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1st Air Force Combined Rifles Brigade (Ukraine)

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1st Air Force Combined Rifle Brigade (2023-)
"Wild Duck" Detachment (2014-2023)
Зведена стрілецька бригада Повітряних Сил
Insignia of the Ukrainian 1st Air Force Combined Rifle Brigade
Active1992 – present
Country Ukraine
Allegiance Ukraine
Branch Ukrainian Air Force
TypeAir force ground forces and special forces
RoleAerial Assault, infantry, combat support and reconnaissance
Size200 personnel
Part of General Air Command
Nickname(s)Polish Operatives [a]
EngagementsRusso-Ukrainian war
Commanders
Current
commander		Colonel Colonel Bohdan Bondar

The 1st Air Force Combined Rifle Brigade is the one and only infantry brigade of the Ukrainian Air Force. It was initially established in 2014 as the "Wild Duck" detachment composed of troops from all the units of the Ukrainian Air Force. It is subordinated to the Air Force General Command and has seen intensive action throughout the War in Donbas and Russian invasion of Ukraine.

History

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The formation of the "Wild Duck" detachment of Ukrainian Air Force began on 15 September 2014 in the city of Vasylkiv following the order of Colonel-General Yuriy Baydak on 12 September 12, 2014. Colonel Bohdan Bondary was appointed as the commander of the detachment,[1][2][3] Colonel Mykola Levytskyi was appointed as the detachment's deputy commander,[4] and Lieutenant Colonel Oleksandr Berezin was appointed as the detachment's chief of staff.[5]

The detachment was deployed to take up the positions at the Zenit point after the withdrawal of the 156th Anti-aircraft Missile Regiment[6] as well as the entrance and above ground portion of the Butivka-Donetska mine,[7] in order to reinforce the Donetsk Airport by providing defense to the northern approach to the airport.[8][9]

On 23 August 2014, the detachment saw combat in the battle for the village of Lysiche, a battle in which the Ukrainian casualties were five killed and one missing but 86 Russian soldiers and separatists were killed.[10]

The detachment arrived in the area where the operation was to be carried out and was stationed on the outskirts of Tonenke on 27 September 2014. On 29 September 2014, at 04:25, the detachment was fired upon by separatist BM-21 Grads which destroyed two vehicles containing equipment and other stuff. Then, the detachment arrived at the Zenit position on 30 September 2014,[11] accompanied by the tanks and armored personnel carriers of the 93rd Mechanized Brigade.[12]

The detachment covered the northern approaches to Donetsk Airport and the first deployment lasted 45 days during October–November 2014 during which, with the exception of 2 November, the detachment wasn't attacked by separatist forces, unlike the regular attacks on Zenit position during the deployment of 156th Anti-aircraft Missile Regiment.[12] On 27 October 2014, a soldier of the detachment (Kostyshyn Yaroslav Myroslavovych) was killed by shelling on Avdiivka by separatist forces near the Donetsk Airport.[13][14][15][16]

On 22 January 2015, at 10 o'clock in the morning, a column of the separatist 1st Slavyansk Brigade, reinforced by 10 T-72 tanks and an MT-12 anti-tank battery moved towards the Donetsk Airport moved with Ukrainian recognizable tactical signs. Ihor Yemelyanov spotted their movement from the Zenit position.[17][18] Colonel Oleksandr Turinskyi gave the order to fire from all available weapons, after 10 hours of intense battle the first column of separatists retreated followed by the second column. In the morning, the soldiers of the detachment captured the wounded and handed them over to the Security Service of Ukraine. In the battle, 50 separatists were killed and 7 were captured, in addition 2 BTR-80s and 4 MT-12s were also captured During the battle Ihor Yemelyanov personally destroyed seven BMPs and armored personnel carriers and two Ural-4320s using RPGs, inflicting heavy casualties.[18] Moreover two personnel from the detachment (Vasyl Vasyliovych Petrenko[19][20] and Popovych Denys Grigoryovych[21]) were also killed during the battle in addition to the destruction of four APCs, three BMPs, seven Ural-4320s, one Kraz, four Rapier guns and damage to two tanks of the Mechanized Brigade.[22]

The detachment also took part in the Battle of Avdiivka and on 23 March 2015, during the mortar and tank shelling of Ukrainian positions in Opytne and Avdiivka, a tank attacked the detachment's positions killing a soldier of the 11th Anti-aircraft Missile Regiment serving under the command of the detachment (Savitsky Yuri Mykolayovych) and wounding another.[23]

On 13 April 2015, during one of the attacks by separatists on the Zenit position near Avdiivka, the fragment of a 120-mm mine shell hit the ammunition boxes in the dugout and the resulting explosion killed five soldiers of the detachment (Oleksiy Anatoliyovych Vovchenko,[24] Dmytro Ivanovych Hura,[25] Vasyl Mykolayovych Putanenko,[26][27] Oleksandr Mykolayovych Tyshchenko[28] and Bohdan Anatoliyovych Goncharenko[29]) who were taking cover.

