Vitalij Horževskyj, aviation technician and captain of the 114th tactical aviation brigade, who personally received the order to be transferred to the ground forces on January 11, is trying to draw attention to the situation. According to him, mass transfers can significantly reduce the effectiveness of the Ukrainian Air Force. He pointed out that after the fulfillment of the order, the occupation of air units will drop to about 40%.
“I have been serving in the 114th brigade since 2014, repairing military equipment and maintaining its combat capability, for example MiG-29 and MiG-29A aircraft, which were provided to us by our partners, Slovakia and Poland. The transfer to the ground forces was voluntary until about 2022,” Ukrainská pravda quotes Horževsky.
According to him, the mass transfers started in 2024 and continue even now, last year alone there were about 250 people. “Already in the new year, we received a request for the reassignment of more than 200 people,” he said.
I have to go storm the clearings
The officer states that he understands the necessary steps to defend the country, but he is convinced that without planes, Ukraine cannot continue fighting. “Training an aviation specialist requires years of practice and preparation,” says Horževskyj. “And I was told that I had to go and storm some forest clearings. Otherwise, you get an order and you have to follow it,” he added.
The Ukrainian army claims that it will transfer only team members who will not be missed. According to Horževsky, however, the effectiveness of the team will be damaged by the reassignment of any member, because the anti-aircraft missile system requires a collective effort. According to him, the biggest problem is that the air force has not been recruiting any reinforcements for a year.
“Each group that controls the system should consist of at least three people. However, some teams have to be disbanded due to the reassignment, which automatically means missing aerial targets,” says Horževskyj.
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