26.10.2019
For the Airborne Forces: revelations of the Brest paratrooper. For the Airborne Forces: revelations of the Brest paratrooper Brest 38th Airborne Brigade address
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Goodbye, citizen
After finishing my studies at the university, I received a summons - a classic case. The bureaucratic machine started up: I had to go to the military registration and enlistment office and undergo a medical examination. I turned out to be the happy owner of the first health group, which “leads” only to elite troops. By that time, I already had an idea about the army and its order, so I was not particularly eager to trample the parade ground. My father offered to excuse me - and this was indeed a 100% option, but I did not even consider this offer. If I had accepted it, I would have found myself in a kind of family “slavery” for the rest of my life. The military registration and enlistment office made concessions and allowed me to stay in my hometown. Thus I ended up in the 38th brigade.
Acclimatization occurs differently for everyone. Its success depends on many conditions - psychological state, masculinity, physical capabilities. The process is reminiscent of drug withdrawal, only in the army they break it purposefully. I probably won’t be sinning too much against the truth if I say that the most difficult thing at first is adapting to the regime. 80% of the time in the army you "shit" like crazy. The remaining 20% is reserved for sleep. The ratio is not very rosy, of course. True, after some time you begin to “fumble around” the chip, learn to “get lost” - you don’t work, but you do it so as not to catch the eye of the jackals (that’s what the paratroopers call officers).
Bones, hands, head
During the first period of service, recruits proudly bear the title of “elephant” - the origin of this term is explained by the hose of the ubiquitous gas mask, reminiscent of a trunk. The elephant has practically no rights, but he has the duty to raking away from his grandfathers, and it is advisable to do this unquestioningly. Let me give you an example: suppose relatives brought the elephant “warm-up” (transfer from “freedom”). But you won’t be able to sharpen the gifts alone - the right of first acquaintance belongs to the grandfathers. If the demobilizers consider you a normal guy (in their understanding, this means submission without unnecessary questions), they will not rob you much - they will treat you a little and assign you a meal schedule (yes, this aspect is also “regulated”). But if suddenly the elephant has a bad account, there is a risk of saying goodbye to all its contents.
But this is not the worst thing. It’s worse when you press “heat” and “rat”. That's when the real “sanctions” begin. A guilty elephant may be forced to “shake in the dryer” after lights out. There is an expression - “bones, hands, head are your best friends,” which means standing idle on these parts of the body for some time, usually about 40 minutes. If demobilizers notice that the elephant is starting to fall asleep, there is a chance of running into a water-filled plug , which is placed on the back of the head. If you spill it, the time passed is lost and the whole procedure begins again.
Completely insane individuals who spoil all the raspberries are “taught” in a different way - they are beaten with towels with bars of soap hidden in them. It hurts a lot, but no marks remain. I remember there was such a case, after which the victim was taken to the medical unit. He explained his condition by the stairs being polished to a shine, on which he slipped and “collected” all the steps.
It is categorically not accepted to knock in the army, although there are always those who are not embarrassed by this - usually these are guys who are having a hard time morally, and through ratting they are trying to arrange their destiny. It seems to me that this is such a defensive reaction. Such people are punished with “deviling.” Each unit has a “loader” - a soldier who has settled on bed number 13. The loader’s task is to transform undesirable individuals into traits. This happens in different ways: they can dip a slipper into a reactor (toilet) and heat a rat with it, for example.
After six months, demobilization services transfer decent elephants to hedgehogs. And here, too, there is no need for an initiation ritual - the grandfather takes a stool, the elephant lies down on the same one with its belly or simply crawls between the demobilizer’s legs, and he hits him in the ass. As a rule, 9 times, because there are six symbols “For the Airborne Forces” (the space also counts) and three dots (some people stamp them on their wrists), symbolizing the first jump, the first forced march and the memory of fallen colleagues. The task of hedgehogs is to make life easier for grandfathers. If the elephant assigned to you messes up, you will be responsible for it. In principle, hedgehogs are the same demobilized soldiers with all the characteristic powers, but still forced to serve their grandfathers.
The modest charm of the landing force
You can talk about hazing for a long time and colorfully, but not a single paratrooper will argue with the fact that it exists and is not going to go away yet. It manifests itself primarily in barracks entertainment and shifting work to a younger person. Much, of course, depends on demobilization; there are also relatively fair guys. The officers are aware of this state of affairs and support it in principle, albeit tacitly. Hazing helps maintain discipline in the unit without the direct participation of senior staff.
