„Nur etwas Luft zu schnappen kostet Leben und Körper, also macht die Infanterie alles in Höhlen“, sagte ein Oberfeldwebel der 93. Separaten Mechanisierten Brigade am „Fleischwolf“ in der Nähe von Kostjantyniwka

**Translation**:

Armored vehicles are beginning to appear on the Kostiantynivka axis, where the Russians have nevertheless managed to push through and infiltrate the city itself. Neighboring settlements are uncontrolled by either side: sabotage and reconnaissance groups penetrate them, and their drones knock out not only infantry but also blow up our unmanned ground vehicles (UGV) that retrieve the fallen and the 300s.

Over the past few days, the Kostiantynivka axis has been replenished with anti-tank weapons that seemed irrelevant for a long time. Fog and rain have nevertheless forced the renewed use of ATGMs and their crews on positions next to the infantry. The occupiers are trying to conduct mechanized or motorcycle assaults, so guided missiles are relevant again.

Activity on the axis has decreased this month compared to the number of assaults in November and October. This is noticeable even by the number of air strikes on the sector. There is less infantry, and the enemy almost does not use armored vehicles. Only two armored personnel carriers were spotted moving last week, but both they and the Russians inside were destroyed, explains to Vchasno journalists the chief sergeant of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade “Kholodnyi Yar,” Vitalii Piasetskyi, call sign “Stokhid.” However, a reduction in the number of clashes is not an indicator, since the Russians continue attempts to seep between positions. Now the weather has worsened, so we expect the enemy to become more active, to seep in and accumulate there in order to assault us.

“It is difficult to detect them, because there are a lot of destroyed, buried, ruined positions on the axis that previously were shelters. And with all that, they are still shelters. Russians try to hide in them, even if they are covered with earth, mud, branches, conditional debris. They hide there, come out from there to their command, and opponents begin to move in there. They can move for weeks, and from there they feel out options for where to go on the assault. Sometimes we have to work on destroyed and old positions where, only theoretically, Russians might be sitting. That is, the unit begins to methodically attack all potential locations. Thus — until they are hit, or until the Russians give away their location or run to another shelter. Or, for example, when the activity of a radio station that we have triangulated disappears,” the serviceman explains.

Over the past weeks, Russian fiber-optic drones have been flying deep to 15–20 kilometers, while drones such as Molniya, Gerbera, or Lancet easily reach 40 kilometers deep into the rear. “Waiters” sit at public transport stops, intersections, on our own damaged equipment. And when they spot a UGV, equipment, or people — there are only a few seconds before they attack. This happens almost instantly.

“It’s enough for a vehicle to be moving. Literally yesterday I saw a damaged truck that locals either ordered or used to evacuate. The drone hit precisely the driver’s door. I don’t know if anyone died, but there was a lot of blood,” explains “Stokhid.”

**“One robot was driving as a decoy, another — to evacuate a wounded man from the ‘gray zone.’ The Russians blew up both, and that’s almost a million hryvnias at once”**

Due to the dominance of drones on the Kostiantynivka axis, the logistics of the 93rd brigade are “tied up.” Unmanned ground vehicles cover a distance of 15 kilometers to the line of contact. Armored vehicles still enter that territory with nets and protective grilles, but where drones fly en masse — everything moves only on UGVs. In the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade this direction is one of the most developed in the Defense Forces.

Vitalii Piasetskyi explains that today it is almost impossible to delineate who stands where. If earlier the infantry stood on the forward edge, now pilots stand almost on the same line.

“Not infrequently our pilots enter into small-arms firefights with infiltrated infantrymen. But, unfortunately, the guys can remain on a position for quite a long time until they can be evacuated. No one thinks about a UGV that may be lost, because the main risk is to lose a warrior due to bad weather, the situation, a drone drop. If the moment of evacuation is unsuccessful, then the drone with the fighter will be lost. Therefore now the waiting time for evacuation lasts from several hours to several weeks. This depends also on the severity of the wound. If the situation is critical — we will do everything, seize the most favorable conditions from those that will form at that moment,” the serviceman says.

