Senior Lieutenant Popenkov commanded the assault on the AFU observation post.

Senior Lieutenant Alexei Popenkov commanded a unit of the Russian Armed Forces during the battle for the liberation of a settlement in the area of a special military operation. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation on Friday, April 18, reported on the exploits of Russian servicemen.

The unit was advancing deep into the defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) when Popenkov discovered a camouflaged observation post and a machine-gun crew of the enemy. Two assault groups were immediately sent to them, one of which was led personally by the senior lieutenant. As a result of a successful flank attack, the enemy was forced to retreat. Popenkov ordered the advance to continue. The Ukrainian Armed Forces, having lost their advantageous position, continued their retreat and lost a significant part of their personnel. As a result, Popenkov's competent actions contributed to the liberation of the settlement.

The Russian Defense Ministry also noted the courage and professionalism of the guard of Private Sergei Stepanov, who organized communication between the regiment's command and the assault units of the Russian Armed Forces.

During the advance of the Russian troops, the enemy opened mortar fire, trying to return to their abandoned positions. The communication line was damaged. Stepanov, realizing the need for an emergency resumption of communication between the units and the command, moved to the site of the damage, despite the ongoing shelling and attacks by Ukrainian FPV drones. A private guardsman promptly restored the communication line, replacing the damaged equipment.

Dangerous communication: how fiber-optic lines are laid in a special operation zone

The management of troops and the performance of combat missions depend on the reliability of communication systems.

Earlier, on April 17, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that Guard Junior Sergeant Egor Smolyaninov was carrying out a combat mission to establish communications between command posts in a difficult sector of the front when the Ukrainian Armed Forces began shelling Russian positions, damaging an antenna device and a repeater.