There is such a thing - airborne brotherhood. This is when “one for all and all for one”: if someone from your unit is caught by a stranger, their interests are defended by everyone en masse. Such conflicts occur constantly, sometimes even for no apparent reason - a banal “phallometry” of who is cooler than whom. Such “cuts” usually occur during field trips. The fewer tasks, the more free time, and, consequently, crazy things start to happen. I personally participated in such a fight with border guards - probably the main enemies of the paratroopers. The territory is huge, the jackals cannot keep track of everything. Other pleasures of the flesh also take place in the field - there is always the option of finding a girl who is ready to please a soldier for money.
The unbearable lightness of army life
At 6 am – rise. And for good reason: at this time of day you want to kill, and nothing more. Within five minutes, dressed and lined up soldiers should be standing on the parade ground, where the first of many daily calculations and exercises takes place. Then – 20 minutes for making the bed and hygiene needs. Breakfast, inside information and activities until lunch. What are they? Applied practical exercises ( drill, shooting, tactical training, stowage, overcoming obstacles), general political information on the subject “what is going on in the world?”
There is another option, my “favorite” - ideological lectures. This is when you sit at your desk and write notes, and then any officer has the right to ask you any question about the program. It doesn't matter whether you were present in class. Once a colleague was asked the length of the wheelbase of a MAZ - he could not answer, of course.
Lunch at one o'clock in the afternoon, after - some free time. Then the classes continue, but purely theoretically, a very complex job can emerge - painting the curbs, whitewashing the trees. The most important thing is not to overdo it, otherwise next time they will give you more volume. The principle is simple: two brush strokes and a smoke break. And so on until the end.
Dinner, after it – personal time. You can sit in the Lenkomnat: there is a TV, DVD player and Board games, which are not particularly popular. There is also a library, but I don’t want to read it. Someone learns the rules, someone puts the form in order. In short, there is something to do. But you can’t lie on the bed - if they notice demobilization, they can “invite” you to scrape the reactor with a blade.
At 9 pm - obligatory viewing of the Panorama program. They tell us how good it is in our country, so that they don’t forget who we are protecting. Evening walk is the crowning number of this program of the militaristic theater of the absurd: soldiers walk in formation and shout patriotic songs so that the whole South is crying.
Lights out at 10 o'clock - and so on every day.
Since the civilian canteen appeared in the 38th, questions about food have disappeared by themselves - the food is really great, the menu is similar to the canteen of the city executive committee. Conventional breakfast - cereal or pasta, chicken, egg and a piece of butter. Conventional lunch - soup, side dish and a huge cutlet. Conventional dinner - obligatory fish different types(if you run out, a piece of boiled sausage), side dish. Periodically, soldiers are given fruit - for example, I was incredibly surprised when I received a peach. But usually it's apples or bananas.
They run around in “scooters” (AWOLs) all the time. Demobilization may be asked to “chop up a birth” - to bring something from a civilian. There is no alternative - you have to violate the regulations and hope that you don’t meet an officer or contract soldier along the way. The military commandant’s office can also burn it down. In this case, there is only one way - to Rokossovsky, where the person who has been fined will sleep at attention and eat in 40 seconds twice a day. But in principle, leaving a unit is not a problem, especially if there is a “stash” of civilian clothes.
Understand and forget
The Belarusian army is politicized to the maximum: imagine the level of politicization in North Korea and soften it by half. On Friday there are compulsory classes on ideology. The soldiers are told that the Belarusian state was, is, and will be - and that’s good. Forced instillation of a sense of patriotism. That is, it is clear that there is a homeland - here is a home, here is a family, and all this needs to be protected. But in the army, all these constructions are elevated to an absurd absolute, while the other truth is not recognized. But in fact, no one cares, even the officers. Many people don’t even believe what they say. Double standards at their finest.
But not everything is so hopeless in principle: in the 38th there was a pacifist comrade who did not want to take the oath. Such an ideological anti-militarist. He was sent to a psychiatric hospital for examination - apparently, the officers considered his integrity to be a symptom of psychopathological deviation. As a result, he was transferred to alternative view services.
This experience cannot be definitely called negative; there were also positive moments. The army really teaches discipline, which is great. But the “path” itself is hell.
Special Operations ForcesArmed Forces of the Republic of Belarus
38th Separate Guards Vienna Red Banner Air Assault Brigade (38th Guards odshbr) - military unit of the Airborne Forces of the Armed Forces of the USSR, since 1995 - the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus. Code name - Military unit 92616 .
It was formed by personnel in December 1979 on the basis of the Division Directorate of the 105th Guards Vienna Red Banner Airborne Division, based in Fergana.
The first commander of the 38th brigade - Guard Colonel Georgy Valentinovich Lomovtsev, a native of the Terek Cossacks, graduate Suvorov School 1943, throughout all years of service he occupied advanced positions. Having become a company commander, he made the best company, a battalion commander - the best battalion, and a regiment commander - the best regiment in the Airborne Forces. It is not surprising that when the army leadership at the end of the 70s decided to disband the 105th Airborne Division, stationed in Fergana, and on its basis to create three air assault brigades, Georgy Lomovtsev, who then served as deputy division commander, was instructed to form one of the three - the 38th brigade, which was supposed to be located in Brest.
