the settlement of Novosvetlovka, which stands on the road connecting the territory of Russia with the capital of the LC.
The fighting lasted several days, and Novosvetlovka was taken. Lugansk was surrounded.
“I was breaking out of Novosvetlovka on the way to Krasnodon on the Chinese car Gilley Grand. It was probably 190 kilometers per hour when the Ukrainian Bulat tank began shooting at me. I recognized him by the characteristic tower. Although he has an automatic target tracking, he didn’t get into me. The projectile exploded behind four meters, but still the back of the car threw up very strongly. For a few seconds I drove almost exclusively on the front wheels, ”the Russian volunteer shouts with the call sign“ Crow ”.
Later, the Krasnodon highway was called the “death road” by locals. Ukrainian security forces bombarded all passing vehicles from tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and artillery, and also sent several sniper and reconnaissance and sabotage groups to the area, covering not only the main road, but all the back roads.
In Novosvetlovka, the Ukrainian military and the fighters of the “Aydar” battalion, having driven the civilians into the church building, went to rob nearby houses. Eyewitnesses and victims recall that they carried everything away - televisions, clothes, jewelry, refrigerators and even furniture were taken away.
To be honest, I didn’t believe in these stories first, until I visited the houses myself and did not see traces of the presence of Ukrainian security officials. “Well, we managed a few days before we closed the ring to take the orphans with cerebral palsy out of the orphanage in Lugansk,” recalls the militia fighter.
Surrounded by Lugansk spent about two weeks. Almost all infrastructure was destroyed in the city, it was left without electricity, water and food.
Air Harbor Fight
But in mid-August, new militia forces entered the battlefield with armored vehicles, and most importantly, with trained and well-equipped artillery units. The first blow fell on Novosvetlovka, where the Ukrainian military was less than a day's defense. In the battle mainly by artillery fire several dozens of Ukrainian tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers and vehicles were destroyed.
The militia forces, completing the rout of the enemy and actually removing the blockade from Lugansk, turned west and entered the airport area from the side of the village of Peremozhny, and a little later from the north, actually surrounding the air harbor and its defenders. The storming of the airport was preceded by several days of artillery preparation.
In contrast to the Ukrainian forces operating from Happiness, the security forces were unable to prepare normal positions at the airport, confining themselves to strange barricades from improvised garbage. Most wheeled vehicles — various trucks, tankers, and so on — were set up in neat rows on the platform behind the terminal building. The first blow of the artillery of the militia destroyed the whole structure. A little later, the collapsed terminal building buried under the rubble the little that remained intact.
The storming of the airport came from two directions - from the side of Peregozhny and from the main entrance. “The fighters of the 80 th“ aerogony ”, as we called it later, the brigades, as well as the company of the“ Aydar ”battalion, strongly resisted. These were ready for close combat, very determined guys, ”said“ The Crow ”, who participated in the battles at the airport.
But by lunchtime, almost the entire airport was cleared from the Ukrainian security forces, except for the bunker, where the last of them remained. To cover the waste of which they were used, according to various estimates, from three to six ballistic missiles "Tochka-U".
“My legs saved me, the carrier part to which the shrapnel is attached (the striking parts of cluster munitions. - Approx. A. R.), fell from me about three meters into the field. A few seconds passed, but there was no explosion. I look up and look at the sky. And there are characteristic haze, I had already been familiar with “shrapnel” and understood everything at once. I jump over the fence with a shout: “Shrapnel!”. In normal life, a person does not run as fast as I ran. Only the Cossacks of Ataman Kozitsin run faster, when shelling begins. Fish dive into the well. I didn’t reach the bottom, as I heard that the shrapnel is breaking. To the right of me was the house, its fragments almost demolished. And in the well, according to the law of meanness, right in the middle armature sticks out, which I hit. I do not know how I was not killed. In flight, although I had grouped, I also made my back against the wall, ”says one of the participants in the storming of the airport, sharing the experience. “But he stayed alive, but the guy with the call sign Tatarin from our squad died then.”
However, as a result of the shelling by the “Dots”, the Ukrainian paratroopers who left the bunker with a fight, suffered greatly, the remnants of which could make their way into the Lutugino area.
After liberation by the militiamen of Novosvetlovka and Lugansk airport, the surviving Ukrainian military retreated to the village of Khryaschevate and the town of Lutugino. In fact, they were disorganized gangs, which consisted of fighters from the 80 airborne and 1 separate tank brigades, as well as several territorial defense and national guard battalions, including the notorious Aydar. At the same time, the Ukrainian units advancing on Lugansk from Happiness continued to operate under a single leadership and remained combat-ready.
