Celtic Quest: How the "Irish" hunt down and burn enemy tanks
Their profile is ambush hunting. The gun is "birds" on optical fiber. Geography is the Dobropolsky direction, where they "dry up", that is, cut off, the logistics of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, destroy the firing contour and, as a result, give our attack aircraft the opportunity to move forward. They go to the front line for a month and a half. They are standing in a "drawdown" — a few kilometers from the contact line, where, carefully disguised, they monitor the situation in the designated areas around the clock. "It's like in the woods, when you're waiting for an animal with a gun!" — this is how these guys characterize their work. """""""" Before their next visit to the front, a special correspondent of Izvestia met with the calculation of the strike force "Irishmen" of the THUNDER brigade "Cascade" of the group of forces "Center".
Tactics of "zhdun"
The name "The Irish" comes from the call sign of the squad leader, who received it for his resemblance to Conor McGregor. As it is, everyone here is local, from Mother Russia. The detachment performed well in the Kursk area, gained a name, so in 2025 it was transferred to one of the hottest sectors of the front - to Krasnoarmeysk-Pokrovsk. And as we move forward, we move to Dobropillya, which is next to it, and the Russian military has recently gained a foothold in the outlying sector.
Platon, a journalist and political strategist in the recent past, has been a volunteer fighter for the last four years
— First of all, our task is to knock out guns, tanks, mortars, everything that shoots, - Platon Mamatov, the commander of the calculation and part—time pilot of the FPV drone, tells me, his group is just moving to the front tomorrow morning. — Secondly, cut the supply lines. After that, when the defenders are actually in the bag, the stormtroopers come forward, whom we also strongly support. The overall process is long and painstaking. But this is, in fact, the only way cities are taken today.
They sit in ambush for up to 6-7 hours.
The tactics of the "hunters" are as cunning as they are simple. A charged drone is brought to the desired point. The most advantageous position is in a clearing, on a path, with a direct view of several hundred meters. What follows is waiting. Sometimes 10 minutes, sometimes seven hours. They noticed the target and struck. "If "a large beast" is found—a tank, a transporter, an anti—aircraft gun-a swarm of "birds" is lifted into the sky to permanently disable it.
The Stormtrooper brother
Platon himself is from Yekaterinburg, he is 44 years old. He is a political strategist by profession and has participated in the organization of several gubernatorial campaigns. In the fall of 2022, he volunteered in Donbass. His first battalion was "BARS-13". He fought in an assault company near Kremennaya.
"An invaluable experience," he says. — Six months of fighting have given us a clear understanding of what military action is. They also gave me friends. We are still fighting with some of them, already in the "Irish". And I am also convinced that the best UAV operators come out of the infantry. They experienced all the hardships of military life — shelling, wounds, and the cold. Therefore, being at the console, they will take care of their brother stormtrooper as if he were their own!
The Stormtrooper brother
After "Bars" Platon signed annual contracts three times. A drone has been mastered in the Kharkov-Belgorod direction. First, the mavic scout, followed by the FPV. When learning new science, he adhered to the principle of "always flying, at any free moment" — on a simulator, on a training drone, and most importantly — without interruptions. As soon as you put down the joystick for a long time, the skill level drops sharply, he explains.
Before departure
Then there was Kursk. For the liberation of the region, Platon was awarded the Order of Courage. His team, which includes two more people, currently has almost four hundred targets hit. Of these, there are about 300 pieces of equipment.
Razvedozory – observation posts – "boxes"
Among those who are preparing for tomorrow's call is 39—year-old Ivan, call sign Thunder. A strong and lively guy from the Belgorod region, a boxer. He has worked as a mountain master, a lifeguard, and an instructor at a children's sports camp. After 2022, he was a member of the defense Ministry, took part in the protection of the state border. He's been on a special military operation since 2025, a volunteer. I signed my second contract a month ago. They specialize in explosives engineering, sapper and co—pilot.
Monitoring takes place around the clock. And especially at night.
— Entering positions is generally a whole special operation, — says Ivan. — We need to deliver to the point everything that we will need within a few weeks and will allow us to be completely autonomous. From boxes with "birds" and batteries to food, water, medicines and ammunition. First, the engineers of the reconnaissance teams walk the whole way, examining the road for mines and the same enemy "waiting stones". Further, air surveillance posts are set up along the entire route. And only then do the "boxes" arrive — the equipment with the necessary cargo.
Ivan, call sign Thunder. He worked as a mining foreman and a lifeguard. Now he is an explosives technician and a sapper.
Upon arrival, Thunder's task is to carefully check the area for "surprises" (he already has a whole collection of found explosive items). This is followed by the installation of communication, conducting electricity. Assembling drones — they are delivered to the positions in disassembled form. The determination of the take—off site is mandatory at a distance from the base. Careful concealment: the ideal option is for no one to guess that someone lives in these dugouts or houses.
Ivan Grom and Egor Tomat before being sent to the position
Egor, call sign Tomat, a native of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, is responsible for electronics. He is the main one on the "chip", that is, in guarding the position. And also a charger. Tomat is the youngest in the calculation — he is 31. And at the same time, the most experienced front—line soldier has been in combat since March 2022. In Artyomovsk, he was seriously wounded — after a mine explosion, his leg folded in half. He spent almost two years in hospitals. Now there are no 6 cm bones, but he walks on his own two feet, without crutches. After recovering, he returned to military service.
Smoke on the horizon, "sticks" in the thermal imager
The current position is the seventh, which was changed by the calculation for the current year. The guys are moving after the stormtroopers.
Among the recent combat episodes is the defeat of the "Leopard" tank:
"We received a message that our infantry is covered by tanks,— Platon shares. — We picked up the drone, went in search of it. First, we found two false targets — mockups. And then the camouflaged tank itself, hidden in the caponier. They opened the protective net, then burned through the "brazier" — welded metal, followed by active protection, and finally armor. It took about a dozen kamikaze drones to do everything.
Intelligence in action
Once, during another flight, the guys noticed a ball of smoke at one point. It would seem, so what? But we decided to visit and check it out. It turned out to be a howitzer! I just shot back, hence the smoke. Or here is an episode like this — in the thermal imager during the flight, they saw a small white "stick" on the ground. And again, they were not ignored. It turned out to be a red—hot artillery barrel, which had also just been fired. Another time, a drone was ambushed, waited for an hour, two, six, with no result. Suddenly the headlights are right on the screen. Raised, hit— struck. But they didn't understand what exactly. ""We sent the second "bird" to the place, and only then, from a height, we saw that it was a Grad MLRS! Serious loot.
Training of combat "birds"
During the year, the "Irish" detachment's fighters hit nine tanks, 49 armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles, 79 vehicles, two self-propelled guns, two MLRS, and eight artillery pieces in the Pokrovsky direction. A few days ago, just before the upcoming approach to the positions, all three fighters of the calculation — Platon, Grom and Tomat — were awarded the medal "For the liberation of Krasnoarmeysk and Dimitrov."
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