The brigade began to form literally from one officer. At the end of October, the parachute battalion of the Baku regiment arrived under the command of the brigade commander: officers, warrant officers and old-timers - about three hundred people. At first there was tension with the officer cadres. The new formation was often transferred from other units - mainly tankers from the district, since specialists were needed for the airborne combat vehicles that were in service with the brigade. In a number of cases, the “tank” contingent, to put it mildly, has not proven itself in its units with the best side. Subsequently, however, such personnel were eliminated. With the arrival of young recruits, after November 7, the brigade turned into a full-fledged combat formation! “Back then there were strict selection criteria for the Airborne Forces,” recalls Colonel Lomovtsev. - The recruit had to be well developed physically, not less than 1.75 in height, not less than 65 kilograms in weight. An exception was made for those who, in civilian life, jumped into DOSAAF. They were taken without restrictions.
The oath of office was scheduled for January 5, 1980. The brigade commander invited the commander of the Belarusian Military District to the celebration. He agreed and arrived. During the ceremonial passage in front of the podium on the parade ground, he asked: “Where are your young people?” When Colonel Lomovtsev stopped the company with young reinforcements, the commander did not believe it: it seemed that the new call simply could not move so clearly. And yet, it was a fact. During the month of the young fighter's course, the young paratroopers were trained so that in general formation they were no different from the old soldiers.
The commander ordered the passage to be repeated the next day, and to this spectacle he invited the commanders of individual units, commanders of divisions and armies, giving them a scolding with the order: learn drill from the Brest paratroopers!
On the warpath Combat training in the brigade began on the first of December - in fact, a month after the beginning of its formation. A training schedule was drawn up and officers, warrant officers, soldiers and sergeants spent whole days in the fields. Shooting, night shooting, shooting from helicopters at targets, driving combat vehicles, capturing and destroying objects and so on. What was the cost of one “strip”, invented in those days by the brigade command? The unit set out on a route over 20 kilometers long, from the training ground to Lake Mednoe, at 8 a.m. and returned around 12 at night. The strip was divided into several stages. On the first, physical training was practiced, on the second, the capture of firing positions and self-propelled guns the enemy, on the third it was necessary to destroy command post, on the fourth - an enemy missile. In a word, everything that would have to be done during real combat operations. Along the way, the paratroopers made their way through rubble, swamps, dense thickets, and destroyed numerous ambushes. The experience gained in difficult training was soon put into practice by the brigade officers: in the 80s, many of them were sent to Afghanistan. In March 1987, the 38th Guards arrived in Afghanistan from Brest. air assault brigade under the pretext of participating in major exercises. After its arrival, the 38th Brigade, along with elements of the 56th Air Assault Brigade, took part in Operation Thunderstorm in Ghazni province. Paratroopers from Brest stayed in Afghanistan no more than three months, after which they left for the PPD, having completed several combat missions during their stay in the DRA. On May 21, 1987, in the province of Kandahar, two battalions of the 38th Airborne Brigade conducted Operation South-87
From a helicopter without a parachute, an air assault brigade from airborne brigade distinguished itself by combat missions. If an ordinary landing party had to be thrown far behind enemy lines, then the air assault unit could operate both deep in the rear and behind the rear of the first echelon troops. Thus, the Brest paratroopers had to make jumps both from an airplane and from a helicopter. According to the standards of those years, during two years of service a soldier accumulated 20-22 jumps (quite decent), a junior officer had to step into the sky six times, a senior officer four , with one jump being training, the second at night, the third with weapons, the fourth during an exercise. In reality, of course, they jumped more than they should have. And in those years, the command decided to add a new one to the usual methods of landing: jumping from a helicopter without parachutes - at low altitude and at low speed. For the first time in the Union, they decided to try it out in the 38th Brigade. They worked, as they say, from the first take without preparation. In front of the then Chief of the General Staff of the USSR Armed Forces, Nikolai Ogarkov, the company parachuted in a minute and 10 seconds. There were some injuries: one officer broke his leg. But overall the experiment was considered successful.
