Don's Weekly, 6 January 2025: Part 1
by Donald Hill (intro by Tom Cooper)
Hello everybody!
Once again, sorry for ‘silence’ of the last week: major health emergency in the family is keeping me busy, while I’m of the kind who does not like talking about such issues. Point is: when that much distracted, I can’t fully focus and then prefer to keep silent than to spread unconfirmed nonsense around.
Fortunately, Don is following the developments very closely, and thus we’re all in good hands in this regards.
***
Kursk
Russia was pushing hard east of Novoivanovka and was making slow progress with heavy casualties towards Makhnovka. They’re now only 3 km from Sudzha. The Russians lost three BMDs on the heavily mined road to Malaya Loknya. GRAPHIC: Ukrainian special forces patrol the woods and eliminate isolated positions.
Then, at the end of the week, Ukraine launched an assault towards Berdin and Pushkarnoe. They also moved across the border again at Novy Put and Tyotkino.
On the road just north of Sverdlikovo, a Ukrainian armored vehicle is hit by a drone.
In the eastern outskirts of Russkoe Porechnoe, drone strikes on Ukrainian infantry on the road and two AFVs hidden in the forest east of Pogrebki. Ukrainian infantry was also attacked west of this village.
Ukraine and Russia have been fighting in front of Martynovka for the last couple months. After clearing mines, Ukraine launched an assault along the road to Berdin 5 km away. Six Ukrainian vehicles were damaged or destroyed. A look at the road before and after the assault. According to a Russian report, seven vehicles reached Berdin.
Southeast of Martynovka, Ukraine also conducted an assault towards Pushkarnoe, as well as Tyotkino and Novy Put, 70 and 50 km west of Sudzha, respectively. There are no details of these efforts as yet.
Ukraine reports that the invaders lost “up to a battalion” of paratroopers and North Koreans reaching Makhnovka. Ukrainian infantry in Makhnovka are caught in the open by a drone. A Bradley fires point blank into a house on the eastern edge of the village. A Ukrainian tank is lost at the southern edge of the village.
After their headquarters was attacked in Lgov, a large gathering of personnel in the 810th Naval Infantry Brigade suffered heavy casualties from a GMLRS attack at Ivanovskoe, 30 km from the front lines.
The 82nd Air Assault Brigade took down three Zala reconnaissance drones with their interceptors.
***
East of Vovchansk and 3500 meters from the front line, the Russians hit a house with a drone and claim that a Ukrainian drone team was eliminated based off of intercepted radio traffic.
A Russian Supercam reconnaissance drone was intercepted 15 km south of the border. Supercam drones land with a parachute and this was demonstrated 20 km north of the border.
***
Kupiansk
Three kilometers north of Lozova, a Russian assault of 13 vehicles was stopped without taking any territory.
GRAPHIC: Russian infantry are caught on the road 4 km from the front lines.
A Russian BMP is hit 2 km behind the front lines by a 3rd Assault Brigade drone.
***
Terny
The Russians are holding the northern edge of Terny and tried to cross the narrow causeway across the reservoir but were stopped by artillery.
A large Russian assault on Terny was stopped by the 60th Brigade. Some Russians were able to enter the southern part of the village: the defenders used a tank, which is very effective against both vehicles and personnel. Enemy drones prevent them from being used more often.
The 45th Artillery Brigade intercepts Russian reconnaissance drones.
***
Siversk
Siversk is bombarded by rockets yet again.
The 53rd Brigade hunts Russians in the forests north of Bilohorivka. There was also fighting on the ground as Ukrainian troops cleared a trench.
A Ukrainian pickup truck is destroyed south of Vyimka.
A 36 minute video of the large December 14th Russian attack. Drones alone could not stop the multiple waves of small Russian assault, so artillery, tanks and even infantry engaged the Russians. The Russian tanks were heavily protected from drones but this meant they couldn’t rotate their turret. What was surprising to me is the Ukrainian tank missing the Russian tank at a range of less than 200 meters. Here is a chronology of events. Below are the routes the various Russian forces took. They lost almost all their vehicles in the center route and a tank in the northern route. The southern route was just infantry.
***
Bakhmut
The fighting in Chasiv Yar was heavy once again, in both bombardments and infantry battles. The Russians have secured their corridor along the railway berm towards the railway station; Ukrainians stopped counterattacking into the Canal District, and now they’re both fighting for the centre of the town.
A Russian drone hits the refractory plant in the center of the city, and more hit buildings in the south.
A Russian Lancet is intercepted 8 km west of Chasiv Yar.
Su-25 flying low before quickly climbing to altitude and releasing AASM-250 Hammer missiles and then returning to the deck to speed away. The flares are deployed to distract any potential IR seekers. This missile was released 15 km from the front line near Kostyantynivka and has a range of 70 km. During such missions, Su-25 has a distinct disadvantage to MiG-29s, Su-27s… perhaps to F-16s, too: it’s slower, in turn giving the Russians more time to detect and counter it.
***
(…to be continued…)
Get well soon for your family member
Best wishes in dealing with that family emergency Tom!