DIU special unit commander: Russian Federation lost 200 elite specialists in the capture of airfields in Hostomel

Russia lost about 200 elite combat specialists in airfield and airport capture who had been participating in relevant military exercises for decades in the battle for the Hostomel airfield. The heavy losses came as a surprise to the Russians, as they were very confident and expected to repeat the scenarios of airfield seizures in Kosovo and Kazakhstan.

This was stated on September 16 by the Hero of Ukraine, commander of the Special Forces unit of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine and an intelligence officer who participated in the Battle of Kyiv. He spoke with representatives of the diplomatic corps on the peace formula at the eighth meeting, which was held by the Head of the Presidential Office Andrii Yermak on behalf of the Head of State at the Antonov airport.

In particular, the intelligence officer recalled the details of the battles in Hostomel, where the occupants wanted to land and seize the Antonov airfield. The latter, according to the Kremlin's plan, was to serve as a key hub for the rapid transfer of equipment and manpower by transport aircraft and the subsequent occupation of Kyiv.

"It seems that the Russians thought they would repeat the scenario of seizing the airfield, as during the Pristina offensive in Kosovo on June 12, 1999. They thought that they would repeat the scenario of seizing the airfield in Hostomel, as during the events in Kazakhstan in early January 2022. They were so overconfident that they failed to realize that they were dealing with Ukrainians," said the DIU Special Forces commander.

He added that the actions of the DIU Special Forces and other units of the Defense Forces in Hostomel were aimed at destroying as many enemy resources as possible and preventing the capture of the airfield.

As a result of the fierce fighting, the airfield's runways became unsuitable for Russian transport planes with personnel and equipment. The enemy suffered heavy losses.

The aggressor state lost about 200 elite combat specialists in the capture of airfields and airports in the battles for the Antonov airfield, who had been participating in military exercises of this type for decades," the intelligence officer said.

The officer also called on the ambassadors of 70 countries to support the Ukrainian formula for peace and "push Russia to the limit".

As a reminder, the fighting for the Hostomel airport began on February 24, 2022, and continued intermittently until February 27. At first, the airport was attacked by Russian helicopters, which landed there.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces recaptured the airport, but the enemy launched a second attack a day later. During the battle, our soldiers killed the attackers and damaged the runway, which prevented Russian Il-76s from landing their main forces. Later, the invaders occupied the territory of the Hostomel airport, but could no longer store their aircraft there. In these battles, the invaders almost destroyed the world's largest aircraft, the An-225 Mriya, which was in the hangar.

In March 2022, the ex-advisor to the head of the OP Oleksiy Arestovych said that about 200 Russian special forces, specialists in airport seizures, had been eliminated in Hostomel. The DIU noted that more than 50 occupiers from the 31st Separate Guards Brigade from Ulyanovsk (Russia) were among the losses in Hostomel.

As OBOZREVATEL previously reported, a video of the first hour of the Russian invasion was posted online, showing Russian helicopters flying to Hostomel and shooting down our military over the Kyiv Sea.

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