Definitely not. They do have a good publicity department which has greatly aided their sustainment with regards to replacements and donations but it's based on actual accomplishments. I first became aware of them in May 2023, when they destroyed a Russian brigade, the first of many, and only suffered five casualties for the entire month. When the reached Andriivka by the railroad, they were hammered by artillery and chemical weapons. They couldn't avoid casualties there but it was much fewer than you'd expect and they destroyed another regiment in that tiny settlement. At the end, a lot of Russians were cut off by the elevated railroad and hadn't been supplied in almost a week. When the 3rd used a drone with a loudspeaker to offer them life through surrender most of them accepted.
They have so many people that each of their battalions is almost the size of a brigade. This is why they only sent one battalion to cover the withdrawal at Avdiivka and one battalion is north of Makiivka. One battalion was sent to Kharkiv in case it was needed but I only saw footage of their drone teams in action. Wherever they are, they rotate their troops to stay fresh and they're used as a fire brigade.
3rd Assault Brigade is PR show unit which never stays too long on a frontline like 47th. 3rd Assault does some photo-op and then rotates to the rear for replenishment. It is not a refference for actual units în the fighting.
3rd assault was sent to Avdeevka to cover the retreat. It was pushed by the russians and then left with 47th coming to replace it. The russians broke to Ocheretyne at the time of this rotation. The 47th is now bearing the brunt of Russian pressure for 4 months as a firebrigade.
3rd Assault is now doing some spoiling attacks in Harkiv, away from Pokrovsk, Toretsk or even Kursk. That' s great for images and stories but doesn't help the sectors under pressure.
The 47th was located by Stepove and never moved to Avdiivka. It never replaced the 3rd. The 47th did move from Robotyne directly to Avdiivka and have performed very well under different circumstances. That has nothing to do with the 3rd Brigade.
The 3rd Assault made steady progress south of Bakhmut, chewing up several Russian units with very few casualties. One battalion was brought to Avdiivka to cover the withdrawal of other Ukrainian units. One of the most difficult military operations is a withdrawal under pressure. There were no plans to hold Avdiivka. They were hoping to simply get as many Ukrainians out as possible. They did an excellent job.
They were sent to their current location to counter the Russian build up, anticipating a Russian attempt to take Borova. The fact that they encountered better quality Russian troops support that conclusion. The 3rd is not only preventing Russian progress in that area, it is pushing Russian units back and Ukraine now has positions that are more easily defended. The advances of the 3rd are also relieving pressure on Ukrainian units to their left and right.
Your characterization of the 3rd Assault Brigade does not correspond to verifiable facts.
3rd Assault is always fully manned and rested. This will make it 3-4 times more powerfull compared to a normal Ukraine brigade and 1.5-2 times compared to 82nd/47th.
The track record of 3rd Assault is not impressive. One village captured at Backhmut, loss of several defense lines at Avdeevka, stalemate at Harkiv.
There is much hype but little actual achievements.
From May 10th to October 1st, 2023, the 3rd advanced 10 km south of Bakhmut. They rotated their battalions: One assaulting, one holding the lines, one resting and refitting. It was an effective way to sustain the unit over months of hard fighting. And it was hard fighting.
At Avdiivka, they performed well holding the city open, allowing others to evacuate. As the last unit out, they suffered casualties under the intense bombardment from the Russians.
After Avdiivka the entire Ukrainian army fell back, including the 47th, to put some distance between themselves and the coke plant. The 3rd was withdrawn and the 25th Airborne took their place.
They are fully manned because people want to join successful units. They also have the advantage of a large number of donations because of their success and publicity.
I don't understand why you misstate facts that are well documented. If you don't like them for a particular reason, that's fine. But another fact is that if all of Ukrainians brigades could perform as the 3rd does, Ukraine would be in a much better position.
3rd Assault has done a botched job at Avdeevka. It did not cleared the Russians from the city nor held Avdeevka Coke Plant long enough to build some defense lines în the back.
They came, they saw and they left.
How come this super unit is not at Pokrovsk, stopping the russian salient and teaching the Russians a lesson.
I'm sure that Harkiv front is more sexy with the Russians redepolying their units to Kursk.
3rd Assault is the unit to be emulated by the other Assault brigades and also the rest of the regular brigades. Excellent Planning, coordination and also after action review and self assessment/criticism that is their usual modus operandi. Thats why they excel in their craft.
So, you would squander the best ASSAULT brigade for defensive fighting tasks of ordinary infantry? Sounds like an ingenious tactic straight out of Puddings Grand SMO plan.
Thanks Don. I found the details on the 3rd Assault brigade very interesting. Definitely the kind of bench-mark work to be emulated 👍
Yes, I had the impression that this Brigade was mostly show. Nice to be corrected.
Definitely not. They do have a good publicity department which has greatly aided their sustainment with regards to replacements and donations but it's based on actual accomplishments. I first became aware of them in May 2023, when they destroyed a Russian brigade, the first of many, and only suffered five casualties for the entire month. When the reached Andriivka by the railroad, they were hammered by artillery and chemical weapons. They couldn't avoid casualties there but it was much fewer than you'd expect and they destroyed another regiment in that tiny settlement. At the end, a lot of Russians were cut off by the elevated railroad and hadn't been supplied in almost a week. When the 3rd used a drone with a loudspeaker to offer them life through surrender most of them accepted.
