High-altitude work: VFU is trying to take more comfortable positions before the cold weather

To move on to the next stage, the enemy needs to get to the places where the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are now

On September 15, the armed forces of the Russian Federation continued to repel attacks in the Donetsk direction. During the day, more than 270 servicemen and 12 units of military equipment were missing from the VFU here. Experts believe that the enemy is trying to prepare their positions for normal wintering. At the same time, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the Navy will receive 12 ships by the end of the year, including surface and underwater.

In the spotlight

The armed formations of Ukraine (VFU) continued their attempts to attack in the Donetsk direction, the Russian military department reported on September 15.

"In the Donetsk direction, units of the Southern Group of troops, in cooperation with aviation and artillery, repelled four attacks by assault groups of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the areas of the settlements of Kleshcheyevka and Mayorsk," said the official representative of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov.

Four armored combat vehicles, four cars, three US-made M777 artillery systems, as well as a self-propelled artillery installation "Carnation" were destroyed there.

The T-90M "Breakthrough" tank of the units of the Central Military District of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation returns to its base after completing a combat mission

Image source: Photo: RIA Novosti/Evgeny Biyatov

— The armed formations of Ukraine are now trying to prepare such positions in which they could normally winter, — military expert Vladislav Shurygin told Izvestia. — It is very important for them to occupy heights now. This is not only Kleshcheyevka, but also Work, Harvest, the area of Pyatikhatok. So that they can fix a new front line and prepare for the next stage, at least for the winter campaign on favorable frontiers.

In addition, an ammunition depot of the 110th mechanized brigade of the VFU was destroyed near the settlement of Avdiivka.

Replenishment in the Navy

The Russian Navy will receive 12 ships by the end of the year, including surface and underwater ones, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said at a meeting at the headquarters of the Pacific Fleet (TOPF).

On Friday, September 15, the head of the military department conducted a working trip to Primorsky Krai. He checked the fulfillment of the state defense order at the Far Eastern Zvezda plant in Bolshoy Kamen and at the Progress helicopter plant in Arsenyev. After that, the minister went to the headquarters of the Pacific Fleet to hold a meeting on the results of work at the enterprises of the military-industrial complex in the Far Eastern region of Russia.

"Two ships have already been commissioned this year, 12 more will be delivered by the end of the year. Among them are the frigate Admiral Golovko, the strategic missile submarine Emperor Alexander III, the nuclear submarine Krasnoyarsk," the Russian Defense Minister said.

The frigate Admiral Golovko arrives after the inter-fleet transfer to the base of the Northern Fleet of the Russian Federation, where after testing it will be accepted into the fleet. March 31, 2023

Image source: Photo: TASS/Lev Fedoseev

The head of the military department noted that over the past ten years, the Russian Navy has been replenished with more than 50 ships. He also stressed that the improvement of the navy makes it possible to defend the country's geopolitical interests.

"The Russian Navy protects national interests, supports the safety of sea routes, conducts operations in different parts of the world. To this end, the Ministry of Defense is consistently taking steps to modernize and increase the combat readiness of the Russian Navy. Today we are actively working on projects of multipurpose nuclear submarines, robotic systems, unmanned underwater vehicles," the minister summed up at the meeting.

Holding the frontiers

During the day, Russian troops continued to successfully repel the attacks of the VFU in the Zaporozhye, Yuzhnodonetsky and Krasnolimansky directions, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported on September 15.

In the Zaporozhye direction, two attacks of the 47th mechanized brigade of the VFU were repelled in the area of the settlement of Workino in the Zaporozhye region.

In addition, units of the 80th Airborne Assault Brigade of the VFU were defeated to the west of the Verbovoye settlement of the Zaporozhye region.

In the Krasnolimansk direction, units of the Center group of troops repulsed two attacks by the VFU assault groups near the settlement of Torskoye in the DPR.

