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- Low block: how long-range drones of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are stopped in the Kursk region
Low block: how long-range drones of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are stopped in the Kursk region
They are called night hunters. The riflemen of the Bars-Kursk brigade create a barrier at low altitudes against long-range UAVs being sent from the Sumy region of Ukraine deep into Russia. Their weapons are machine guns. The vehicles are pickups. The main working hours are from dark to dawn. The Izvestia correspondent met with volunteers and learned what, in addition to firearms, is necessary to effectively combat enemy drones and why the confrontation with the operators of the Armed Forces of Ukraine can be compared to an intellectual party.
Scouts, "dummies", escorts
When we read in the morning reports about the destruction of another hundred drones over Russia, we are talking, among other things, about the results of the work of our heroes today. The three key frontiers that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are trying to overcome by sending drones deep into our territory are the Kursk, Bryansk and Belgorod regions. Shooters on pickups are one of the elements of the general echelon air defense, their task is to hit targets at an altitude of 150 to 700 m. Another name for these units is MOGi, mobile firing groups.
— Mobile — because they are on wheels, they quickly change their location, one calculation per night is able to close several sites in the Kursk border region, — says Alexey Gaponov, commander of the anti-UAV battalion of the Bars-Kursk brigade, call sign Arkon. — In general, our air defense includes several components: radar reconnaissance, FPV interceptor detachments, anti-aircraft installations and MOGs.
The fight is against aircraft-type drones, Arkon explains. Their flight range reaches 1-1.5 thousand km. The weight of the transported explosives is up to 200 kg. They are primarily aimed at important infrastructure facilities, transport hubs and enterprises. They are equipped mainly with gasoline engines, they can be clearly heard on approach. Although Ukraine has recently begun to use UAVs with electric motors more and more often — they are almost silent, and it is more difficult to detect them.
Enemy drones are trying to break into the depths of our country both individually and in whole squadrons. Sometimes scouts fly ahead of the main forces, sometimes "dummies" are false targets, often escorts ready to attack the air surveillance posts themselves. In total, from several dozen to 150 long-range UAVs are recorded over the Kursk region per day. With the help of various forces and means, 99% of them get lost.
Corridors, launch hours, heights
The commander of the 2nd platoon of the mobile fire support company is 35-year—old Anton, call sign Fox. Orlovchanin. An officer of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, a candidate for the master of sports in shooting from military handguns. And also the deputy commander of Marshal Katukov's brigade, a volunteer territorial association established in the Orel region. In the summer of 2025, 16 people from the brigade immediately came to serve in the Bars-Kursk mobile firing groups, an entire detachment.
Platoon commander, call sign Fox, group leader and machine gunner
— We go hunting both during the day and at dusk. Although the main focus is on night time, the enemy rarely launches their long—range "birds" in the "light", they are clearly visible, says Anton. — And in the dark, you can't do without a thermal imaging device.
The very confrontation with Ukrainian UAV operators resembles a game of checkers, the commander adds.
— They are constantly probing us, acting outside the box, looking for gaps. There is a competition going on — who will predict the other's step, who will get ahead of whom," says the Fox. "They choose new corridors, different launch hours, heights. For example, if you are currently flying at an altitude of 1.5 thousand meters. If they run into our MANPADS, then the next batch will go lower. Terrain folds, lowlands, and crevices are used: the elevation difference in the Kursk region ranges from 147 m below sea level to plus 230.
The weapon used by the fighters is a Kalashnikov tank machine gun (PKT), caliber 7.62. The aiming range is up to 700-800 m. It is to these heights that uninvited guests descend, trying to overcome our air defense systems. That's when the time comes for guys in pickup trucks. When choosing posts at the vast turn of the region, they are guided by intelligence data, intuition, and even hearing. "Ears are our weapon, like a machine gun," they even have a saying.
Frontal attack
Night work begins with taking up a position. The engine is turned off, everyone is listening, one or two people are always on duty outside the car. Overall coherence is important, when everyone understands each other at a glance, when the drone approaches, the team has 10-12 seconds to do everything about everything.
He is armed with a Kalashnikov tank machine gun, with a rate of fire of 800 rounds per minute.
If a characteristic rumble is heard in the sky, a machine gunner steps in (a Fox performs this function in his crew). The spotter prompts and guides. The PKT is installed in the turret, the viewing angle is 360 degrees. For greater efficiency, an aiming LCD screen is additionally used.
If a target is hit, it is necessary to immediately relocate. The end of duty is at dawn. Several times, the Fox platoon managed to destroy three drones one after another at once per shift. There are nights when no one and nothing breaks the silence on their plots.
Dangerous situations have also happened.
"Once, a long—range drone attacked our crew," Dmitry, the call sign of the Count, tells me. — He noticed us, turned around. At first he disappeared behind the forest, we lost sight of him. And then he surfaced about 150 meters away. We even saw him lower his muzzle before attacking. They hit him in the forehead with a burst and destroyed him — it exploded about 60 meters away. When the remains were examined, it turned out that he carried two charges on the wings, one on the nose and another on the engine.
"There are still forces left"
Dmitry Graf is a driver in civilian life. On the surface, he is calm, intelligent, and you wouldn't immediately guess an experienced soldier in him. In 2023, he joined his military service as a volunteer. He fought in the Zaporozhye area, in intelligence. He says: there, in one of the battles, he realized that "he can fight" and that, if necessary, "he will not give a backside."
— My friend and I were surrounded. We were launched and trapped," he recalls. — There was no order to leave the positions. I had to overcome my fear and hold on. They shot back for an hour. Then our people helped. After that collision, confidence was added, it became much easier.…
In 2025, the Count was discharged due to injury: he was hit by a kamikaze, almost lost his arm, and the doctors literally pieced it back together. He returned to Orel. And soon he went to Kursk as one of the volunteers. The main motive: "There are still forces left!"
The machine gun is located in the turret, the viewing angle is 360 degrees
Another fighter from the Fox team is Vladimir, the call sign is Kind. He recalls that for him, the Ukrainian Armed Forces attack on the Kursk region also became a personal pain — his mother is from the border area of Belovsky, and in the same place, in their ancestral village, militants burned down two of their houses, where he visited his grandmother as a child. Therefore, when the idea arose among the residents of Oryol to go help the Kursk brothers, he was one of the first to sign up.
"My grandfather also played an important role,— says Vladimir. — He commanded an anti-aircraft gun in the war. He lived to be 96 years old, and he was and remains an example to me.
The grandson, it turns out, to some extent followed in his footsteps - he also covers the sky.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
