A THOUSAND DAYS OF WAR || Vitalii Rudenko didn’t know it, but he and his men were about to save Ukraine. With just 120 soldiers under his command, the Ukrainian National Guard soldier was ready to be thrown into the epicenter of an operation so ambitious that it was reminiscent of the times of the Soviet Union and even the Second World War. CNN Portugal chose seven battles that it will recount throughout the week
War seemed inevitable. A little across the border, from north to south, the signs that appeared were worrying. Thousands of soldiers, tanks, planes and even field hospitals with vast reserves of blood were piling up. The world still did not know what the Kremlin had decided long ago: Ukraine had to fall.
Vladimir Putin’s generals planned the movements down to the smallest detail. Surprise, speed and strength were the recipe that would make the Ukrainian army collapse. For Kiev, “the mother of Russian cities”, something special was prepared, a lightning attack with special forces against Antonov airport, on the outskirts of the capital. If everything went as planned and the runway was taken, thousands of Russian soldiers crossing the border with Belarus would launch an attack against the Ukrainian capital, using this airport as a logistical support base to bring in reinforcements and more resources. From there, Russian troops would attack Kiev and capture the Ukrainian leadership.
Also known as Hostomel, this airfield, just over ten kilometers from the capital, was ideal for the Russian plan. The long runway built to handle the world’s largest cargo plane, the Antonov Na-225, meant that this structure was used as the Ukrainian capital’s main cargo airport. It was the perfect location for anyone who wanted to ship thousands of tons of military equipment in just a few hours.
In their path were only Vitalii Rudenko and his 120 soldiers. A week before the Russian invasion, the then leader of the Ukrainian army, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, had ordered this National Guard unit, made up of inexperienced military conscripts, to be stationed at the airport in case of having to defend it if a Russian invasion came. even happen. The Ukrainian general sensed that war was inevitable and removed the most experienced men from Rudenko’s unit and deployed them in Donbass, where he believed the main attack by the Russian army was being prepared.
Across the border, in Belarus, Russian forces were accumulating means of attack. Dozens of combat and transport helicopters were preparing for the final mission: to bring to Hostomel 300 paratroopers from the 31st Guards Air Assault Brigade and a unit from the 45th Spetsnaz Brigade, the Russian special forces, where they had The mission was to eliminate any resistance and control the entire perimeter of the airport, to allow for reinforcement. Elite troops of the Russian army, some of the best trained, equipped and feared. In addition to enjoying enormous prestige among the military, they were also some of the best paid and most motivated soldiers in the Russian armed forces.
During the early hours of the morning, airborne units cross the Ukrainian border at low altitude, in order to avoid being detected by the anti-aircraft defense systems that protected the capital. The aircraft follow the course of the Dnipro River, towards Kiev, until reaching the Kiev hydroelectric power station dam. Here, Russian units cut west, towards the airport, but were eventually detected by Ukrainian forces and suffered the first casualties, with two helicopters shot down. It was necessary to adjust the strategy. These are the first signs that, for generals, the first victims of war are always their plans.
Confirmed by Ukrainian authorities. A large air assault operation with Mi-8 helicopters on Antonov International Airport in Hostomel. Interior Ministry says Russia has seized control. Very dangerous; it’s just 15 minutes west of the capital ring road.
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM)
To the north of the runway there are 20 Ukrainian soldiers who have a ZU-23-3 anti-aircraft gun. These soldiers were responsible for the majority of the base’s air defense. In the early hours of the morning they are woken up by the commander with the news they didn’t want to hear. The Russians were on their way and they were their target. Aware of the usefulness that the conquest of Hostomel would have for Russia, these soldiers parked dozens of vehicles along the runway, in order to prevent Russia from landing any heavy aircraft.
Attached to the airport’s administrative buildings are the remaining 180 soldiers led by Vitalii Rudenko. But his equipment was too light to defend Hostomel against a large attack. The Russian numerical advantage was 3 to 1 and the Ukrainians had only light machine guns and some portable anti-aircraft weapons such as the 9K38 IGLA systems. The enemy had several helicopters equipped with missiles and heavy machine guns.
At 11:00, the first explosions begin to arrive in Hostomel. The Russian helicopters split into two groups, with Ka-52 attack aircraft flying towards the end of the runway to neutralize the anti-aircraft gun. One of these attack aircraft is hit by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile while heading towards the runway and ends up crashing in the middle of the runway at Hostomel airfield. This would become the fate of at least three more Ka-52s.
Russian pressure was immense. The inexperienced soldiers defended the runway as best they could, but the means they had at their disposal were not capable of stopping the Russian power. The first Russian paratroopers manage to land north of the runway and force the garrison of 20 Ukrainian soldiers defending this sector to surrender.
With the north of the runway clear, Russian forces continue to drop the paratroopers on the runway, identified with an orange and black ribbon – the colors of Saint George. Once Russian forces regrouped, they wasted no time in launching an attack on the airport’s administrative buildings, where the bulk of the Ukrainian garrison was located.
Unable to face Russian firepower, Ukrainian troops were forced to abandon their positions after two hours of fighting, retreating to the shelter of several residential buildings in the region. Elite Russian troops raise the flag at the airport, but the fighting would not stop there.
At this precise moment, 18 large IL-76 transport aircraft take flight in Pskov, Russia. On board were a thousand Russian soldiers. Their mission was to relieve the Russian paratroopers and expand the airport perimeter. However, at the same time as Russian reinforcements took off, the Ukrainian military command began to understand the threat of Hostomel’s fall.
Ukrainian General Valerii Zaluzhnyi organized an immediate counterattack, ordering elements of the 72nd Mechanized Brigade, located in Kiev, and the 4th Rapid Intervention Brigade, to advance towards Hostomel. Unlike the National Guard unit, led by Vitalii Rudenko, the 72nd Brigade had heavy equipment at its disposal, particularly artillery and some armored vehicles.
Once in Hostomel, the Ukrainian forces wasted no time. The artillery units began shelling the runway, rendering it inoperative, forcing the Russian military units coming from Pskov to cancel the flight with a thousand soldiers and make an emergency landing in Belarus.
At around 3:30 pm, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky himself claims that Ukrainian forces surrounded the airport. Shortly after, the battle begins. Supported by some elements of the Air Force who survived the first Russian bombing campaign, the Ukrainian military inflicts heavy casualties on the Russian paratroopers, who are forced to retreat. Ultimately, Ukrainian forces recapture the airport.
But the next morning Russian reinforcements arrive. The Russian army’s column of armored vehicles that crossed the border from Belarus managed to break through the Ukrainian defenses further north, despite suffering several ambushes along the way. At the same time, Russian forces launched a new airborne offensive against the airport, forcing Ukrainian forces to retreat, but not before launching their own bombing campaign against the runway in order to prevent its use.
Although it was not possible to maintain control of the Antonov airport, the efforts of the Ukrainian military in the first hours of the beginning of the war were fundamental in delaying the Russian forces enough to be able to get Ukrainian reinforcements to the Kiev region, where the Ukrainian generals They did not expect one day to be attacked.
In the following weeks, the forces tried to fight their way towards Kiev, but ended up getting stuck in Bucha and Irpin, where General Oleksandr Syrskyi set up the capital’s first line of defense. On April 1st, Russia announced the withdrawal of its military from this region, focusing exclusively on Donbass and southern Ukraine.