Vchasno journalists witnessed the beginning of the evacuation of a wounded fighter from the forward edge. When it got dark, two unmanned ground vehicles set out for the serviceman. One — as a decoy, to become a distracting maneuver for Russian drones. The other — to take the 300 to medics.

“They went together, but maybe only one will make it, because the other is a decoy. If a drone hits one robot, then we go again. The weather is good, it allows the Russians to see us. If it were bad — I would go alone,” one of the drone operators said.

In the end, after two hours on the road, the occupiers noticed the “cockroaches.” As expected, the Russians destroyed one drone. Unfortunately, the other one, which was supposed to save the fighter, as well. Only a few minutes remained to reach the wounded man, less than two kilometers. Cases when robots do not reach the 200s and 300s happen almost every day. Their further fate, at best, is to become a donor for a “successor.” That one will still go to the fighter whom medics are waiting for either to save, or relatives — for burial.

**Refusals of rotations, a toilet and a bath in dug “burrows,” and an understanding of what exactly the occupiers will “work with”: conditions on the “zero” at the end of 2025**

The chief sergeant of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade says that the line of contact has critically affected both rotations and the conditions in which the guys serve. Especially when it comes to forward positions of infantrymen and drone operators.

“Now very combat-hardened guys who have killed many Russian infantrymen, repelled assaults and survived drone raids, are not eager to leave positions, because the scariest and most dangerous thing is rotations. Especially when they have been on the position for a long time — people are weakened, because they have to sit in some burrow. Even minimal motor activity like stepping out, straightening up, walking around, stretching — is deadly dangerous. Therefore often leaving positions lasts several days or even a week. You have to jump from point to point, from dugout to burrow, hiding or running from drones,” explains Vitalii Piasetskyi.

Staying on infantry positions today is a separate kind of ordeal. Often servicemen live in dugouts (sometimes relatively intact), but mostly they are already half-destroyed, with foxholes dug inside. In some places there are several bends (dug passages in the ground) in case the enemy detects the position and covers it either with artillery or drones. If they crawl there, they can save their lives.

“No one goes outside to the toilet — everything is done in the shelter into trash bags, because the price of such an exit can be measured in life, traumatic amputation, or severe injury. All logistics are exclusively thanks to drones: a drone flies in or a UGV arrives, drops a package with water, food, clean clothes, heaters, batteries for the radio. That is, being an infantryman now is very hard. Many times harder than in 2022, 2023, or 2024. Infantrymen know that their positions, if detected, will definitely be ‘taken apart’ by bombers, drops, loitering munitions, artillery and mortars will work on them. Therefore our infantry are titans,” the serviceman says.

With drone operators the situation is somewhat easier, although if the Russians detect their position, they will “douse” it with KABs and level the entire square to a state from which there will be no one to evacuate. Pilot positions (ours and the enemy’s) are equally priority targets for destruction for everyone — both the Defense Forces and the occupiers. However, if analyzing the situation specifically for pilots, the hardest are “Mavic operators,” since they are closest to the line of contact. FPV operators sit farther back, bomber operators — even closer to the rear. Thus their rotations can last from four days to a week, explains Vitalii Piasetskyi.

For the heroism that fighters of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade show by going to positions, the brigade tries on its part to give everything: as long a leave as possible, internal brigade awards. However, Vitalii Piasetskyi says that as chief sergeant he would like more transparency in the state award mechanism.

“We have people who have not been awarded since 2022–2023, although back then they destroyed dozens of units of Russian equipment, tanks, armored vehicles of the enemy. Or went on assaults on enemy positions, recaptured and held them, advanced deep into enemy positions. These are just a few examples; in reality there are dozens. And what to say about 2024–2025, when fighters spent up to 200 days on positions… The award system in the Armed Forces is, unfortunately, often a ‘black hole.’ Submissions are written, we submit people for awards, but all the papers and appeals disappear somewhere. Therefore not all heroes who showed the highest level of courage and heroism are duly honored by the state. And, unfortunately, not all of them live to see the day when a decision on their award is made,” adds “Stokhid.”