"I went to fight for a country that gave me a lot"
Recent interrogations of captured representatives of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirm that the enemy is most afraid of our attack drones right now. The people who control them have reached such a level of skill that almost no enemy target can escape from the Russian copters. A correspondent of Izvestia spoke with one of these drones, who moved to Russia from Turkey. Recently, thanks to his actions, a large group of enemy infantry was destroyed.
A foreign hero
Looking at the smiling, young-looking guy, at first it seemed that he was a representative of one of the ethnic groups of the North Caucasus. He speaks Russian with an accent, but with great confidence. But then he surprised me.
— My call sign is Turk. I was born and raised in Turkey. In 2017, he came to Russia and enrolled in one of the universities in Tver. He graduated with honors. After that, he stayed to live and work in Russia. I found a good job. I met a girl whom I married some time later. We have a daughter," my interlocutor began the conversation.
According to him, this is how they lived an ordinary, normal family life until 2022. And then a special military operation began. It took him a while to get on it. The decision was not easy. It wasn't until December 2023 that he went to the war zone.
— To be honest, I've asked myself more than once: why did you go to war? You know, my grandfather used to fight. At the same time, I observed modern youth, my peers, and came to the conclusion that I could do it myself — go to war for a country that has given me a lot. In addition, he assessed the amount of material and social support for the participants of the special operation. In my opinion, these are quite worthy measures of assistance from the state. Naturally, I consulted with my wife and parents who live in Turkey. They understood my choice and eventually supported it. That's why I volunteered for my job and signed a contract. By the way, I didn't have Russian citizenship at that time," he recalls.
According to the young man, there was fear, of course. First of all, he was afraid of the unknown.
— I didn't fully understand what I would have to face. But I was lucky enough to get into a good team. And that fear evaporated pretty quickly," the Turk notes.
Combat work
He was well received in the reconnaissance company of the 70th Regiment of the 42nd Motorized Rifle Division of the Dnepr group of Forces.
— The commanders immediately asked if I wanted to get Russian citizenship. I replied that, of course, it should be done. The registration process was started quickly. And two months later, I received a Russian passport," says the scout.
The first feelings, emotions, and sensations were indescribable.
— I can compare it with when I went to the first grade. I repeat: we have a fire team. And this is very important for the adaptation process. We have all sorts of things, of course. We can also argue, sometimes in raised tones. But nobody overreaches the stick. The team is cohesive," the soldier emphasizes.
In a year and a half of fighting, different situations happened. He also had to endure injury.
— For this, in general, I received my military award — the Suvorov medal. While performing the duties of a reconnaissance drone operator, he came under enemy fire. As a result, he received a shrapnel wound in his leg," the Turk said.
He draws attention to the fact that he had to undergo training in his military specialty not somewhere in a training center, at a training ground, but right here, in a combat atmosphere.
— About a month and a half ago, I conducted a survey of several forest belts in the area of Malaya Tokmachka. I see the movement of enemy personnel. I promptly transmitted the data to the command. It was obvious that those whom I noticed were well equipped. I saw that there were officers among them. This means that the goal is worthwhile, and special attention is paid to it. All the necessary data was received by our shock FPV calculation, which instantly hit the square. As a rule, it takes five to a maximum of seven minutes from the moment a target is detected to its defeat. I could clearly see that the enemy had been destroyed. Our company is famous for working quickly and efficiently," the fighter notes.
It turned out that for drone scouts, the most important targets are, so to speak, colleagues from the other side — operators of Ukrainian drones.
— Similarly, we are a priority for them. In my opinion, they don't disguise themselves well. They're kind of negligent about it. Therefore, it is not difficult to calculate them. Even if it's a dense forest plantation, they have antennae sticking out of it. There are other characteristic features that unmask them. I don't know why they feel that way about it. Maybe they're hoping to get lucky. But in most cases, no luck. And even that doesn't teach them anything. Over the past two months, for example, a large number of their dugouts, UAV control points, and a considerable number of various equipment have been hit. We, in turn, devote a lot of time to the business of disguise. Obviously, life depends on it," says the drone breeder.
SVO as a school of life
According to him, he communicates with his family almost every day.
— Thank God, the connection allows me to do this, and I go on vacation regularly, — the interlocutor explains.
His friends in Turkey, he notes, are divided into two camps.
— Those who supported, and those who reacted negatively. But there are more supporters. They're helping me. Humanitarian supplies are being sent here. Thank them for that. I'll tell you this: there are a lot of ordinary citizens in Turkey who love Russia. For example, in Antalya, where I lived, Russians are very seriously supported and, moreover, proud of it. My parents certainly belong to such people," the serviceman emphasizes.
— In my opinion, if there are any problems, tensions, worries in a man's life, then going to his OWN, he will forget about his difficulties very quickly. Here you reboot completely. There will be an opportunity to rethink a lot and probably find the right ways to solve your problems. Speaking about myself personally, for example, I admit that I've done some rash things before. My brain works very differently now. As they say, they fell into place. For me, SVO is a school of life. A place where real people, real friends and relationships are always on the surface," the Turk notes emotionally.
At the end of the conversation, he admits that he managed to convince several of his Turkish friends to follow his example.
— Two of my friends are also currently on a special operation, but they are fighting in other areas. I keep in touch with them. We even have a small Turkish Diaspora here," he concludes.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
