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31st Guards Air Assault Brigade

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31st Guards Air Assault Brigade
Russian: 31-я отдельная гвардейская десантно-штурмовая ордена Кутузова II степени бригада
Great emblem of the 31st Separate Guards Air Assault Brigade
Active1998–2023
Country Russia
Branch Russian Airborne Forces
TypeAirborne forces
RoleLight Infantry
Airborne Infantry
Airmobile infantry
SizeBrigade
Part ofSouthern Military District
Garrison/HQUlyanovsk
MUN 73612
PatronSt. Elijah the Prophet
Motto(s)Себе — честь, Родине — слава!
(Honour for me and glory for Motherland)
EngagementsSecond Chechen War
Russo-Georgian War
Russo-Ukrainian war
•Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation
• Crimean parliament raid
War in Donbas
• Battle of Ilovaisk
Russian invasion of Ukraine
•Battle of Hostomel[1]
•Battle of Antonov Airport
•Battle of Volnovakha
•Battle of Izium[2]
•Battle of Sievierodonetsk[2]
•2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive[3][4]
DecorationsOrder of Kutuzov 2nd Class Order of Kutuzov
Insignia
Sleeve patch

The 31st Separate Guards Order of Kutuzov 2nd class Air Assault Brigade is an airborne infantry brigade of the Russian Airborne Troops, based in Ulyanovsk. The brigade was formed in 1998 from the 104th Guards Airborne Division. The brigade fought in the Second Chechen War and the Russo-Georgian War. During the annexation of Crimea elements of the brigade entered Ukraine's Crimean peninsula.[5] In August 2014 brigade's units participated in the war in Donbas.[6] The brigade fought in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, beginning with the Battle of Antonov Airport where they sustained heavy losses.[7][8]

In September 2023 it was became the basis of the restored 104th Guards Airborne Division.[9]

History

[edit]

The brigade was created as a result of the disbandment of the 104th Guards Airborne Division in 1998 at Ulyanovsk. Between 1999 and 2001, the brigade fought in the Second Chechen War. For their actions during the war, senior lieutenants Grigory Galkin and Roman Igoshin were awarded the title Hero of the Russian Federation (Igoshin posthumously).[10] Since 2005, the brigade has used a contract manning system. On 1 December 2006, it was redesignated as an air assault brigade.[10] A battalion tactical group of the brigade fought in the Russo-Georgian War in 2008.[11]

A monument to Army General Vasily Margelov is located at the brigade's base in Ulyanovsk. In April 2010, VDV commander Vladimir Shamanov visited the brigade and viewed its battalion tactical exercises.[12]

The brigade was part of the Collective Rapid Reaction Force as of 2013.[13]

In February 2014, elements of the brigade were sent to Crimea.[5] Brigade troops assaulted the building of Crimean Parliament, wearing Ukrainian "Berkut" police uniforms and insignia.[14]

In August 2014 the brigade's units fought in the Battle of Ilovaisk. On 26 August a column of mixed 8th Mountain Brigade and 31st Air Assault Brigade units was ambushed by a Ukrainian anti-tank artillery squad of the 51st Mechanized Brigade near Mnohopillya village.[15] Two soldiers of 31st Brigade were captured: Ruslan Akhmetov and Arseniy Ilmitov.[16][17][18] During a rescue attempt, another 31st Brigade unit was ambushed. Nikolai Kozlov, a paratrooper who participated in the Crimean Parliament building takeover in February, lost his leg in the ambush.[19] After Russian "RBK" media had published an investigation where it assumed Akhmetov and Ilmitov were killed in the battle of Ilovaisk,[20] notorious "Lifenews" media made a TV report, where it visited brigade's garrison in Ulyanovsk and spoke to both Akhmetov and Ilmitov proving they're alive and are actual servicemen of the Russian army.[21][22]

During the Ukrainian forces' withdrawal from Ilovaisk on August 29, Donbas Battalion fighters were able to capture two soldiers of the 31st Air Assault Brigade near Chervonosilske village: Nikita Terskikh and Eugen Sardaryan, as well as some soldiers of 6th Tank Brigade.[23]

On 4 June 2015, TASS cited an unnamed official claiming that the 104th Guards Airborne Division would be reformed from the brigade.[24]

The 31st Airborne Brigade alerted as part of high alert check of the Airborne Forces.

