Soldiers of the 79th Air Assault Brigade on BTR-80, June 2016
The Brigade's history began as 40th Air Assault Brigade in the fall of 1979, formed from elements of the 97th Guards Airborne Regiment of the 7th Guards Airborne Division. Later it was reorganized into the 40th Airborne Brigade between 6 December 1989 and 1 August 1990[6] (1 June 1990 according to Holm).[7] That redesignation marked the transfer of the brigade from the Odessa Military District to the Soviet Airborne Troops. In September 1993 the Brigade was renamed 40th Separate Airmobile Brigade.[8]
The 40th Brigade was reorganized and reduced into the 79th Airmobile Regiment.
On July 1, 2007, the Brigade was formed by combining the 79th Airmobile Regiment with 11th Army Aviation Regiment.[2][9]
In 2014, the brigade took part in the fighting of the war in Donbas.[10][11] 54 persons called up for mobilization (and thus serving in the brigade) deserted.[12]
Crimean crisis and war in Donbas
Pro-Russian protesters blocked the unit's base in Voznesensk on 1 March 2014 and a platoon of soldiers was sent to reinforce and secure the military equipment located at the facility from looting. The protest was resolved without violent clashes.[13] Other than Spetsnaz forces of Ukraine, the unit was one of the first to be mobilized during the Crimean crisis and the war in Donbas by being deployed to the Crimean-Kherson border in order to prevent Russian forces from a possible advance into mainland Kherson Oblast on 13 March 2014. On March 26 Ukrainian forces secured the Russian Mars-75 naval navigation station located in Kherson Oblast.[14][15]
The unit was deployed to Donbas in May 2014 and fought in a battle in Shakhtarsk Raion where it held the objective of securing both the Russian border and the strategic Savur-Mohyla hill. The unit, along with the 72nd Mechanized Brigade became trapped in southern Luhansk oblast as pro-Russian forces cut their supply lines from the bulk of Ukrainian force in July. Ukrainian forces attempted to keep the units resupplied delivering 15 tons of supplies through enemy lines to the unit. The 79th Airmobile Brigade was able to break through enemy lines on 7 August 2014 along with much of their equipment, however it was reported that the unit was severely short on ammunition and would likely not be able to continue holding its positions if it did not break through the encirclement.[16] Due to spending a month surrounded by enemy forces the unit was sent back to its home station in order to regroup.[17]
The unit was redeployed after a month of R/R to hold the southern Donetsk Oblast in the Mariupol and Donetsk regions. In September the unit joined the 3rd Separate Spetsnaz Regiment along with National Guard units in the defense of Donetsk Airport.[18][19] Due to their stubborn resistance during the defense of Donetsk Airport they were referred to as Cyborgs.[20]
In 2016, after brigade received a company of T-80 tanks,[21][22] the 79th Airmobile Brigade became 79th Air Assault Brigade.[23]
On 7-9 March 2022, the brigade's base in Mykolaiv was struck by Russian Hurricane missiles.[24] Dozens of Ukrainian servicemen died in the bombing.[25]
Emblem of the 1st separate amphibious assault company "Belarus"
In June 2023, Valery Sakhashchyk, effective defence minister of the Belarusian United Transitional Cabinet (a government-in-exile opposed to the de facto government of Alexander Lukashenko) informed about the creation of the 1st separate amphibious assault company of Belarusians, which is part of the 79th Air Assault Brigade.[26] The Belarusian assault company is located in the Donetsk direction and is the reserve of the commander of one of the separate assault brigades.[27]
Ukrainian commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskyi publicly praised the 79th Brigade in March 2024 for its efforts in repelling Russian attacks on the village of Novomykhailivka.[28]
Structure
Soldiers of the 79th Airmobile Brigade (during the KFOR mission)
Until summer of 2007 the formation was a regiment. In 2008 the brigade was being manned by contract soldiers.[29]
Feskov, V.I.; Golikov, V.I.; Kalashnikov, K.A.; Slugin, S.A. (2013). Вооруженные силы СССР после Второй Мировой войны: от Красной Армии к Советской [The Armed Forces of the USSR after World War II: From the Red Army to the Soviet] (in Russian). Vol. 1 Land Forces. Tomsk: Tomsk University Press. ISBN9785895035306.
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