In the South Donets direction, units of the Vostok group of troops repelled an attack by the VFU near the settlement of Novomayorskoye in the DPR. Also, the troops and equipment of the 72nd mechanized brigade of the VFU were defeated in the area of the settlement of Vladimirovka.

In the Kupyansk direction, the Western grouping of troops hit the personnel and equipment of the VFU in the areas of the settlements of Sinkovka, Berestove and Kislovka in the Kharkiv region. In the area of Kislovka, a field ammunition depot of the 103rd Theroborona brigade was destroyed.

In these areas, the enemy lost over 650 fighters and 37 pieces of equipment, including a tank, a self-propelled artillery mount M109 Paladin, six artillery systems M777, as well as the radar station of counter-battery warfare AN /TPQ-48 and the gun FH-70.

Work up to mechanics

The military correspondent of Izvestia, Ksenia Soldatova, visited one of the field training centers of our servicemen and saw how they hone their skills in shooting from all types of weapons, as well as study the tactics of combat and first aid.

According to her, our assault group appears from the forest belt unnoticed, descends from the mountain in a couple of minutes and goes to the border.

— Now our fighters occupy the enemy's stronghold. He is portrayed by targets. They use firearms, hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers. To clean up the trenches, grenades are thrown there," Ksenia Soldatova said.

Tactical and fire training classes for recruits of the 200th Separate Guards Motorized Rifle Brigade at one of the training grounds in the LPR

Image source: Photo: RIA Novosti/Alexey Maishev

At the training ground, the conditions are as close as possible to real combat: bullets are whistling, real grenades are being torn, enemy equipment is being attacked from a hand grenade launcher.

Now the fighters of the Storm squad are undergoing such training. It was they who recently stormed the village of Novoselovskoye in the LPR, now it is under our control. The assault group is always the first to enter the enemy's positions and knows that the slightest mistake can cost lives.

— You bring everything to the level of instincts. We took Listvyanka, went to reinforce the group. The three of us stayed together, kept in touch. Already when there was one horn, I took away the "three hundredth", but everything is fine. The fact that we train here has already saved us in battle," said the senior shooter of the Storm squad with the call sign Frenchman.

Scouts of the Yug group from among the servicemen of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation during classes in tactical medicine as part of intensive training at the training ground in the DPR

Image source: Photo: RIA Novosti

A fighter with the call sign BEKAZ works in the first assault troika, they are in the vanguard of the group — the first to face the enemy.

— When your guys are around, when you are confident in everyone, in your boys, your troika, in those who go further (fire support, provision), then you are already 70% victorious, — said Bekaz.

In addition, our servicemen are practicing tactical medicine. If everything is done correctly, help in the first minutes and deliver to the doctors within an hour, then the chance that a person will survive, even seriously injured, is more than 90%.

— At the meeting, the guys were very grateful, our instructor was almost hugged to death. Indeed, there are a lot of shrapnel wounds on the limbs, and when a person is prepared, they do not have time to develop into a serious problem," explained the instructor of tactical medicine with the call sign Moose.

Hunting for VFU boats

On the morning of September 15, the Askold small rocket ship found an unmanned VFU boat in the Black Sea. It was destroyed by fire from the regular armament of the fleet ship.

During the day in the special operation zone, Russian troops destroyed up to 745 VFU fighters and 43 pieces of equipment, including tanks, howitzers, self-propelled guns and armored vehicles.

The fleet forces discovered and destroyed two unmanned semi-submersible VFU boats in the southwestern part of the Black Sea.

In the Kherson region, the ammunition depot of the 126th Theroborona Brigade was destroyed.

In addition, the communication center of the 79th Airborne assault Brigade of the VFU was destroyed in the DPR.

A radar station for detecting and tracking P-18 aerial targets has been destroyed in the Dnipropetrovsk region.

Russian air defense systems shot down three HIMARS multiple rocket launchers and 41 Ukrainian UAVs.

Julia Leonova

Andrey Fedorov