In March 2016, the brigade temporarily moved from its base at Ulyanovsk to Orenburg in snap readiness drills.[25]

The brigade was deployed to Belarus in preparation for the Russian invasion of Ukraine,[26] which began on 24 February 2022. The soldiers of the brigade boarded helicopters that morning, ostensibly for exercises. Once airborne, they were notified that they were at war with Ukraine before mounting a surprise air assault that began the battle of Antonov Airport near the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv. The brigade quickly seized control of the airfield, but Russian reinforcements were prevented from using it by Ukrainian anti-aircraft fire. Facing counterattacks in which at least 34 soldiers of the brigade were killed. The 31st was then committed to the battle of Hostomel, in which they suffered heavy casualties that included brigade commander Colonel Sergey Karasev and battalion commanders Major Alexey Oskin and Lieutenant Colonel Denis Yagidarov.[27] After the Russian retreat from Kyiv Oblast on 1 April, the remnants of the brigade were redeployed to eastern Ukraine for the battle of Izium and then participated in the battle of Sievierodonetsk.[28] The 31st Guards Air Assault Brigade has been participating in the 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive.[4] In September the Brigade's commanding officer, Colonel Andrey Kondrashkin, was killed near the village of Andriivka.[3]

Composition

[edit]
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, a BMD-2 of the 31st Guards Air Assault Brigade damaged in the Battle of Hostomel.

As of 2021, brigade units include:

  • Two air assault battalions
  • One airborne battalion
  • One recon battalion
  • One tank company
  • One sniper company
  • One howitzer battalion
  • One self-propelled artillery battalion
  • One anti-tank battery
  • One air defence battery[29]

Commanders

[edit]
  • Major General Vadim Orlov (1998–2000)
  • Colonel Sergey Yevgenyevich Kapustin (2000–2002)
  • Colonel Nikolai Sergeyevich Nikulnikov (2002–2005)
  • Colonel Vladimir Anatolyevich Kochetkov (2005–2007)
  • Sergei Nikolaevich Volyk (2007–2008)
  • Aleksei Nikolaevich Ragozin (2008–2010)
  • Colonel Dmitry Valeryevich Glushenkov (2010–2012)
  • Colonel Gennady Vladimirovich Anashkin (2012–2014)
  • Colonel Dmitry Sergeyevich Ovcharov (2014–2017)
  • Andrei Vasilyevich Stesev (2017–2019)
  • Viktor Igorevich Gunaza (2019–2020)
  • Vladimir Vyacheslavovich Selivyorstov (2020–2021)
  • Colonel Sergei Karasev (July 2021– KIA in Ukraine, 11 March 2022)
  • Colonel Andrey "Dunai" Kondrashkin (2022 - KIA in Ukraine, September 2023)[30]
[edit]
  • Brigade sleeve patch (until 2006).
    Brigade sleeve patch (until 2006).
  • Brigade sleeve patch (from 2006).
    Brigade sleeve patch (from 2006).
  • Brigade sleeve patch (current).
    Brigade sleeve patch (current).