Even during the storming of the airport by the militias, the Ukrainian command attempted, if not to unblock the garrison located in it, then at least to strengthen it, from estimates from the company to the battalion tactical group. But the breakthrough to the air harbor failed. The enemy was stopped in the area of Georgievka, and then defeated by artillery.
It is worth noting that before the shelling of the Lugansk airport began, the Ukrainian military organized an air bridge. Helicopters daily delivered ammunition, fuel, food to the garrison, evacuated the wounded.
“The gunner operator remained in his place, he can be identified by the remaining teeth”
“Ukrainian spinners flew at first. At the airport behind the terminal, a temporary platform was deployed. We flew at night. True, then one helicopter was shot down from our ambush and the air bridge was closed. We flew to the airport only Mi-8, "crocodiles" (Mi-24) we did not see. Neither stormtroopers, nor Ukrainian bombers during those battles either. Even when the storming of the airport began, Ukrainian aviation never appeared, ”says the Russian volunteer with the call sign“ Crow ”.
It cannot be said that the Ukrainian military, who defended the airport, were sitting and watching indifferently how they were surrounded. By no means. They constantly attacked Peremozhny and Pyatigorovka, where the militiamen concentrated before the start of the assault.
“They operated the so-called mobile groups - a few machines with installed mortars. We left the airport, went beyond the Peremohnoe and processed our positions. We then stood in Pyatigorovka. The Lvov paratroopers even had time to come to us in Peremozhnoye behind the corpses of their fighters who had burned down in an armored troop-carrier, ”recalls a participant in the fighting.
But be that as it may, the airport was taken by the militias. “They left in the direction of Lutugino, where they were finished off. These are those who defended the airport, and those who rushed to them. It was remembered that for some reason, the “dill” at the airport had RCBZ units. What they did there, I do not know. But the documents "chemists" I personally found. The “Aidar” battalion was at the airport, but not in full force. Probably about the company. The mercenaries were at the airport, as far as I know, even from Turkey. The 80 Brigade paratroopers turned out to be the most efficient, they actually went to hell there. Were them very well and cruel, but they stood. Tanks and BMP were from 1-th selection. “Lions” is written on them, on many armored personnel carriers that we took from the 80 of the “aerogony” is also an inscription “Lions”, says one of the militiamen.
Andrei Sedykh Collage (photo by Alexey Ranma)
Many local residents remember that the soldiers and officers of the Ukrainian armed forces who survived in the battles for Novosvetlovka and retreating to Khryashchevatoe weapons in their hands they defended them from the infidels from the Aydar battalion. It was not possible to find reliable evidence that this was the case. But the armed conflict, which grew into a battle between the servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and volunteers, did take place. And with losses on both sides.
Having unblocked Lugansk from the south and southeast, the militia went north. Ukrainian units that held positions on the road Happiness - Metalist - Lugansk, stood, surprisingly, to the last. Helped them competently prepared position. But the militia were ready to storm the Ukrainian fortifications.
Self-defense artillery turned out to be more prepared for such battles than the enemy. One thing is to shoot the Lugansk circus for a week and quite another when it is necessary to demonstrate all the skills and abilities, often working dangerously close to your troops. Ukrainian "funny gunners" were not ready for this.
For a few days the enemy was thrown to Happiness. The militias liberated Slavyanoserbsk, Sokolniki and Crimea. Virtually all Ukrainian units have been ousted for Seversky Donets. They managed to hold positions only in the village of Bold.
But on September 5, the Minsk agreement on a cease-fire and the creation of a buffer zone was signed. All field commanders, and even simple militia fighters, with whom they were able to talk, have a very negative attitude towards this treaty. Many do not hide the indignation, and some tears that they could not finish off the "dill" and avenge the dead comrades, destroyed cities and towns, killed civilians.
It was from 5 of September that the “strange war” began, when the truce officially operates, but every day the Ukrainian military fire not only militia responding to them with their artillery, but also settlements, social infrastructure and civilian houses.
Checkpoint number 32: triumphant escape
Against the background of high-profile events in Debaltsevskiy protrusion and Donetsk airport, incessant clashes around Slavyanoserbsk, the village of Trekhizbenka and the so-called number checkpoints are not so noticeable. But the events taking place there, although they do not attract the attention of the general public, in fact play a decisive role in the fate of Novorossia.