Karate from Margelov
In those years, the brigade did not spend days open doors, as now, did not perform in front of the public breaking glass bottles on her head and crushing bricks with her palms. However, in Everyday life attention was paid to all this. Moreover, by order of the Airborne Forces commander Vasily Margelov, every five minutes during any training, soldiers were required to hit tables or the floor with their hands in order to “stuff” the ribs of their palms and fingers. In general, Margelov very intensively introduced karate into the troops. In the brigade, for example, in each company the medical instructor was also a karate instructor, and a lot of time was also devoted to martial arts. How plasterers became trumpeters
According to the staff, the brigade had to have an orchestra,” says Georgy Lomovtsev. - Senior Lieutenant Alexander Nosov was appointed to lead it. It was supposed to be located in the officers' house, where it was necessary to carry out repairs. I provided him with soldiers: painters and plasterers, they put the premises in order, but one more problem remained. The orchestra did not have musicians playing wind instruments. There was nowhere to take them anyway, so I said: “Take those soldiers with whom you made repairs, and now make an orchestra with them.” Alexander patiently began to teach the soldiers music and... Already in the first year of service, the orchestra took first place in the Belarusian Military District! And a year later, a musical ensemble appeared in the brigade, which was called “Blue Berets”. Long before the birth of the famous "Afghan" VIA!
In 1981, for the professionalism and combat skills demonstrated during the Zapad-81 exercise, the 38th Airborne Battalion was awarded the pennant “For Courage and Military Valor.”
On August 2, 2016, the 38th Separate Guards Vienna Red Banner Mobile Brigade (38th Guards OMobBr) returned its historical name 38th Separate Guards Vienna Red Banner Airborne Assault Brigade (38Gv.ODShBr).
Today is the 38th Guards. The Special Airborne Brigade occupies a worthy place in the Armed Forces of our country. The paratroopers demonstrated their high combat training and military professionalism during large-scale exercises of the Armed Forces. Brest paratroopers take part in all parades taking place in the city of Minsk. The winged guard of the city above the Bug reliably stands guard over the Motherland, continuing the glorious military traditions of the air force. airborne troops.
The "Red Barracks" have survived to this day. 38th Guards Oshbr and a number of other buildings on the territory of the unit.
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An excerpt characterizing the 38th Separate Guards Air Assault Brigade
March 3rd in all rooms English club there was a groan of talking voices and, like bees on their spring migration, scurried back and forth, sat, stood, converged and dispersed, in uniforms, tailcoats, and some others in powder and caftans, members and guests of the club. Powdered, stockinged and booted footmen in livery stood at every door and strained to catch every movement of the guests and members of the club in order to offer their services. Most of those present were old, respectable people with wide, self-confident faces, thick fingers, firm movements and voices. This kind of guests and members sat in well-known, familiar places and met in well-known, familiar circles. A small part of those present consisted of random guests - mainly young people, among whom were Denisov, Rostov and Dolokhov, who was again a Semyonov officer. On the faces of the youth, especially the military, there was an expression of that feeling of contemptuous respect for the elderly, which seems to say to the old generation: we are ready to respect and honor you, but remember that after all, the future belongs to us.Nesvitsky was there, like an old member of the club. Pierre, who, at the orders of his wife, had let his hair grow, had taken off his glasses and was dressed fashionably, but with a sad and despondent look, walked through the halls. He, as everywhere else, was surrounded by an atmosphere of people who worshiped his wealth, and he treated them with the habit of kingship and absent-minded contempt.
According to his years, he should have been with the young; according to his wealth and connections, he was a member of the circles of old, respectable guests, and therefore he moved from one circle to another.
The most important old men formed the center of the circles, to which even strangers respectfully approached to listen. famous people. Large circles were formed around Count Rostopchin, Valuev and Naryshkin. Rostopchin talked about how the Russians were crushed by the fleeing Austrians and had to make their way through the fugitives with a bayonet.
Valuev confidentially said that Uvarov was sent from St. Petersburg in order to find out the opinion of Muscovites about Austerlitz.
In the third circle, Naryshkin spoke about a meeting of the Austrian military council, in which Suvorov crowed the rooster in response to the stupidity of the Austrian generals. Shinshin, who was standing right there, wanted to joke, saying that Kutuzov, apparently, could not learn this simple art of cock-crow from Suvorov; but the old men looked sternly at the joker, letting him feel that here and today it was so indecent to talk about Kutuzov.
Count Ilya Andreich Rostov, anxiously, hurriedly walked in his soft boots from the dining room to the living room, hastily and in exactly the same way greeting important and unimportant persons whom he knew all, and occasionally looking for his slender young son with his eyes, joyfully resting his gaze on him and winked at him. Young Rostov stood at the window with Dolokhov, whom he had recently met and whose acquaintance he valued. The old count approached them and shook Dolokhov's hand.
- You are welcome to me, you know my fellow... together there, together they were heroes... A! Vasily Ignatich... is very old,” he turned to a passing old man, but before he could finish his greeting, everything began to stir, and a footman who came running, with a frightened face, reported: “You’re here!”
The bells rang out; the sergeants rushed forward; The guests scattered in different rooms, like shaken rye on a shovel, crowded into one heap and stopped in the large living room at the door of the hall.
