30 Nov: Wrong Map. Entire Column Wiped Out By Ukrainian Ambush. - Reporting from Ukraine

[TexasTowelie]

Today there are a lot of important updates from the Chasiv Yar direction.

Here, the battle for main Ukrainian stronghold took a dramatic turn as Russian forces intensified their efforts to establish a foothold on the left bank of the canal. What Russians initially thought was a successful breakthrough quickly unraveled into chaos, with devastating consequences for their troops and mechanized assault groups.

After a three-month campaign, Russian forces established a narrow bridgehead on the west bank of the canal in Chasiv Yar near Kalynivka. Once they gained control of most of Kalynivka and secured the northern flank, they moved into the second phase of their battle plan.

Kalynivka offered several tactical advantages for the Russian forces, including the canal crossing, local houses, and nearby forest. The canal crossing allowed them to deploy troops across with at least some change of survival, avoiding completely suicidal cross-canal attacks within Chasiv Yar. The surviving infantry could also conceal in the houses and forest, gathering reserves for planned wave assaults.

After hundreds of attacks over the months, Russian stormtroopers used forest positions to launch assaults from the north toward Chasiv Yar's Zhovtnevyi district. Artillery and air support tried to soften Ukrainian positions, reducing much of the residential area to ruins. However, the stormtroopers still had to cross a 500-meter open field on foot, leaving them exposed to Ukrainian drones and artillery. These conditions led to highly attritional assaults, with many Russian waves suffering heavy casualties, often with no survivors.

Ukrainian forces in the area recognized this as the logical Russian attack route, being the only way to strike Zhovtnevyi district. They focused artillery fire and drone surveillance on the fields, while also scattering land mines. This created a deadly kill zone, where large groups of Russian stormtroopers were wiped out during their assaults, drastically reducing their survivability and allowing only a few to reach the ruined district of Chasiv Yar.

Russian command launched wave after wave of assaults across the open field, allowing survivors to regroup on the outskirts of the town for more organized attacks. These attack groups targeted the residential district, made up of one-story houses, and were supported by Russian positions in the high-rise buildings of the Kanal district, which provided fire control and a clear view of Ukrainian positions. The combination of high-rise fire control, relentless wave attacks, and airstrikes forced Ukrainian fighters in Zhovtnevyi district to pull back slightly to the west, as their positions became increasingly risky and offered little tactical advantage.

Despite establishing a presence near the canal, Russian forces faced severe logistical challenges. Airstrikes had destroyed much of the local infrastructure, forcing troops to rely on basements that offered no suitable firing positions. The destruction of the only road bridge linking Russian forces across the canal further compounded the issue, preventing supply deliveries. Any logistical support had to cross the same kill zone controlled by Ukrainian artillery and drones. Additionally, Ukrainian drones maintained fire control over the Russian positions, eliminating any forces attempting to move in or out of the basements, while artillery further suppressed them.

Russian commanders overlooked the logistical issues, mistakenly assuming that Russian forces in the basements of the demolished residential district had secured the area and that mechanized assaults could proceed toward the town center. A column of seven BMD-4s, carrying fifty soldiers from specialized airborne units, was deployed along the railway embankment and nearby bridge north of the captured Zhovtnevyi district. However, they quickly found themselves in the Ukrainian kill zone, where Ukrainian strikes destroyed the entire column. Landmines placed by Ukrainians obliterated many vehicles, causing panic and forcing others to halt, making them even easier targets. Ukrainian FPV drones then attacked the advancing remnants, supported by artillery, and the entire Russian column was wiped out before reaching the bridgehead they believed was secure.

Overall, the developments around Chasiv Yar highlight the Russian inability to consolidate control and supply the captured areas adequately, further worsened by the predictability of their attacks, which the Ukrainians managed to exploit. The predictability of their attacks enabled the Ukrainians to estimate their planned routes of attack, destroying their mechanized columns which led to no territorial gains for the Russians in this sector. Ukrainian forces do not let their guards down, even in less active directions like Chasiv Yar, successfully displaying their adaptability and...

[niyad]

1. Slava Ukraini. Thank you for the update.