If you look at the map of hostilities, the protrusion formed by Pervomaisk and Slavyanoserbsk immediately catches the eye. Now he is busy with the militias. They and the Ukrainian military shares in this place Seversky Donets. In the event of a resumption of the ATO forces, the river will become a natural boundary, which will be very difficult to force, since most of the bridges either have already been destroyed or can be blown up at any time. The western flank of the Severodonetsk militia group in the Pervomaisk region looms over the Debaltsevsky ledge. If the militiamen go on the offensive, then, acting from this area, they will not only easily make a “pot” out of the protrusion, but also continue the offensive. In the west - on Soledar and Artyomovsk, in the north - on Lysychansk and Severodonetsk.
Andrei Sedykh Collage (photo by Alexey Ranma)
Therefore, in September and October, the Ukrainian military constantly attempted to maintain their positions at any cost on the southern bank of the Seversky Donets, in the area of the villages of Smelye and Crimea. The basis of the defense of the ATO forces here are numbered roadblocks, which run from Frunze to Gorsky. If at the beginning of September after the August counterattack of the militia, the Ukrainian military wanted little - to retain these positions at any cost, then in October, having recovered their strength and resources, they decided to knock out the militias from Slavyanoserbsk and completely clear the southern coast of the Seversky Donets from them. The key element of this plan was the checkpoint number 32 near the village of Bold.
At the end of August, the 32 Cossack battalion and the battalion of St. George the Victorious arrived in the area of checkpoint No. 2. True, they didn’t manage to knock out the Ukrainian military before the truce began. According to the Minsk agreements, this territory was to come under the control of the militia, but the Ukrainian military were in no hurry to leave.
“As soon as we reached the 32 block, we were immediately offered to“ fennel ”to either leave or give up. Those seemed to be in words were ready to leave, but in fact they were dragging time and did not move anywhere. Ukrainian commanders told us that the units that stand behind them will not be missed and shot. Like, at the roadblock some conscripts and they do not want to fight. It lasted a month, all this time, our intelligence also worked. And we had doubts that ordinary conscripts were standing at the checkpoint. It turned out they had jeeps there, and the personnel had too free behavior. All the "dill" at the checkpoint spoke only in Russian. Then they sent us a note, ”says the commander of the 2 Cossack battalion of the Great Don Cossacks.
He still keeps it in the armband pocket of camouflage jackets. A wiped piece of paper from a notebook, or maybe from a regular notebook, in which, in a beautiful handwriting in Russian without a single grammatical or syntactic error, it is written that the garrison of the 32 checkpoint does not bombard the Cossack militia. And some people who do this are driving in jeeps at their checkpoint and shooting at both the Ukrainian garrison and the militia. At the end of the message, the staff of the roadblock offers to meet on neutral territory and discuss what to do.
In fact, all this time, the Ukrainians accumulated forces at the checkpoint No. 32, pulled up tanks and other armored vehicles, and strengthened their personnel. But the Ukrainian command did not take into account one fact: by this time, the militia had already learned how to successfully use improvised unmanned reconnaissance aircraft - ordinary civilian quadcopters with installed cameras.
The Cossack battalion commander of the 2-th Battalion keeps pictures of the autumn events from the BLA in the laptop, where you can clearly see how the enemy’s machinery is being pulled, how the fortifications are being dug.
The first move was made by the Ukrainian military: they first tried to destroy the checkpoint of the Cossacks standing opposite them with tank guns and then went on the attack. But the militia were ready for this and fought back. Having suffered losses in manpower and technology, the enemy attempted to circumvent the position of the 2 Cossack battalion from the north, but failed there as well. It was necessary once again to change the direction of the offensive. They tried to bypass the unyielding Cossacks already from the south, striking at the checkpoint of the battalion of the name of St. George the Victorious. But even there, the Ukrainian military could not succeed. At this time, a militia detachment under the command of a fighter with the call sign “Hooligan” walked around the southern flank of the 32-th checkpoint and with a sudden blow cut it off and attacking the Bold Ukrainian tactical group from the 31-th checkpoint, virtually blocking the enemy in the “cauldron”.
