What the military of Russia and Belarus are working out at the Zapad-2021 exercises
Until September 16, joint maneuvers "West-2021"will be held in Russia and Belarus. As part of the exercises, the military has already worked out the capture of the coast, the mass release of paratroopers with night vision devices in the dark, bombing attacks from a height of 1 km and firing cruise missiles in the Barents Sea.
Military exercises "West-2021" are continuing in nine regions of Russia and five regions of Belarus. They involve 200 thousand military personnel, 760 ground combat equipment, more than 80 aircraft and helicopters. Last night, Russian paratroopers carried out a mass night landing as part of maneuvers for the first time in the history of the Airborne Forces, reports The Ministry of Defense.
Several Il-76MD aircraft threw about 600 paratroopers and nine pieces of equipment in the sky near Pskov at an altitude of 600 to 1000 meters. The fighters were equipped with night vision devices and modern navigation systems. After landing, according to the legend of the exercises, they captured the airfield of a conditional enemy to ensure the landing of the main forces of the compound. After that, the paratroopers made a 100-kilometer march to the "Strugi Krasnye" training ground - there they will have to practice raid and amphibious assault actions to capture a favorable line, destroy newly identified enemy objects, conduct maneuverable defense and hold a section of the state border.
The day before, the military of the Baltic and Northern Fleets in the Kaliningrad region worked out the defense of the sea coast and the landing of marines. The crews of large amphibious ships operated at the Khmelevka training ground. Before the landing, a detachment of ships carried out a fire attack on the coast, which was defended by the infantry of the Baltic Fleet. After that, the marines and equipment landed on the shore, suppressed the resistance and advanced deep into the territory. From the air, they were supported by Su-30SM fighters and Su-24 bombers.
Separately, the Ministry of Defense notes the large-scale use of drones during the Zapad-2021 exercises. In Belarus, the intelligence brigade of the Guards Tank Army used special reconnaissance quadrocopters. With their help, the military made a map of the area in the area of the positions of the conditional enemy. In the Leningrad Region, Orlan-10 drones aimed artillery units at targets.
One of the most large-scale operations within the framework of the maneuvers took place in the Smolensk region: there, the crews of long-range Tu-22m3 bombers of the Russian Aerospace Forces and Su-34 bombers of the Western Military District practiced bombing at ground targets simulating armored vehicles, concrete shelters, camouflaged fortified underground command posts of a conditional enemy.
Bomb attacks were carried out from a height of about 1 km, the crews acted as part of pairs and links. The bombers were covered by Su-30SM fighters. In total, about two dozen aircraft were involved.
In the Barents Sea, the nuclear submarine "Eagle "was fired by a cruise missile" Granit " from an underwater position. The military department reported on the successful defeat of a target simulating a large enemy surface ship. The firing was carried out at a distance of more than 100 km, they became the final stage of the maneuvers of the Northern Fleet within the framework of the exercises.
On September 11, the armed forces for the first time showed in action the Platform-M combat robotic complexes - they were used at exercises near Kaliningrad. The robots were used by motorized rifle and amphibious units when passing through conditional minefields and during the testing of the army's actions in an anti-terrorist operation in urban conditions.
Mikhail Kotlyar
