Secretive training, days underground, excitement and work on the moral and strong—willed - in the testimonies of the participants of the legendary march along the gas pipeline
Today, Operation Potok is perhaps the most daring, desperate and one of the most effective in the entire time of the special military operation. Its participants immediately became textbook heroes. The participants are more than 700 people from the Veterans, Vostok, Akhmat special forces brigades, the 30th Motorized Rifle Regiment and the 11th Airborne Brigade. The path in the pipe was 15 km, and I had to walk hunched over in total darkness, breathing methane fumes. The fighters went underground on March 1, came out on the 8th and immediately went into battle. As a result, on March 12, they managed to free Suja, and within a few weeks, the entire district. On the first anniversary of the unique march, its participants shared with Izvestia the details of those days.
Oleg, call sign Smog
Commander of the 2nd reconnaissance and assault company of the Veterans brigade:
— Our brigade, specifically the 10th company, was preparing for Operation Potok. She cleaned the pipe, secretly cut ventilation hatches along its entire length. During these actions, artillery was closely trained, covered and distracted. At one point, the operation was under threat: in February, the enemy launched a counteroffensive, tried to break through to the village of Ulanok, the entrance to the pipe was in the battle zone. But we "paid them off" in three days and continued our preparations.
Oleg, call sign Smog, commanded two groups of stormtroopers during the operation.
Image source: Photo: from Oleg Smog's archive
Closer to March, they began to interact with related parties, explaining the upcoming tasks to their commanders. They themselves actively updated their knowledge of urban battles, because they had been fighting in forest belts for many months before that. We went down the pipe on March 1 — our team was the last one.
It took almost eight days. Why is it taking so long? Several hundred people were already moving ahead of us. There were traffic jams. It was also necessary to keep a distance so as not to accumulate and burn what little oxygen was available. They were pulling up ammunition and uniforms. It was not easy: the walls and darkness pressed down, there was a state of disorientation in space, and it was necessary to take out the moral and strong-willed. Someone was panicking, and in such cases, the heart rate increases, oxygen is doubly lacking.
Underground catacombs at the entrance to the pipe
Image source: Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Prudnikov
On the morning of March 8, we didn't even go outside, but jumped out, flew out — we were so tired of being underground. They were ready, as they say, to run anywhere, just to keep going. The main challenge was not the assault, but this long march.
We went out for a long time, they "copied" us and started hitting us from above with drones and cluster munitions. The connection was jammed specifically. At the same time, they did not understand about the pipe, they thought: a breakthrough in some area. We entered the industrial zone, established a foothold, and established communication. The surprise effect played a crucial role. A characteristic episode: several Ukrainian soldiers are walking along the road, pushing a shopping cart with groceries, looking at us and generally not understanding who these people with black faces are.
Ammunition after exiting the pipe, the location of the Veterans brigade
Image source: Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Prudnikov
We had to cut off the supply and withdrawal routes of the Ukrainian Armed Forces from Martynovka in the area of the 1st and 2nd Knyazhy farms. They completed their task and even exceeded it — they reached Goncharovka. The defense was held for a week. Then they started and directed the main forces. I withdrew my two platoons from Sudzha to the rear on March 15.
Denis, call sign Strik
The attack aircraft of the Aida group of the Akhmat special forces came out of the tube in the top four:
— I'm a guy from Chelyabinsk. I joined my military in 2022 as a volunteer, when I was 23 years old. I decided to test myself, to test myself. He participated in the capture of Artemovsk (Bakhmut). There, at the very final stage of the assault, I was seriously wounded — I was burning alive, I had 60% of body burns.
Denis, call sign Strik, came out of the tube in the top four
Image source: Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Prudnikov
He returned to service in 2024, when the enemy attacked the Kursk region. We were informed about Operation Stream a day before it started. I immediately decided: I'm coming. First of all, it's interesting, the excitement. Secondly, the training allowed — physical, combat experience. In total, there were more than 70 of us from Akhmat, there were 16 in my group. The journey from start to finish took 22 hours. We were at the arrival point on March 3-4, and there, in special storage tanks, we were waiting for the order to leave.
The most difficult part was walking in a crouch. There was not enough oxygen. Otherwise, it's fine. I was the youngest in the group, and my enthusiasm helped. During the movement, the clothes got wet from the heat. Then you sit down, and the pipe is icy, you immediately cool down. It's the same with sleep: you'll settle down for the night, but you can't sleep for a long time, it's cold. An important point is that the guys and I had been through combat coordination before, but it was the pipe that really brought us together.