Bagration appeared at the front door, without his hat and sword, which, according to club custom, he left with the doorman. He was not in a smushkov cap with a whip over his shoulder, as Rostov saw him on the night before the Battle of Austerlitz, but in a new narrow uniform with Russian and foreign orders and with the Star of St. George on the left side of his chest. Apparently, before lunch, he had cut his hair and sideburns, which changed his face unfavorably. There was something naively festive on his face, which, in combination with his firm, courageous features, even gave a somewhat comic expression to his face. Bekleshov and Fyodor Petrovich Uvarov, who had arrived with him, stopped at the door, wanting him, as the main guest, to go ahead of them. Bagration was confused, not wanting to take advantage of their politeness; There was a stop at the door, and finally Bagration still walked forward. He walked, not knowing where to put his hands, shyly and awkwardly, along the parquet floor of the reception room: it was more familiar and easier for him to walk under bullets across a plowed field, as he walked in front of the Kursk regiment in Shengraben. The elders met him at the first door, telling him a few words about the joy of seeing such a dear guest, and without waiting for his answer, as if taking possession of him, they surrounded him and led him into the living room. In the doorway of the living room there was no way to pass from the crowded members and guests, crushing each other and trying over each other’s shoulders, like a rare animal, to look at Bagration. Count Ilya Andreich, the most energetic of all, laughing and saying: “Let me go, mon cher, let me go, let me go,” pushed through the crowd, led the guests into the living room and seated them on the middle sofa. The aces, the most honorable members of the club, surrounded the new arrivals. Count Ilya Andreich, again pushing through the crowd, left the living room and a minute later appeared with another foreman, carrying a large silver dish, which he presented to Prince Bagration. On the platter lay poems composed and printed in honor of the hero. Bagration, seeing the dish, looked around in fear, as if looking for help. But in all eyes there was a demand that he submit. Feeling himself in their power, Bagration resolutely, with both hands, took the dish and angrily, reproachfully looked at the count who was presenting it. Someone helpfully took the dish out of Bagration’s hands (otherwise he seemed to intend to keep it like that until the evening and go to the table like that) and drew his attention to the poems. “Well, I’ll read it,” Bagration seemed to say and, fixing his tired eyes on the paper, he began to read with a concentrated and serious look. The writer himself took the poems and began to read. Prince Bagration bowed his head and listened.
"Glory to Alexander age
And protect us Titus on the throne,
Be a terrible leader and a kind person,
Ripheus is in his fatherland and Caesar is on the battlefield.
Yes, happy Napoleon,
Having learned through experience what Bagration is like,
Alkidov doesn’t dare bother the Russians any more...”
But he had not yet finished the verses when the loud butler announced: “The food is ready!” The door opened, a Polish voice thundered from the dining room: “Roll out the thunder of victory, rejoice, brave Ross,” and Count Ilya Andreich, looking angrily at the author, who continued to read poetry, bowed to Bagration. Everyone stood up, feeling that dinner was more important than poetry, and again Bagration went to the table ahead of everyone. In the first place, between the two Alexanders - Bekleshov and Naryshkin, which also had significance in relation to the name of the sovereign, Bagration was seated: 300 people were seated in the dining room according to rank and importance, who was more important, closer to the guest being honored: as naturally as water spills deeper there, where the terrain is lower.
Just before dinner, Count Ilya Andreich introduced his son to the prince. Bagration, recognizing him, said several awkward, awkward words, like all the words he spoke that day. Count Ilya Andreich joyfully and proudly looked around at everyone while Bagration spoke with his son.
Nikolai Rostov, Denisov and his new acquaintance Dolokhov sat down together almost in the middle of the table. Opposite them, Pierre sat down next to Prince Nesvitsky. Count Ilya Andreich sat opposite Bagration with other elders and treated the prince, personifying Moscow hospitality.
His labors were not in vain. His dinners, fast and fast, were magnificent, but he still could not be completely calm until the end of dinner. He winked at the barman, whispered orders to the footmen, and, not without excitement, awaited each dish he knew. Everything was amazing. On the second course, along with the gigantic sterlet (when Ilya Andreich saw it, he blushed with joy and shyness), the footmen began popping the corks and pouring champagne. After the fish, which made some impression, Count Ilya Andreich exchanged glances with the other elders. - “There will be a lot of toasts, it’s time to start!” – he whispered and took the glass in his hands and stood up. Everyone fell silent and waited for him to speak.
