The brigade commander decided to conduct an approach march to Rumbasi on 25 January, cut up the guerrilla forces during the approach, launch a tactical air assault to block the enemy in the village and then destroy the enemy. The following morning, the brigade would continue the advance to the southwest and complete the destruction of any enemy in the region. The brigade would move in a single echelon and use the brigade’s air assault battalion5 for the air assault.
Our air assault battalion’s mission was to seize an LZ to the southeast of Rumbasi, destroy any enemy in the vicinity of the LZ, establish blocking positions to the east and southeast of Rumbasi and hold these positions until the arrival of the brigade’s main force. Then, we would link up with the brigade and join its subsequent advance.
We prepared our battalion for combat at our base camp from 23 to 25 January. Our preparations included outfitting our soldiers, preparing our weapons and equipment for combat, and conducting air assault training for our soldiers. The battalion staff prepared the load plans for each helicopter and each lift, as well as the assault plan and the materiel and armaments transport plan. The aerodrome was located near our base camp. At 1100 hours on 25 January the battalion began moving to the aerodrome, loading the helicopters and finalizing the lifts. Embarkation was finished by 1300.
Map 21: An air assault in the region of Rumbasi village.
The first lift went in flying low in a single column. A flight of fighter-bombers and two flights of Mi-24 HIND helicopter gunships prepped the LZ and our Mi-8 HIP transport helicopters also hit the LZ with their on-board armaments and door guns. As our lead group of four helicopters set down, the enemy opened up with grenade launchers and small arms fire. Therefore, the LZ location for the main body was slipped one kilometer to the southeast of the first lift’s landing site. The first lift courageously and decisively destroyed the enemy in their LZ and established blocking positions around Rumbasi. During this combat, they killed a large number of enemy and captured over 30 modern, automatic weapons and grenade launchers as well as ammunition.
As the main body was closing up to their first lift, the enemy opened up with interlocking, integrated small arms fire which did not let the main body approach the village. Two Mi-24 HIND helicopter gunships helped support the first lift after the landing, but since we did not haul any artillery along with our assault, we had no way of suppressing the enemy until the brigade closed to within firing range. When the brigade artillery moved to within firing range, they were able to put fire on the enemy and the battalion main body moved forward to take up blocking positions. Mujahideen who tried to withdraw out of Rumbasi to Ruvabad were cut down by fire from our first lift.
Our battalion lost two killed and three wounded. Enemy casualties were over 100 men. We captured a large supply of weapons and ammunition. Our success was due to our achieving surprise, deception measures we took to deceive the enemy (we prepared a feint into another area), and the courageous and decisive actions of our first group.
However, our battalion did not fulfill its entire mission. We had not coordinated fully with the supporting aviation and this resulted in an insufficient amount of aviation ordinance being fired to soften up the LZ. Further, we operated out of the range of the brigade’s artillery and had not considered using smoke or remotely delivered mines (RDM).
Frunze Commentary: Combat experience shows that, depending on the type of mission and the anticipated enemy counter-action, a single lift should consist of a complete, reinforced, air assault (or airborne) company or even up to a reinforced battalion. As a minimum, a company should be reinforced with a mortar platoon, an AGS-17 platoon and a sapper squad. As a minimum, a battalion should be reinforced with a mortar battery, two or three AGS-17 platoons and a sapper platoon. A supporting artillery battalion and a supporting battery of BM-21 MRLS must be within range of the landing. Army and frontal aviation must support the landing. It is better to fly in one air corridor where the enemy air defense posture is weaker and where the terrain facilitates an undetected approach. Helicopter gunships must precede and flank the landing force to soften up the LZ and then circle the LZ and use its on-board weapons if necessary. Air assault troops must be trained to fire small arms from the lift helicopter doors while in flight.
Editor’s Commentary: The above commentary appears to be a “cookie-cutter” solution to an air assault’s fire support problems. Instead of specifying the number of required BM-21s, mortars and AGS-17s, perhaps the realistic solution is to remind planning officers that an air assault needs accompanying and supporting indirect-fire support. Despite all the photos showing D-30 artillery pieces being carried by helicopters to an action, the air assault forces and airborne forces seem to have gone on operations without accompanying artillery on numerous occasions. Perhaps this was the result of the limited availability of lift ships.
22. Air assaulting and blocking the enemy in the Lar-Mandikul’ Valley
by Major V. G. Chabanenko6
On 16 March 1985, our intelligence organs received reports of a concentration of guerrilla forces in the Lar-Mandikul’ Valley, some 30 kilometers northeast of Kabul. The division commander ordered my regimental commander to destroy them.7 My commander decided to air land the regiment some six kilometers away from the guerrillas and then sneak up to the valley, block off its exits and then conduct a hunt with part of the regiment, while the rest would cover their movements. Aviation would provide fire support as would some MRLS located some 15 kilometers from the valley with our bronegruppa. Illumination support would be planned and on call and be furnished by illumination flares, artillery illumination rounds and air-delivered flares. After accomplishing our mission, the regiment would walk to our bronegruppa.
Map 22: Air assaulting and blocking the enemy in the Lar-Mandikul’ Valley.
On 19 March, we hit the LZ and were immediately spotted by the enemy. The enemy opened up with a heavy volume of fire and began rapidly pulling his units out from under our air and artillery strikes. Only the forward subunits of our 1st and 2nd battalions managed to reach their blocking positions and they did not have sufficient combat power to stop the enemy main body. During the next 48 hours, our search groups found and destroyed weapons and ammunition caches. Our covering subunits managed to occupy the dominant terrain, support the search groups, and repulse enemy attempts to clear away the blocking forces.
Over in an adjacent valley, a similar situation had developed. The enemy managed to extricate his subunits away from the strike of the regiment and conduct a march through the valley. This was because we landed at the tail end of the enemy column and we could not get to the blocking positions designated by the regiment. In addition, once again our landing had been discovered and we had been put down in the wrong place. This was because rather than landing at the designated sites, we landed in places safe from enemy fire and large enough (2x2 kilometers) for easy landing. It took two hours to assemble my battalion’s subunits and, consequently, I was unable to move to the correct positions in an organized fashion in time. The enemy escaped.