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the detachment was reformed into the 1st Combined Rifles Brigade of the Ukrainian Air Force in February 2023 and the reformation was officially confirmed on 26 June 2023,[30] the brigade was already serving on the frontlines in Donetsk Oblast and also saw combat during the 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive for which fifteen personnel of the regiment received state awards.[31]

On 9 September 2024, a soldier of the brigade (Muravsky Vadim Anatoliyovych) was killed in combat on the frontlines.[32][33][34][35]

Commanders

[edit]

Wild Duck Detachment

[edit]
  • 1st Deployment:
    • Commander: Colonel Bohdan Bondar
    • Chief of Staff Oleksandr Berezin
  • 5th Deployment:
    • Commander: Colonel Vyacheslav Khlopyachi[36]
    • Chief of Staff: Kostiantyn Gerasimov
  • 6th Deployment:
    • Commander: Colonel Ihor Levchuk
    • Chief of Staff: Lieutenant Colonel Viktor Misyura
  • 7th Deployment:
    • Commander: Colonel Taiga
    • Chief of Staff: Colonel Igor Chikin

1st Combined Rifles Brigade

[edit]
  • Colonel Bohdan Bondar (2023-)

Sources

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Notes

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  1. ^ Given by soldiers of the Donetsk People's Republic as most of its personnel during the Second Battle of Donetsk Airport came from Western Ukraine and had accents which sounded Polish which gave rise to rumors about the presence of Polish Special Operatives at the Airport, later the nickname was adopted by the detachment

References

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  1. ^ "Полковник з Вінниці просився в АТО рядовим солдатом". Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
  2. ^ У Василькові зустріли вінницьких військових з зони АТО
  3. ^ Полковник з Вінниці просився в АТО рядовим солдатом
  4. ^ До уваги військовослужбовців та членів їх сімей, які прибувають на материкову частину України з території АР Крим та м. Севастополь
  5. ^ "Військовослужбовці Повітряних Сил повернулися до Вінниці із зони бойових дій". Всі новини Вінниці (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  6. ^ "Як українські зенітники в оточенні тримали оборону". armyinform.com.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  7. ^ "Дика качка (додано фото)". Starokostiantyniv (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 29 March 2017. Retrieved 2017-03-28.
  8. ^ "Донецький аеропорт. «Дика качка» // YouTube". Archived from the original on 13 May 2015. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
  9. ^ "«Нищив рашистів у складі „Дикої качки", тепер навчаю цього підлеглих» — воїн «Фантом»". armyinform.com.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  10. ^ Dima Putyat (2016-09-24). ""Нас туда завели". Разбитая колонна НВФ в н.п. Лисичье. 23.08.14". Archived from the original on 8 April 2017. Retrieved 2017-03-28.
  11. ^ "Бойова авіація освоює стандарти НАТО". armyinform.com.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  12. ^ a b "Полковник з Вінниці просився в АТО рядовим солдатом. 14.09.2015". Archived from the original on 2 May 2021. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
  13. ^ Костишин Ярослав Мирославович Archived 27 October 2021 at the Wayback Machine
  14. ^ Костишин Ярослав Мирославович Archived 27 October 2021 at the Wayback Machine
  15. ^ Ярослав Костишин Archived 30 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ Костишин Ярослав Archived 27 October 2021 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ Maria Demchyna (25 December 2021). "Місто привітало військових Галицько-Волинської радіотехнічної бригади". city-adm.lviv.ua. Lviv City Council.
  18. ^ a b "У бою за позицію «Зеніт» він зробив 24 постріли з гранатомета і 22 рази влучив". armyinform.com.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  19. ^ Петренко Василь Васильович Archived 13 February 2022 at the Wayback Machine
  20. ^ Петренко Василь Васильович Archived 13 February 2022 at the Wayback Machine
  21. ^ Попович Денис Григорович («Денді»)
  22. ^ "«Бій тривав вісім годин. На нас ішли 10 танків і піхота» – полковник «Німець»". Radio Svobada (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  23. ^ Савіцький Юрій Миколайович («Партизан»)
  24. ^ Вовченко Олексій Анатолійович Archived 20 May 2017 at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^ Гура Дмитро Іванович Archived 20 May 2017 at the Wayback Machine
  26. ^ Путаненко Василь Миколайович Archived 20 May 2017 at the Wayback Machine
  27. ^ Путаненко Василь
  28. ^ Тищенко Олександр Миколайович
  29. ^ Гончаренко Богдан Анатолійович Archived 22 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine
  30. ^ "Зведений загін «Дика качка» перетворився на стрілецьку бригаду Повітряних Сил". armyinform.com.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  31. ^ "Повітряні Сили відправили у бій зведену стрілецьку бригаду". 2023-06-27. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  32. ^ Герої АТО Вадим Муравський і Ігор Ємєльянов
  33. ^ Мужні герої
  34. ^ 13 вересня на Львівщині попрощаються з імома військовими
  35. ^ Сьогодні Львівщина прощається із сімома захисниками
  36. ^ "Якість підготовки фахівців Повітряних Сил поліпшують, використовуючи технології віртуальної реальності". Archived from the original on 22 February 2020. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
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