- Health of the Emperor! - he shouted, and at that very moment his kind eyes were moistened with tears of joy and delight. At that very moment they started playing: “Roll the thunder of victory.” Everyone stood up from their seats and shouted hurray! and Bagration shouted hurray! in the same voice with which he shouted on the Shengraben field. The enthusiastic voice of young Rostov was heard from behind all 300 voices. He almost cried. “The health of the Emperor,” he shouted, “hurray!” – Having drunk his glass in one gulp, he threw it on the floor. Many followed his example. And the loud screams continued for a long time. When the voices fell silent, the lackeys picked up broken dishes, and everyone began to sit down, smiling at their cry and talking to each other. Count Ilya Andreich stood up again, looked at the note lying next to his plate and proposed a toast to the health of the hero of our last campaign, Prince Pyotr Ivanovich Bagration and again Blue eyes The count was moistened with tears. Hooray! the voices of 300 guests shouted again, and instead of music, singers were heard singing a cantata composed by Pavel Ivanovich Kutuzov.
“All obstacles for the Russians are in vain,
Bravery is the key to victory,
We have Bagrations,
All enemies will be at your feet,” etc.
The singers had just finished when more and more toasts followed, during which Count Ilya Andreich became more and more emotional, and even more dishes were broken, and even more shouting. They drank to the health of Bekleshov, Naryshkin, Uvarov, Dolgorukov, Apraksin, Valuev, to the health of the foremen, to the health of the manager, to the health of all club members, to the health of all club guests, and finally, separately to the health of the founder of the dinner, Count Ilya Andreich. At this toast, the count took out a handkerchief and, covering his face with it, completely burst into tears.
Pierre sat opposite Dolokhov and Nikolai Rostov. He ate a lot and greedily and drank a lot, as always. But those who knew him briefly saw that some kind of big change. He was silent the entire time of dinner and, squinting and wincing, looked around him or, stopping his eyes, with an air of complete absent-mindedness, rubbed the bridge of his nose with his finger. His face was sad and gloomy. He seemed to not see or hear anything happening around him, and was thinking about something alone, heavy and unresolved.
It just so happens that City Day in Brest always smoothly transitions into the celebration of the Day of Airborne Troops and Forces special operations. And the 38th mobile brigade received a new name from August 2.
The day before, an order of the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Belarus was published, according to which a decision was made to rename it from August 2, 2016. "38th Separate Guards Vienna Red Banner mobile brigade to the 38th Separate Guards Vienna Red Banner Airborne Assault Brigade".
The history of the brigade includes the heroic capture of Vienna, which is reflected in the name. IN different time it was called an airborne division, an air assault brigade, and since 1995 it has become mobile. And so, “in order to preserve the continuity of generations, increase the motivation of military personnel and pride in belonging to units with glorious military traditions, as well as strengthening the morale of military personnel, the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Belarus decided to rename”.
The holiday in Yuzhny, frankly speaking, was a success. Ceremonial events Last year, the Rowing Channel left fewer opportunities for viewers to watch what was happening. Now there was more space and surprises. I was impressed by a platoon of demobilizers (some of whom were very old), who ran into the unit’s territory in formation to report their arrival. They also proceeded in formation to the places of honor near the podium. This should also be noted: unlike previous years, there were more seats for spectators.
Spectators formed a dense wall around the parade ground, where the ceremonial formation began. Report to superiors, performance of the Anthem, rewarding those who distinguished themselves... A Combat vehicles It was already simply surrounded by children, everyone was waiting for the most spectacular part.
There were many beautiful things, and hand-to-hand combat performed by the reconnaissance company made an indelible impression, including the final point, when the paratrooper flew up to the podium with a report, and then fell spectacularly. However, it is better to watch this fragment of the video on the BC website.
And the performance of a waltz by three anti-aircraft installations, firing blank shots in time with the score, would not leave even the most demanding listener indifferent.
| 38th Separate Guards Air Assault Brigade (38th Guards Oshbr) |
|
|---|---|
| File:38 odshbr.jpg | |
| Years of existence | from November 10, 1979 to present |
| A country |
USSR USSR Republic of Belarus Republic of Belarus |
| Included in | |
| Part | 92616 |
| Dislocation | Brest |
| Motto | Nobody except us! |
| Participation in |
Great Patriotic War (as part of the 105th Airborne Division) Afghan war |
| Marks of Excellence | |
| Commanders | |
| Acting commander | Guards p-k Sobol D.V. |
| Notable commanders |
Lomovtsev G.V. Sakhashchik V.S. Denisenko V.I. |
38th Separate Guards Vienna Red Banner Air Assault Brigade (38th Guards Oshbr) - military unit of the Airborne Forces of the Armed Forces of the USSR, since 1995 - Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus. Code name - Military unit 92616 .
Location: village "Southern Town", city of Brest, Republic of Belarus.
Story
The directive on the creation of the 38th Guards Specialized Aviation Brigade was issued on November 10, 1979.
It was formed by personnel in December 1979 on the basis of the Division Directorate of the 105th Guards Vienna Red Banner Airborne Division, based in Fergana.
