Commander of 1st Assault Regiment Urges Using Airborne Assault Forces for Intended Role, Not Holding Front Line

The commander of the 1st Separate Assault Regiment has called for removing Air Assault Forces units from the line of contact so they can be used for their intended role.

Captain Dmytro Filatov, known by the call sign Perun, said in an interview with LB newspaper that Air Assault Forces brigades should not be tasked with holding front-line positions, but instead form a reserve capable of conducting counterattacks.

He said that during the full-scale war, paratroopers have mostly fought in the role of units assigned to hold positions.

At the same time, he said, holding sections of the front line should be the responsibility of mechanized units of the Ground Forces, as well as territorial defense units and the National Guard.

Assault units, under this approach, should not replace other units in holding sectors, but instead be deployed to specific directions to address critical situations involving advancing enemy forces.

“And assault units should reinforce mechanized brigades, territorial defense, and the National Guard in specific areas where this is necessary,” Filatov explained.

This approach, he added, allows holding units to consistently rely on reinforcement by professionally trained forces to stabilize the front and restore lost positions.

Filatov noted that so-called “firefighter” units of the front line emerged during the full-scale war.

In the event of heightened pressure in a given area, assault units are the first to be deployed — forces trained to operate in extremely difficult conditions and with limited resources.

He also emphasized that paratroopers are effective only when employed in large formations.

When a brigade commander makes a decision and designates an axis of attack, he can rapidly build combat power by committing fresh battalions. In such conditions, the primary task of assault troops is to rapidly deepen the advance during offensive operations.

“The key point is not only that assault troops can cover problem areas. The main objective is to free the Air Assault Forces, four or five brigades at the same time, an entire corps, that would not be tied to holding sectors but kept in reserve as the highest-quality units. Such a grouping would allow for a high level of planning and execution of complex offensive operations,” the officer said.