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "ЗСУ взяли під контроль Гостомель – розвідка". www.ukrinform.ua. March 4, 2022.
  2. ^ a b Beardsworth, James (June 3, 2022). "'Are There Even Any Left?' 100 Days of War in Ukraine For an Elite Russian Unit". The Moscow Times.
  3. ^ a b "Commander of Russian air assault brigade reportedly killed in Ukraine". Meduza.
  4. ^ a b "ISW: Ukrainian advances in Zaporizhzhia Oblast prompt Russian defensive focus". The Kyiv Independent. September 17, 2023.
  5. ^ a b "В Джанкое находятся войска Чеченской Республики" [In Dzhankoy are forces of the Chechen Republic]. IPC Dzhankoy (in Russian). 5 March 2014. Archived from the original on 10 March 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
  6. ^ Sutyagin, Igor (March 2015). RUSI Briefing Paper: Russian Forces in Ukraine (PDF) (Report). Royal United Services Institute. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 January 2021. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
  7. ^ "'Are There Even Any Left?' 100 Days of War in Ukraine for an Elite Russian Unit". 3 June 2022.
  8. ^ "Know No Mercy: The Russian Cops Who Tried to Storm Kyiv by Themselves". 20 May 2022.
  9. ^ Hird, Karolina (12 November 2023). "Restructuring and Expansion of the Russian Ground Forces Hindered by Ukraine War Requirements". Critical Threats. American Enterprise Institute.
  10. ^ a b "31-я отдельная гвардейская десантно-штурмовая Ордена Кутузова 2-й степени бригада : Министерство обороны Российской Федерации" [31st Separate Guards Airborne Brigade Order of Kutuzov 2nd class: Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation]. structure.mil.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2015-12-18.
  11. ^ "Прощай, оружие" [A farewell to Arms]. old.redstar.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2015-12-18.
  12. ^ "Командующий ВДВ инспектирует войска" [VDV Commander inspects troops]. desantura.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2016-03-03.
  13. ^ McDermott, Roger (2011-09-04). "CSTO Moves Into The Information Age". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
  14. ^ "How 'Ukrainian Berkut Officer' from Russian Ulyanovsk Assaulted Crimean Parliament Back in 2014". InformNapalm.org (English). 2015-07-09. Retrieved 2016-10-31.
  15. ^ "КАПИТАН, КОТОРЫЙ ИЗМЕНИЛ ХОД ВОЙНЫ" [The captain who changed the course of the war]. Censor.net (in Russian). Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  16. ^ "Embarrassment for Russia With Their Soldiers Being Captured in Ukraine. - InformNapalm.org (English)". InformNapalm.org (English). 2014-12-18. Retrieved 2016-10-31.
  17. ^ "Most Russian Soldiers Killed in the Wat in the Ukraine Came From 5 Elite Airborne Units, Report". Matthew Aid. Retrieved 2016-10-31.
  18. ^ Igor Panko (2014-08-28), Ruslan Akhmetov and Arseniy Ilmitov interrogation (2014/08/28), retrieved 2016-10-31
  19. ^ "Билет в один конец". Новая газета - Novayagazeta.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2016-10-31.
  20. ^ "Расследование РБК: откуда на Украине российские солдаты". РБК. Retrieved 2016-11-28.
  21. ^ "LifeNews пообщался с "похороненными" десантниками". Life.ru. Retrieved 2016-11-28.
  22. ^ LifeNews пообщался с "похороненными" СМИ десантниками, 6 October 2014, retrieved 2016-11-28
  23. ^ "Internet Users Have Identified Russian Soldiers Captured Near Ilovaisk - InformNapalm.org (English)". InformNapalm.org (English). 2015-03-27. Retrieved 2016-12-09.
  24. ^ "Источник в Генштабе: Ульяновскую бригаду ВДВ преобразуют в дивизию" [General Staff source: Ulyanovsk Airborne Brigade to be converted to division]. TASS (in Russian). 4 June 2015. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  25. ^ "Russia's Ulyanovsk airborne formation redeployed to Orenburg range for drills". TASS. Retrieved 2016-04-06.
  26. ^ "Ульяновский губернатор сообщил о гибели двух десантников на Украине". March 2022. Archived from the original on 2 April 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
  27. ^ "На кладбище Ульяновска с начала войны появились 42 могилы десантников, о смерти 21 из них не сообщалось публично". Медиазона (in Russian). Retrieved 2022-06-03.
  28. ^ Beardsworth, James; Shcherbakova, Irina (3 June 2022). "'Are There Even Any Left?' 100 Days of War in Ukraine For an Elite Russian Unit". Moscow Times. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
  29. ^ "Russian Military Forces: Interactive Map".
  30. ^ "Александр Ходаковский". Telegram. Retrieved 2023-09-17.
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