The first commander of the 38th brigade - Guard Colonel Georgy Valentinovich Lomovtsev, a native of the Terek Cossacks, a graduate of the Suvorov Military School in 1943, occupied advanced positions throughout his years of service. Having become a company commander, he made the best company, a battalion commander - the best battalion, and a regiment commander - the best regiment in the Airborne Forces. It is not surprising that when the army leadership at the end of the 70s decided to disband the 105th Airborne Division, stationed in Fergana, and on its basis create three air assault brigades (35th, 38th and 56th) . Georgy Lomovtsev, who was then serving as deputy commander of the division, was assigned to form one of the three - the 38th brigade, which was to be located in Brest.
The brigade began to form literally from one officer. At the end of October, the parachute battalion of the Baku regiment arrived under the command of the brigade commander: officers, warrant officers and old-timers - about three hundred people. At first there was tension with the officer cadres. The new formation was often transferred from other units - mainly tankers from the district, since specialists were needed for the airborne combat vehicles that were in service with the brigade. In a number of cases, the “tank” contingent, to put it mildly, has not proven itself to be the best in its units. Subsequently, however, such personnel were eliminated. With the arrival of young recruits, after November 7, the brigade turned into a full-fledged combat formation! Then there were strict selection criteria for the Airborne Forces. The recruit had to be well developed physically, not less than 1.75 in height, not less than 65 kilograms in weight. An exception was made for those who, in civilian life, jumped into DOSAAF. They were taken without restrictions. The oath of office was scheduled for January 5, 1980. The brigade commander invited the commander of the Belarusian Military District to the celebration. He agreed and arrived. During the ceremonial passage in front of the podium on the parade ground, he asked: “Where are your young people?” When Colonel Lomovtsev stopped the company with young reinforcements, the commander did not believe it: it seemed that the new call simply could not move so clearly. And yet, it was a fact. During the month of the young fighter's course, the young paratroopers were trained in such a way that in general formation they were no different from the old-timers. The commander ordered the passage to be repeated the next day, and to this spectacle he invited the commanders of individual units, commanders of divisions and armies, giving them a scolding with the order: learn drill from the Brest paratroopers!
On the warpath Combat training in the brigade began on December 1 - in fact, a month after the beginning of its formation. A training schedule was drawn up and officers, warrant officers, soldiers and sergeants spent whole days in the fields. Shooting, night shooting, shooting from helicopters at targets, driving combat vehicles, capturing and destroying objects, and so on. What was the cost of one “strip”, invented in those days by the brigade command? The unit set out on a route over 20 kilometers long, from the training ground to Lake Mednoe, at 8 a.m. and returned around 12 at night. The strip was divided into several stages. On the first, physical training was practiced, on the second, the capture of enemy firing positions and self-propelled guns, on the third, it was necessary to destroy the command post, and on the fourth, an enemy missile. In a word, everything that would have to be done during real combat operations. Along the way, the paratroopers made their way through rubble, swamps, dense thickets, and destroyed numerous ambushes. The experience gained in difficult training was soon put into practice by the brigade officers: in the 80s, many of them were sent to Afghanistan.
In March 1987, the 38th Guards arrived in Afghanistan from Brest. air assault brigade under the pretext of participating in major exercises. After its arrival, the 38th Brigade, along with elements of the 56th Air Assault Brigade, took part in Operation Thunderstorm in Ghazni province. The paratroopers from Brest stayed in Afghanistan for no more than three months, after which they left for the PPD, having completed several combat missions during their stay in the DRA. On May 21, 1987, in the province of Kandahar, two battalions of the 38th Airborne Brigade conducted Operation South-87
From a helicopter without a parachute.
The air assault brigade differed from the airborne brigade in its combat missions. If an ordinary landing party had to be thrown far behind enemy lines, then the air assault unit could operate both deep in the rear and behind the rear of the first echelon troops. Thus, the Brest paratroopers had to make jumps both from an airplane and from a helicopter. According to the norms of those years, during two years of service, a soldier accumulated 20-22 jumps (quite decent), a junior officer had to step into the sky six times, a senior officer four times, with one training jump, the second at night, the third with a weapon, the fourth during an exercise. . In reality, of course, they jumped more than they should have. And in those years, the command decided to add a new one to the usual methods of landing: jumping from a helicopter without parachutes - at low altitude and at low speed. For the first time in the Union, they decided to try it out in the 38th Brigade. They worked, as they say, from the first take without preparation. In front of the then Chief of the General Staff armed forces USSR Nikolai Ogarkov's company parachuted in a minute 10 seconds. There were some injuries: one officer broke his leg. But overall the experiment was considered successful.
