Labor reserve: how equipment destroyed by the enemy goes into battle again
In the repair shop, smelling of salt and burnt scale, there is an APC-82A. In the clashes near the village of New York, near Gorlovka, he withstood about 20 hits from enemy shells and drones. Only recently, evacuation groups brought him from the battlefield to the location of the 99th battalion of the 51st Army of the Center group of forces. At first glance, it cannot be restored. But the specialists of the repair battalion say that returning it to service is a difficult task, but doable. They are confident that the combat power of the army is measured not only by the echelons of new equipment coming to the units from the defense industry factories, but also by the equipment that they restore and return to the line of combat contact. How it happens is in the Izvestia report.
From grenade launchers to repairmen
The main task of any armored vehicle is not just to deliver troops, but to save the lives of the people inside. Approaching enemy positions, the car may lose momentum, lose wheels or weapons, but if the crew remains intact, it means that the "box" has fulfilled its mission.
However, her story often doesn't end there. First, evacuation groups fight for the damaged side, pulling equipment out of the "gray zone" under targeted drone fire. The enemy hunts for every stationary target, trying to turn a damaged car into a pile of burnt scrap that cannot be repaired. If the tow trucks managed to pull the object to the rear, the mechanics' time begins.
An armored personnel carrier BTR-82A stands in a spacious workshop, smelling of salt and burnt scale. Or rather, what was left of it after a dense fire contact near the village of Novgorodskoye (New York) in Donbass. Nearby lies a turret with a 30-millimeter cannon.
"Most likely, the enemy first targeted the engine," explains the battalion's senior foreman, Sergei, with the call sign Bald. — The crew and the troops managed to get out, and when the line of contact moved forward, we took the car. You see, it didn't even have time to rust, the metal is fresh.
The village of Novgorodskoye (before 1951 and in 2021-2024 - New York) is located in the DPR, 40 km north of Donetsk and about 10 km west of Gorlovka. He was liberated by Russian troops on August 20, 2024.
Sergei's path to these workshops was tortuous. In 2022, he joined the ranks of the People's Militia of the DPR on mobilization. He started out as a simple grenade launcher, went through trench mud and direct clashes. Later, when the unit needed technical specialists, he was transferred to rembat. In civilian life, the man worked in security and was far from setting up complex combat platforms.
"I studied on the fly,— Alexey admits. — I was looking at the old-timers who have been here since the fourteenth year. Those guys can pull out the BMP engine with their eyes closed and plug in a new one in a matter of hours. I've been learning from my experience bit by bit, and now I'm in charge of the site myself.
Rescue Screens
Looking at the APC's body, you understand why it survived. The machine is equipped with a set of additional protection — a second layer of armor, mounted on top of the main body on special spacers-bosses. It was these sheets that absorbed the energy of the cumulative jets and fragments. We count more than 20 hits, but there are practically no through holes in the inhabited compartment.
— The machine has withstood a tremendous load, — says the master. — We will completely rebuild the "interior", patch up the holes, align the geometry of the hull. The engine will go to a specialized workshop to determine if the unit is still alive. But we will pull the electrical wiring ourselves. This is painstaking work, requiring time and perfect accuracy, because any mistake in the scheme can cost the lives of the crew in battle.
Working with armored steel is a challenge for any locksmith. The metal is hardened so that ordinary drills do not take it, and standard cutters become dull in a minute. You can't just drill a hole or cut a thread here. Any operation turns into a complex technological process using gas cutters and high-strength welding.
Heirs of the militia
An electrician driver with the call sign Elephant is working on wiring a nearby car. He is one of those old—school craftsmen whose experience has become the foundation for the current generation of repairmen.
"I defended the house back in 2014," he recalls. — Then I was 24, before the war I cooked confectionery glaze at the factory. As a result, in ten years, perhaps the entire range of armored vehicles, including trophies, has passed through my hands.
Slon remembers the days when there were no spare parts at all, and the circuits were restored according to old Soviet textbooks or drawn by hand. In the early years of the conflict, when the People's Militia had a shortage of equipment, even hopeless samples were put into service. If the tank burned out completely and could no longer fire, the craftsmen cut off the turret, welded the hull and turned it into a powerful tractor.
— Sometimes repairs take a couple of days, — says the electrician. — But such severe cases as this 82nd one take weeks. The main thing is that the car comes out as new after us. We are not just repairing iron, we are restoring soldiers' faith that their armor will not let them down.
The repair shop is open around the clock. While one team is cutting down the mangled screens, the other is already preparing new protection segments. There is no place for fuss here, only dry calculation and hard physical labor. After all, every restored APC is a rescued landing platoon in tomorrow's offensive.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
