The military received information that an enemy plane with a landing force would land at the airport, but several helicopters flew instead.
The Ukrainian military said for the first time the details of the battle for the airport in Gostomel, which took place on the first day of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Defenders arrived early at the airport and took up positions. According to their information, an Il-76 transport aircraft with troops was supposed to arrive. The task of the Ukrainian military is to prevent it from landing, or, in the event of its landing, to inflict maximum damage to the enemy.
However, instead of one plane, several helicopters arrived, which was a surprise.
“Two Ka-52s and a Mi-8 were shot, they were stopped and the landing was prevented,” the military said.
In response, the Russian occupiers began firing on the Ukrainian defenders, but were able to suppress their oncoming fire, forcing them to retreat.
Later, the Armed Forces of Ukraine worked to suppress the landing and DRG, which were already present in the area.
“It greatly weakened them, because they didn’t expect them to receive such a strong rejection. They planned to just land and take positions, dig and move from there,” the military said.
After the first wave, the National Guard smashed the runway with mortars to prevent the arrival of reinforcements on the planes.
Recall that on February 24, Russian paratroopers captured the airport in Gostomel near Kyiv, but after intense fighting, Ukrainian troops recovered a strategically important object.
It was also reported that the Il-76 with paratroopers on board returned to Gomel, as it could not reach Gostomel, where the runway was damaged.
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Source: korrespondent