They have so many people that each of their battalions is almost the size of a brigade. This is why they only sent one battalion to cover the withdrawal at Avdiivka and one battalion is north of Makiivka. One battalion was sent to Kharkiv in case it was needed but I only saw footage of their drone teams in action. Wherever they are, they rotate their troops to stay fresh and they're used as a fire brigade.
3rd Assault Brigade is PR show unit which never stays too long on a frontline like 47th. 3rd Assault does some photo-op and then rotates to the rear for replenishment. It is not a refference for actual units în the fighting.
Any proof of your claims?
3rd assault was sent to Avdeevka to cover the retreat. It was pushed by the russians and then left with 47th coming to replace it. The russians broke to Ocheretyne at the time of this rotation. The 47th is now bearing the brunt of Russian pressure for 4 months as a firebrigade.
3rd Assault is now doing some spoiling attacks in Harkiv, away from Pokrovsk, Toretsk or even Kursk. That' s great for images and stories but doesn't help the sectors under pressure.
The 47th was located by Stepove and never moved to Avdiivka. It never replaced the 3rd. The 47th did move from Robotyne directly to Avdiivka and have performed very well under different circumstances. That has nothing to do with the 3rd Brigade.
The 3rd Assault made steady progress south of Bakhmut, chewing up several Russian units with very few casualties. One battalion was brought to Avdiivka to cover the withdrawal of other Ukrainian units. One of the most difficult military operations is a withdrawal under pressure. There were no plans to hold Avdiivka. They were hoping to simply get as many Ukrainians out as possible. They did an excellent job.
They were sent to their current location to counter the Russian build up, anticipating a Russian attempt to take Borova. The fact that they encountered better quality Russian troops support that conclusion. The 3rd is not only preventing Russian progress in that area, it is pushing Russian units back and Ukraine now has positions that are more easily defended. The advances of the 3rd are also relieving pressure on Ukrainian units to their left and right.
Your characterization of the 3rd Assault Brigade does not correspond to verifiable facts.
3rd Assault is always fully manned and rested. This will make it 3-4 times more powerfull compared to a normal Ukraine brigade and 1.5-2 times compared to 82nd/47th.
The track record of 3rd Assault is not impressive. One village captured at Backhmut, loss of several defense lines at Avdeevka, stalemate at Harkiv.
There is much hype but little actual achievements.
În România there is saying:
If you don't work you don't fail.
If you don't fail you should be rewarded.
That's 3rd Assault.
From May 10th to October 1st, 2023, the 3rd advanced 10 km south of Bakhmut. They rotated their battalions: One assaulting, one holding the lines, one resting and refitting. It was an effective way to sustain the unit over months of hard fighting. And it was hard fighting.
At Avdiivka, they performed well holding the city open, allowing others to evacuate. As the last unit out, they suffered casualties under the intense bombardment from the Russians.
After Avdiivka the entire Ukrainian army fell back, including the 47th, to put some distance between themselves and the coke plant. The 3rd was withdrawn and the 25th Airborne took their place.
They are fully manned because people want to join successful units. They also have the advantage of a large number of donations because of their success and publicity.
I don't understand why you misstate facts that are well documented. If you don't like them for a particular reason, that's fine. But another fact is that if all of Ukrainians brigades could perform as the 3rd does, Ukraine would be in a much better position.
3rd Assault has done a botched job at Avdeevka. It did not cleared the Russians from the city nor held Avdeevka Coke Plant long enough to build some defense lines în the back.
They came, they saw and they left.
How come this super unit is not at Pokrovsk, stopping the russian salient and teaching the Russians a lesson.
I'm sure that Harkiv front is more sexy with the Russians redepolying their units to Kursk.
3rd Assault is the unit to be emulated by the other Assault brigades and also the rest of the regular brigades. Excellent Planning, coordination and also after action review and self assessment/criticism that is their usual modus operandi. Thats why they excel in their craft.
Where is this excellence ? Do they still hold ground at Bakhmut or Avdeevka Coke Plant / Berdichy ?
Have they stopped the Pokrovks salient? Oh wait, its much easier în Harkiv with fewer Russians.
So, you would squander the best ASSAULT brigade for defensive fighting tasks of ordinary infantry? Sounds like an ingenious tactic straight out of Puddings Grand SMO plan.
Yes, I would move it to Pokrovsk, defend the city and protect other Ukrainian brigades from being atracked în the rear.
And I would accept its destruction if it can save thousands of Ukrainian soldiers and thousands of km2 of Ukrainian land
Thanks Don, this report had a few good points
Where does this guy get his maps from? Funny...
If you have 'corrections': let us know. Ridiculing without providing reliable details is trolling.
I am thinking, maybe it's time to upgrade the 3rd assault brigade to a division?
Or that would make this formation too unwieldy?
Thank you massively.