A painting painted by a young artist and sent to the soldiers at the front
Image source: Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Prudnikov
We were the first to leave when the order came, the first feeling was that the world was so huge and wide! Together with the guys from the "thirty" we "took" the forest belt, then we took Kubatkin farm and took up all-round defense. The task was to create a foothold and wait for the main forces to approach. They took us out two days later. I remember when the allies came up and recognized us by our black faces, they said: "Okay, guys, relax! The whole world is talking about you."
After that, they sent us to the hospital to get better. I escaped a day later, went to help — the enemy tried to enter the junction of the Kursk and Belgorod regions at that time. After 10 days, chemical poisoning made itself felt: a cough began, which did not go away for more than a month. Subsequently, I went to the Crimea, breathed in the sea air, underwent medical procedures, ate badger fat, and recovered. Looking back, I can say that the operation was worth all the costs — so much land was immediately released.
Daniel, call sign Harvat
The deputy commander of the communications unit of the Timso group of the Akhmat special forces walked the pipe back and forth, covering a total of more than 30 km:
— I got to the underground march, having just returned from vacation, as they say, from the ship to the ball. My friend and I had the task of establishing communication within all assault units, delivering spare communications equipment and returning back. The total journey in both directions took three days.
Danil, call sign Harvat, went through the tube back and forth
Image source: Photo: from the archive of Danil Harvat
I was confident in myself, I don't suffer from claustrophobia. I think I would have died, but I didn't back down. If others have reached it, why am I worse off? We had no idea what a long and difficult path lay ahead, we thought: well, let's run back and forth quickly.
The feeling of time inside was lost: it was unclear what was happening now — day, night, the first day, the second. There was not enough water. They slept half-sitting, leaning against the pipe. At the same time, you can't sleep properly — the movement inside is continuous, you just fell asleep, and they wake you up: skip it. There is an oily substance around the entire circumference of the pipe, a methane residue that we inhaled and which subsequently made itself felt.
There was a minimum of oxygen inside. They lit a match and checked whether it was possible to stop for rest, if it was burning, there was oxygen. At times, traffic jams formed, the guys huddled together, and we had to disperse them. Someone was hallucinating, someone was passing out. Ventilation pockets leading to the air played a saving role, they were previously cut into the metal at a distance of 1.5 km from each other, although some were then covered with earth. Overall, despite the difficulty of the route, the mood of most was cheerful.
Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Prudnikov
Image source: iz.ru
A special challenge for me was moving on "clogged" legs. I crawled for four hours for the last 800 m on the way back. The cough did not go away after leaving for five months. And now sometimes, no, no, and it will begin. I had shortness of breath, and for some reason I was allergic to toothpaste. I've been fighting since 2023, but perhaps the most significant episodes were those that took place here on Kursk soil — Operation Potok and the subsequent battles for Cherkassy River.
Sergey, call sign Gray
Commander of the 5th RCO of the Veterans brigade:
— It so happened that I took part in all three of the "Trumpet" operations that are well-known. This is the profile of our brigade — to break through the enemy's defenses, in what way depends on the situation and our decisions. In some cases, the pipe turned out to be the best option.
Sergey, call sign Gray, was involved in the development of the operation.
Image source: Photo: from the archive of Sergey Gray
The first one is February 2024, Avdiivka. We found an old unused main pipe, pumped out the remaining water, examined it, prepared it, and cut holes for the outlet. We went at our own risk. But everything turned out well: they bypassed fortified zones, minefields and appeared in the very rear of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
The second is the storming of Toretsk-Dzerzhinsk in the summer of 2024. The operation is complicated: we used a whole network of main pipelines. The enemy blew up some of them, remembering the recent Avdiivka, and had to break through earthen corridors instead. Thanks to these actions, it was possible to reach the outskirts of the city and then bring the main forces there.
Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Prudnikov
Image source: iz.ru
The third operation is "Flow", Suja. I participated in its preparation and development. After our fighters went outside on March 8, I coordinated their actions with the control center. On the same day, the commander of our combined group was wounded, and I volunteered to join them. I brought the information to the intelligence chief, and he approved it. I walked through the pipe alone, without stopping. Light — carry only a bulletproof vest and a submachine gun. It took nine hours from start to finish. When I went outside on March 9th, I found my own people and joined them. I would describe the tactics of the Ukrainian Armed Forces during this period as follows: slow us down as much as possible, and get out as soon as possible.
Sergey Prudnikov