“Dill” drove the tanks and tried to destroy our roadblock with direct fire. In response, we burned two tanks. Without expecting such an answer, they dashed away at the Bold, where they were also met with dignity. In total, we then 22 units "ukropskoy" armored vehicles burned. Ukrainian artillery worked with Kryakovki, with Orekhovo-Donetsk and Trekhizbenki. It is clear that they wanted - knocking down our checkpoint, go to Slavyanoserbsk and clear the southern coast of the Seversky Donets from us. At 32's checkpoint in that battle, we destroyed more than two hundred people, and our casualties were five wounded. At that moment, an armored group came to reinforce, and the “dill” left us alone, having begun to attack not on our positions, but on the battalion of St. George. They shot down one checkpoint and began to move along the route to cut off my battalion. At this time, the “Hooligan” nahuliganil - bypassed the “dill” and 32-th checkpoint, cut the route, and we were full of them. But then, instead of giving the order to finish off the "ukrov", the command took and released them. Now the “dill” right pride, what they are heroes, came with equipment and flags. It was necessary not to let them out, but to finish them off immediately when they refused to surrender, ”the commander of the 2 Cossack battalion was annoyed.
Now in the area of Slavyanoserbsk, Sokolnikov and the village of Crimean are constantly shooting. Ukrainian military probe the defense of the militia, conduct reconnaissance in force. Artillery operates.
Iraq swore in vain
Sokolniki is a small village, just one street, it’s the road connecting Slavyanoserbsk and Crimea. Houses stand in one row, behind them begin small fields and so characteristic for those places hills-heights. A few hours before my arrival there was a battle. The Ukrainian military on the BTR-80 tried to break along the road. Where - is unknown. It is possible, expected that the militia left the village. But they were mistaken, for which they paid with their lives.
An armored personnel carrier came under fire from the LNG-9 militiamen, and having received a grenade exactly in the middle of the cab, between the commander’s and the driver’s workplaces, caught fire. While the Ukrainian fighters were pulling out their wounded, the BTR-4, which for some reason was called a “Polish” by the militia, approached from behind. With his onboard weapons, he was able to press the LNG-9 crew, but in turn fell under the RPG of the Cossacks, whose grenades not only knocked down the “bed” protective grid, but also severely damaged the armored personnel carrier.
The "Pole" lost his turn, stopped, oil spilled from it. At this time, the militia tanks approached the battlefield, firing high-explosive fragmentation shells.
But the BTR-4 also got help - the Ukrainian T-64. True, the tank battle did not take place. “Dill”, according to the militia, threw cables and in a matter of seconds, dragged down a padded “Pole”, on which the militia fired at last a few more fragmentation shells.
The burnt-out Ukrainian BTR-80 stands exactly in the middle of the road. He still smells of burnt iron, plastic. There is also an almost elusive smell of burnt meat in the air, intensifying at the open side hatch to the troop compartment. The gunner operator remained in his place. In the troop compartment which has burnt out to zero, it can only be recognized by the remaining teeth. For some reason the survivors didn’t pull out the 200.
A few meters behind the armored personnel carrier, on the road lies a package of used universal dressing bag, which is on supply in most NATO countries, also called Israeli, and used ampoules of anesthetic nalbuphine. It is noteworthy that the “Israeli” bandage itself, judging by the marking, is quite fresh, from the factory.
A little further on the road, the whole security grille with the BTR-4 lies down. The bullets fired from the small arms of the militias knocked whole pieces out of armor. So Iraqi claims on the quality of the BTR-4 body armor were valid. Even under the fire of "shooter", it crumbles, pieces of three to five centimeters in size fly off.
Nearby is an electronic surveillance device shot down from the "Pole". Literally a stone’s throw away from the place where the BTR-4 was stalled, another platform where assistance was provided. Most likely, the crew of the "Pole" got hard from the fire of the militia. True, instead of the “Israeli” dressing package, there are already ordinary Soviet ones in a tarpaulin package and packs of a spent hemostatic (hemostatic) sponge.
Judging by the remnants of camouflage in the characteristic "figure", as well as the Ukrainian body armor and a protective helmet that remained after the battle, most likely they were the National Guard men. Striking degree "Svidomo." On the front plate of the bulletproof vest on the back side is a sign “Glory to Ukraine!”, And on the back - “Heroes of Glory!”. The BTR-80 is still preserved, even though in some places it is burnt, tied to the antennas and railings of the yellow blakitnye bows. On the remnants of camouflage and insulation on each armband pocket again the Ukrainian flag.
I am shown on the phone a photo of a trophy chevron taken from the remnants of the camouflage of the deceased member of the ATO a few days before. On the background of the mountains is a lying wolf, and along the circumference is the inscription “The battalion of the name of Dzhokhar Dudayev”.
We pass the battlefield, and after a hundred meters Sokolniki ends. We stop in the yard of the last house, abandoned by the owners. Ahead, just in a couple of hundred meters, the first houses and the road sign are already visible, indicating that you are entering the Crimea, controlled by the Ukrainian military. True, according to my attendants, the “dill” hold positions, like the militia in Sokolniki, in the depths of the village.
