(Dan Tri) – The 47th Mechanized Infantry Brigade is called the most elite brigade of the Ukrainian Army;
Modern Ukrainian tanks and armor provided by NATO were destroyed by Russia on the Zaporizhia front (Photo: Reuters).
Ukraine launched its strongest units to hold Russia west of Avdiivka
The current large-scale battles in the western city of Avdiivka can be said to have attracted a lot of attention.
Therefore, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Army continuously launched elite forces, including the 47th Mechanized Infantry Brigade and the 3rd Azov Assault Brigade, into bloody battles to stop Russian troops in the village of Berdychi, Orlivka.
However, the war situation developed in an unfavorable direction for the Ukrainian army, when on the battlefield, guided glide bombs of the Russian Air Force caused many casualties to the enemy.
Russian Su-34 bombers use guided bombs to destroy military concentrations, command posts, artillery and mortar positions and logistics supply centers of the Ukrainian army from afar.
To support ground forces in counterattacks and limit bombing by Russian tactical air forces, Ukrainian air defense dispatched a Patriot air defense missile battalion to the Avdiivka front, but was attacked by the Russian army.
In particular, the 47th Mechanized Infantry Brigade (Brigade 47) – considered the elite force of the Ukrainian army deployed in the village of Berdychi – lost at least 4 precious M1A1 Abrams main battle tanks.
The heavy losses caused the Ukrainian army’s high command to doubt the leadership abilities of the brigade’s officers, and the unit once again changed command.
Thus, since its establishment in February 2023, Brigade 47 has had four commander changes.
Ukraine’s first NATO standard brigade `passed the key` unsuccessfully
The 47th Brigade is considered the `iron fist` of the Ukrainian Army.
The predecessor of the 47th Brigade was the 47th Special Task Battalion, established in 2022, when the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out.
When first established, the tank battalion of Brigade 47 was completely equipped with German Leopard 2 tanks provided by Western aid, 3 mechanized infantry battalions were uniformly equipped with Bradley armored vehicles, and 3 mechanized infantry battalions were uniformly equipped with Bradley armored vehicles.
Another special thing is that Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Sak, 28 years old, was appointed as the first Brigade Commander, hailed by Ukrainian media as the youngest and most talented brigade commander in the history of the Ukrainian Army.
All of the above factors make Ukrainian leaders expect that Brigade 47 will be a factor in changing the situation on the battlefield.
Especially during the great counter-offensive campaign last summer, the 47th Brigade was trusted with the task of attacking in the main direction of the campaign, fighting the opening battle, with the task of `clearing the key` through Rabotino village.
Ukraine’s 47th Mechanized Infantry Brigade fights in Robotino (Photo: 47th Brigade).
Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Sak, Brigade Commander, was famous in the battle of Uglegorsk in Donetsk in June 2022, when he used non-standard tactical principles, densely planting mines to prevent Russian troops from entering and succeeded.
And at `death’s door` Rabotino, Lieutenant Colonel Sak still applied the same `non-standard` tactics in the battles at Uglegorsk, but fell into Russian booby traps.
As a result, on the opening night of the campaign, due to enemy minefields, the 47th Brigade’s forces were jammed in front of the open gate, becoming a target for Russian artillery and armed helicopters, killing dozens of tanks.
After that, the 47th Brigade continued to have bad luck, causing serious losses, one could even say heavy losses.
For example, in early July 2023, in a battle, the Brigade dispatched 1,500 troops and 150 tanks and armored vehicles, but due to the Russian artillery and air force attack being too fierce, within two hours of fighting, the unit
Judging from videos distributed online, it shows that the ability of the commanding officers of Brigade 47 to grasp and apply tactical principles in combat is very low.
For example, the 47th Brigade received intensive combat training in various locations throughout Ukraine and Europe.
According to many sources, a number of Ukrainian officers and non-commissioned officers appear to have `truanted` at NATO training facilities.
But some other information suggests that the 47th Brigade lacks the means to clear mines, so it cannot conduct large-scale operations.
Evidence of this is that after the breakthrough tank was destroyed by Russian fire, there is a video showing the soldiers of the Brigade quickly evacuated, then regrouped to join other units and
Ukrainian mine-clearing vehicles destroyed on the Zaporizhia front (Photo: Cut from video of the Russian Ministry of Defense).
With successive changes of commander, will the 47th Brigade’s fortunes change?
After three months of non-stop fighting, the 47th Brigade’s troop losses were in the four digits, causing Lieutenant Colonel Oleksandr Sak, the Brigade Commander, to be dismissed.
After replacing the Brigade Commander, the 47th Brigade was withdrawn to the rear to replenish troops and weapons and continued to be sent to the Avdiivka front, which was in danger at that time and had many fierce battles with the Russian army on the northern flank of the province.
Colonel Alexander Pavliy commanded the 47th Brigade until January. A scandal erupted after it was revealed that he had ordered mortar detachments, snipers and gunners to mistakenly fire on enemy positions.
As a result, the brigade was further weakened during attacks using human wave tactics, without fire support.
The commander of the 4th generation brigade is Yan Yatsishen, who previously commanded the 11th battalion of the 59th Mechanized Infantry Brigade, one of the Ukrainian units with the largest number of dead and missing soldiers on the Eastern front.
Judging from open sources of information, there are currently two situations occurring in the Ukrainian army west of Avdiivka.
That means that the Ukrainian army – absolutely dependent on Western military aid – is using and consuming on a large scale valuable military aid equipment according to NATO standards and they have run out.
As Western military aid to Ukraine waned, the Ukrainian Army’s Home Defense Brigade was likely disbanded, with troops later supplemented by combat units such as the 47th Brigade.
