Ukrainian paratroopers foiled a Russian assault in Novomykhailivka, Donetsk region, destroying 12 Russian armored vehicles, the 79th Separate Tavriyya Assault Brigade reported.
The brigade shared a video on Telegram, stating: “The enemy continues to forcefully test the defenses of our paratroopers, who are holding back their advance in the area of the settlement of Novomykhailivka.”
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According to the brigade, Russian forces launched a coordinated attack from multiple axes on Wednesday, March 6, bolstered by a substantial armored presence.
“The assault began in the morning and continued throughout the day,” the brigade said.
Tavriyya paratroopers repelled all the attacks, destroying 12 Russian armored vehicles, including four tanks.
The video shows the beginning of the battle, with Russian troops advancing in several columns towards the Ukrainian paratroopers’ positions.
The footage shows Russian troops storming Ukrainian positions with armored personnel carriers (BTR), amidst heavy fire from tanks moving in a column.
A Ukrainian military officer, speaking to Kyiv Post, said that the video shows Ukrainian paratroopers using anti-tank guided missiles against the Russian column, while Ukrainian tanks open fire on Russian armored personnel carriers.
The officer suggested that Ukrainian forces might have also utilized FPV drones for attacks, though it’s not shown in the footage.
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Additionally, the video shows the paratroopers igniting fires in the immobilized Russian equipment using ammunition dropped from a Mavic drone. It is evident that the ammunition detonated inside the Russian tank driver’s hatch following a well-aimed delivery.
In a comment to Kyiv Post, a Ukrainian aerial scout said that if the Ukrainians had not destroyed the disabled Russian armored vehicles, the Russians might have returned at night to retrieve the equipment with a tank tractor.
So, the Ukrainian paratroopers act preemptively, rendering Russian armored vehicles into scrap metal.
“This powerful [Russian] column was designed for success, counting on the element of surprise,” the officer told Kyiv Post.
“However, due to Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance, which detected the movement of such a large amount of equipment from afar, a massacre was prevented,” he added.
He said that tactics involving tanks leading a convoy of armored personnel carriers and infantry were developed in Soviet times.
“[If they had been] given the element of surprise, this would be a very effective tactic. However, in conditions of total aerial surveillance, it doesn’t work very well,” the officer said.
The Russians took significant losses from the assault, he said, highlighting the Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance’s crucial role in disrupting their plans: “The entire assault was thwarted thanks to aerial surveillance using a Mavic drone worth only Hr.300,000 [$7,850],” he said.
The destruction of over a dozen Russian armored vehicles likely dealt a significant blow, costing the Russians millions of dollars.
“One gets the impression that [the Russians] are especially thrown into such meat grinders, but the fact is that they were using outdated Soviet tactics,” he said.
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