We reach the first houses of the Crimea. Everything is calm, there are no traces of Ukrainian positions. True, pieces of armor and parts falling from the "Pole" are lying on the road. It is risky to go further, so we return with all precautions.
Locals left Sokolnikov with the start of the fighting, abandoning everything. In the courtyards there are cars, pets go, clucking chickens, mooing cows. Militias do not touch the economy of residents. If they still occupy houses, they behave carefully, do not touch the harvest, do not spoil the property.
In one of the courtyards next to the booth sits a shepherd and does not go anywhere. The hosts fled, leaving her on a leash. The dog was dying of hunger when the militiamen noticed it. Untied. But she still sits next to the house. The Cossacks feed her and, as they can, greet her, but she still does not leave her court.
In the village, along with the 2-m Cossack battalion, there are also militia tanks. The commander of one of them is an elderly peasant about sixty years of age, of the same age and his gunner-operator, who had served in the GSVG on T-62 in Soviet times. An amazing picture: on the bench next to the house are two grandfathers, shod in warm boots so much loved by the villagers, and argue absolutely peacefully about something of their own. The idyll is broken by the AKS-74, each of them hangs on the shoulder, and the tank standing next to it is destroyed in battles.
Merry Mountain is located next to the bridge over the Seversky Donets, leading to Happiness. From her, there is a beautiful view of the city itself and the Lugansk TPP next to it, which during the August battles was promised to be blown up by the commander of the Aydar battalion Sergey Melnichuk.
Immediately behind the bridge is a Ukrainian checkpoint, seemingly abandoned. According to the accompanying, the Ukrainians react painfully if someone appears on the mountain. Sometimes they begin to handle the height of mortars or sniper shooting. But so far, calm. At the same time, through binoculars it can be seen that the Ukrainian roadblock only seems abandoned, behind the rubble there are people in insulated dark-colored jackets - most likely the National Guard under or soldiers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. We stare at each other through binoculars for a while.
A few minutes later, the whistle of the first mortar mine is heard, but far enough from us. It is clear that our visit is not welcome. It's time to go.
Every night in the area of Happiness, the Ukrainian military organize a “light show” especially for the militia. Their units begin to fire at each other. The most active in the fight with neighbors, as always, "Aydar".
Saur-Grave, once again about the food
Fighting in the Saur-Graves area is no longer going on - Ukrainian troops have been driven back far enough. According to local militias, occasionally there appear only reconnaissance and sabotage groups trying to monitor the road leading from Luhansk to Snezhnoye, Makeyevka and Donetsk.
The height itself is small. At first glance, there can hardly be placed two motorized rifle platoons without armored vehicles. You can get on it in two ways. The first - through the village of Petrovskoe, the second - through the Snow. The Ukrainian military attacked from the western direction from Amvrosiyivka, so their path lay through Petrovskoye, which went very strongly. It can be said that there is no settlement as such. A large number of houses, shops demolished by artillery and tank fire, burned equipment. Between the positions of the militias and the Ukrainian troops storming them, only 100 – 150 meters.
At Saur-Tomb we were on a clear sunny day. It should be noted, the view from there is amazing. In the south, the settlements are already visible on Russian territory, and in the west, the suburbs of Donetsk are well visible, not to mention Shakhtersk, Torez, and Snezhniy. It even seemed that the Sea of Azov flashed in the south-west.
The militia took up positions around the monument, at the same time, Ukrainian soldiers were sitting in the neighboring buildings - the outbuildings of the memorial.
It is noteworthy that the Museum of military equipment, standing at the central staircase, was almost not affected. Got only heavy T-10M, which board is punched in one place. The very same staircase along which the boards with the names of the Red Army soldiers who died here during the Great Patriotic War were completely destroyed, however, as well as the bas-reliefs with the names.
From the monument to the soldier was left only a boot, pierced in several places by shrapnel and bullets. After the stela had fallen, a kind of shelter was formed from its foundation, which the militia used when defending.
In all positions of the Ukrainian troops with rare exceptions, an incredible number of packages from dry rations. Green - Ukrainian, light brown - American or German. Many broken glass jars, which kept the fat. Another sure sign that the positions of the Ukrainian military were - scattered toothbrushes, tubes of toothpaste, disposable razors. At Saur-Grave, it seems that the Ukrainian military, who had stormed the height, drew suhpaks and lard right in the course of the battle.
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