Helicopter flight to Mariupol/Photo courtesy of the Ukrainian defense Kolovrat, call sign “Barsik”
Ukrainian pilots broke into Mariupol surrounded by the enemy seven times, delivering the necessary assistance and rescuing seriously wounded soldiers. The soldier who managed to return, exclusively told Channel 24 how the evacuation took place.
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How the soldiers were saved
A veteran of the Azov Regiment, a Russian volunteer and fighter of the Azov MTR Kyiv Kolovrat with the call sign “Barsik” managed to return home from the occupied Mariupol by helicopter. He was one of the first defenders who participated in the secret operation to blockade the city.
During the defense of Mariupol, where he stayed for six days, the defender was wounded. He was taken to a military hospital located at Azovstal. There, the soldier was informed that they would fly in for the seriously wounded and, if there was a place, they would take him too.
Even when I was wounded, I did not think that I would die. It seemed to me that I had a small injury. And I told the doctor at first that I was staying because I had a small wound and it would heal in two weeks. And he answered: “No, you will leave, because there is no way to get it.” The place was left and they put me in a helicopter, the man recalled.
The enemy fired twice at the helicopters
When the helicopters took to the skies, enemy fire was opened on them twice near Mariupol. Kolovrat noticed that at that moment it even became scary, because everyone was injured. In total, there were up to 35 people, along with those lying.
We understood that it would still be possible to fly in once or twice, but the third and fourth are not a fact, because they (the Russians – Channel 24) are still not stupid either and will find a way to shoot down the helicopter,” he added.
The enemy failed to hit, because the military man, who was sitting at the machine gun in the helicopter, returned fire. During the flight, a technical problem also arose – the plane began to shake violently.
Kolovrat noted that he even looked down to assess how high they fly in order to jump out in case of something. However, the flight was successful and, having landed in the Dnieper, the pilots said that they were all “born in shirts”.
What is known about the military exchange: briefly
- Of all the soldiers released from captivity, 95 defenders of Azovstal, including 43 fighters of the famous regiment that has defended Mariupol since 2014. Among them are 23 officers and 69 non-commissioned and senior officers. The eldest of the released defenders is 65 years old, and the youngest is 19.
- Most of the released Ukrainians have severe injuries: gunshot and shrapnel wounds, explosive injuries, burns, fractures, amputations of limbs.
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that more than 2,000 more Ukrainian soldiers are in Russian captivity, who were evacuated from the Azovstal plant.