Karate from Margelov
In those years, the brigade did not hold open days, as they do now, and did not perform in front of the public breaking glass bottles on their heads and crushing bricks with their palms. However, in everyday life attention was paid to all this. Moreover, by order of the Airborne Forces commander Vasily Margelov, every five minutes during any training, soldiers were required to hit tables or the floor with their hands in order to “stuff” the ribs of their palms and fingers. In general, Margelov very intensively introduced karate into the troops. In the brigade, for example, in each company the medical instructor was also a karate instructor, and a lot of time was also devoted to martial arts.
How plasterers became trumpeters
According to the staff, the brigade had to have an orchestra. Senior Lieutenant Alexander Nosov was appointed to lead it. It was supposed to be located in the officers' house, where it was necessary to carry out repairs. I assigned him soldiers: painters and plasterers, they put the premises in order, but one more problem remained. The orchestra did not have musicians playing wind instruments. There was nowhere to take them anyway, so I said: “Take those soldiers with whom you made repairs, and now make an orchestra with them.” Alexander patiently began to teach the soldiers music and... Already in the first year of service, the orchestra took first place in the Belarusian Military District! And a year later, a musical ensemble appeared in the brigade, which was called “Blue Berets”. Long before the birth of the famous "Afghan" VIA!
In 1981, for professionalism and combat training demonstrated during the West-81 exercises, 38th Guards Specialized Aviation Brigade was awarded the pennant "For courage and military valor."
August 2, 2016 38th Infantry Brigade returned to their historical name 38th Separate Guards Vienna Red Banner Airborne Assault Brigade (38th Guards ODShBr).
The "Red Barracks" have survived to this day. 38th Guards Oshbr and a number of other buildings on the territory of the unit.
"Black Eagle". The origins of tests for the right to wear a badge "Valor and Skill."
It was in the 38th Separate Guards Mobile Brigade was born new tradition Belarusian paratroopers - complex special test for the honorary title “Black Eagle”. To reward the winners, a badge was also established - a symbol as prestigious among army special forces as, for example, "maroon beret" in the special forces of the internal troops.
The TEST was preceded by a preliminary selection and a week-long training session with candidates. According to the condition, in groups of 3-4 people, the fighters had to continuously “conquer” a night, a day and another night in the Brest forests. At the same time, they had to cover about a hundred kilometers and solve several tactical problems. It all started with the landing. Further, in conditions of active opposition from the “enemy”, it was necessary on the square 9 square kilometers reconnaissance the object and report its coordinates by radio, “destroy” the bridge across the river, meet with the contact and receive instructions from him further actions, overcome the pursuit and ambushes of the “enemy”, raid the “ammunition depot”. Then - perform shooting exercises with ten types of weapons. This was followed by a 6-kilometer forced march and a scout’s path, which was a continuous chain of obstacles: several tens of meters of solid blockage made of snags and fragments of reinforced concrete structures, a two-meter ditch with crumbling sandy banks, a fiery “font”, a forest blockage, a reinforced concrete pipe laid under section of road, running in armored vehicles, swampy area with windows open water and holes at the bottom, a 3-meter brick wall, a pile of metal pipes, a “mousetrap” (barbed wire and a thin “tangle” are strung at a half-meter height). All this was accompanied by the roar of explosives flying out of the bushes, gunfire and smoke. And it is necessary to respond to shelling with fire!
At the end of the tests, the candidates faced hand-to-hand combat. Dealer on " black eagle“had to carry out three three-minute fights with three opponents without a break, moving from square to square. Blows, throws, wrestling on the ground, and painful holds were allowed. Passive combat was punished. Position for the honorary title " Black eagle"was discussed at the general meeting of the unit and approved by the commander of the guard brigade, Lieutenant Colonel Valery Sakhashchik in 1999. Excerpts from the document: “Honorary title” Black Eagle» symbolizes highest degree military valor and professional skill of airborne troops, their full readiness to carry out a combat mission in any situation. The badge is an image of an eagle with outstretched wings, clutching a black tulip flower in its talons. The eagle heads the number 38. The image of the eagle symbolizes constant readiness to immediate and decisive action. The image of a black tulip flower symbolizes fidelity to traditions and eternal memory to military personnel who, at the cost of their lives, glorified the airborne troops. The number 38 is evidence that the Council of Black Eagles was established on the basis 38th Guards Omobr. Honorary title " Black Eagle» awarded to military personnel who have achieved high results in combat training, have impeccable military discipline, have successfully completed candidate experience and passed special tests, as well as who have shown special courage and heroism during combat training, combat and special tasks" Officers and warrant officers were awarded the badge " Black Eagle» in silver, and sergeants and conscripts - a symbol in bronze. Each sign (220 copies were produced at one of the Minsk enterprises) had a serial number. From 1999 to 2002, seven assignment tests were carried out honorary title and badge " Black Eagle”, in which more than 500 people took part. For the relatively short but vibrant history of the movement " black eagles» 145 military personnel were awarded prestigious symbols, including several representatives of the internal troops.
