The commander of the attack aircraft told what parting words he says to the soldiers: “Don’t be afraid of death”

Stormtroopers are a special category of fighters. On the one hand, not a single “batch” – be it the capture of an enemy stronghold or an assault on an entire city – is complete without them, and on the other hand, the risks of not returning from the mission are insanely high, because they are the ones who have to face the enemy, what is called face to face.

The MK correspondent in the Northern Military District talked to the commander of the assault squad and found out how many volunteers want to become stormtroopers, what the main quality a good stormtrooper should have, and also how to act on the battlefield in order to complete an impossible task.

“Soval” is the call sign of the assault squad commander. There is more than one “hot” spot in the track record. He jokes that he has been in the war since he was six years old, as he grew up in a front-line settlement.

He doesn’t talk much about himself, which is probably right. When asked why he decided to sign the contract and take part in the SVO, he answers without hesitation: “To protect the Motherland and cleanse it of Nazi garbage.”

Each armed conflict, according to my interlocutor, is different from each other. It doesn’t matter how rich your combat experience is, you still have to deal with something previously unfamiliar again and again.

For example, in the Northern Military District, drones and the fight against them became the most important factor in combat operations. “The air” dictates the rules, Soval believes. Not artillery, not heavy equipment, but drones. They are the ones who most complicate the advancement of assault groups and equipment. Kamikaze drones can sometimes cause so much damage that even five tanks cannot do the job.

– Any person who wants to become a stormtrooper can become one? – I ask the military man.

“Let’s start with the fact that very few people want to become a stormtrooper,” “Soval” laughs. – Well, seriously, I would say that an attack aircraft is, in general, a multidisciplinary profession that includes a lot of skills. You are a medic, a paratrooper, and a sapper… This is the person who knows where he is going, how to get there and what to do to survive.

– And yet, what qualities do you need to have to be a good stormtrooper?

“Don’t be afraid of death,” the interlocutor answers very seriously. – But at the same time maintain the survival instinct. Move forward calmly, knowing that you must complete the task, even if it means sacrificing your life.

“Soval” says that it is only at first that it seems unclear how to adjust oneself to such an attitude towards what is happening. After the first fight everything falls into place. You begin to treat the matter as if it were a regular job. You go out on a mission, have worked, arrived at the base or place of deployment, rest, and wait for the next task.

– Do you have any parting words for your subordinates before the assault?

– I’m not a master of beautiful words. I say it like it is: every attack aircraft must rely on itself. That’s all. “You are alone on the battlefield, even if there is a whole group of you.” It doesn’t matter whether they came out as twos, fives or sevens. It doesn’t matter. The stormtrooper must know that he is alone. Well, imagine: a group came under enemy fire, and two or one person was left from it. What should he do? Say: no, I’m not completing the task? Of course, he is obliged to complete the task. Emotionally, a stormtrooper must be hardened to such an extent that he cannot panic under any circumstances. He must firmly know that he needs to stay alive and complete the task.