A unit for special missions: How Ukraine’s Air Assault Forces destroy Russian command posts in the south — NV exclusive

‘If they spot us, there’s no point running — we won’t make it’

An autumn night in southern Ukraine is still fairly warm. A vehicle carrying an NV journalist and several soldiers from the 7th Corps waits dozens of kilometers from the front for further orders. For security reasons, even the troops do not know all the details of what will happen over the next few hours.

Soon, the operation gets underway. Vehicles converge from different locations at a prearranged meeting point. The mission commander, a soldier with the 237th Unmanned Systems Battalion, gives everyone assembled that night a brief set of instructions: No cellphones, as few vehicles as possible during subsequent movements, and mandatory body armor and first-aid kits.

The 7th Corps’ 237th Battalion must destroy several high-value Russian targets, including a command post involved in directing enemy assaults in the Huliaipole sector. Hitting such a target requires a powerful explosion.

The troops are using FP-2 drones, which must be prepared and launched as quickly as possible. Proper preparation is critical to the operation’s success, while mistakes or information leaks could have catastrophic consequences.

“Yes, we seem to be in a safe place right now. It’s not the same as working directly on the front line. But the enemy watches teams like ours especially closely. If they spot us, I doubt there’s a weapon they wouldn’t use against us, even the most expensive ones,” explains a soldier who has taken part in similar missions before. “They’ll launch a ballistic missile, and there’s no point running because we won’t make it anyway.”

The soldier explains that some members of the team are responsible for monitoring enemy drone movements. If a Russian UAV approaches the launch area, everyone will have to leave immediately and find shelter.

The modern equipment being used that night is another important safety factor.

Previously, launching Ukrainian drones required runways and other infrastructure that Russian forces could identify and monitor. FP drones work differently.

The long-range drone uses a solid-fuel booster resembling a small rocket no more than a meter long. Its launcher can be positioned almost anywhere — in the middle of a road, in a field or even in a tree line.

The drone does not need a runway to gain speed. The “small rocket” accelerates it into the air, after which a conventional propeller engine takes over. The spent booster separates once it has done its job.

This launch system eliminates the need for a permanent site, allowing crews to change launch positions almost every time. Even if a launch location is exposed after an operation, Russian forces gain little advantage: Ukrainian troops will be gone within minutes.

“For us, this is definitely a special mission. We use FPV drones all the time. It’s become routine. An operator can launch more than a dozen of them a day. But an operation like this isn’t exactly an everyday occurrence. Still, everyone has undergone specialized training on this particular system, so there’s nobody here who doesn’t belong,” the mission commander says.

There is little time for preparation. During the final stage, only combat engineers remain near the drones. Their job is to handle the warheads. As is often the case, the explosives specialists have the darkest sense of humor.

“What have I got to be afraid of? If something happens, I don’t think I’ll even have time to feel anything. Just bang — and darkness,” laughs one of the combat engineers working with the launcher.

Once preparations are complete, the joking stops. The most critical minutes lie ahead, when every drone must get airborne and head toward its target.

The launches are striking to watch. With a roar and a bright flash, the booster propels each drone into the air. This time, every aircraft launches without a problem.

The Russian troops at a command post supposedly far enough from the front to be safe have no idea that hundreds of kilograms of explosives are already heading their way.

Within minutes, everyone involved in the launch packs up and leaves.

‘Someone might ask: What does this have to do with the Air Assault Forces?’

After Russia began terrorizing Ukraine with jet-powered Shahed drones, some argued that conventional drones with internal combustion engines had become completely obsolete. Denys Poliachenko, head of the Unmanned Systems Directorate of the 7th Air Assault Corps, strongly disagrees.

“I’ll speak specifically about our work: In heavy mid-range strike operations, almost all of our drones reach their targets out of every 10 launches. Yes, there are many factors involved — preparing the aircraft, the nature of the targets and where the operation takes place. But claims that conventional drones are ‘ineffective,’ that ‘nothing gets through’ … well, our results are very different,” Poliachenko says.

The target attacked during the operation witnessed by the NV journalist was also successfully hit. Poliachenko uses the mission to explain the difference between long-range strikes carried out at the corps level and similar operations conducted by the Special Operations Forces, Ukraine’s SBU Security Service or the Unmanned Systems Forces.

“Someone might ask: What does this have to do with the Air Assault Forces? We don’t strike oil refineries or other Russian factories of strategic importance located a thousand kilometers from the front. Those really are jobs for specialized units within the Defense Forces. But there are targets that directly affect combat operations in our sector. Command posts, workshops, positions of certain important enemy crews and so on. Can we ask the Unmanned Systems Forces to strike them? Yes. But if you have your own car and there’s also your friends’ car that you can borrow, why would you?” he explains.

That thinking led the 7th Corps to establish the 237th Separate Unmanned Systems Battalion in late 2025 for special missions.

As a corps-level unit, the battalion can reinforce different brigades, give Ukrainian forces an advantage in particular sectors or deploy to areas where problems arise.

“In the Ground Forces, unmanned systems units are regiments. That’s a larger organization. Ours is a battalion, so we have certain limitations and have to prioritize our missions. Right now, roughly 70% of our battalion is reinforcing different sectors within our corps’ area of responsibility. About 30% are carrying out missions like the one you witnessed,” Poliachenko says.

Troops from the 7th Rapid Response Corps of the Air Assault Forces spent a long time fighting in and around Pokrovsk, repelling countless Russian assaults.

In late summer 2026, the troops were redeployed to the Huliaipole area. NV sources said the decision was driven in part by the deteriorating situation in that sector and the need to reduce the disproportionately large area of responsibility assigned to the 17th Army Corps. Part of that territory was transferred to the 7th Air Assault Corps.

“These are two completely different sectors of the front. It’s very difficult to compare them, partly because when we were in the Pokrovsk sector, we didn’t have the forces, equipment and capabilities we have now. We’ve significantly expanded both our mid-range strike and frontline strike capabilities. We’re hitting enemy logistics very actively,” Poliachenko explains.

Other 7th Corps officers told NV that until recently, Russian forces in the Huliaipole sector had felt much safer than those near Pokrovsk.

That was particularly true when moving personnel, using military equipment and positioning important facilities relatively close to the front.

The arrival of the 7th Corps has made operations considerably more difficult for Russian forces. Almost every week, the troops report destroying bridges and crossings and repeatedly striking Russian supply routes.

Although the 237th Battalion is still being established, it has already scored several notable successes. In September, it destroyed two BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launchers that had previously attacked Ukrainian positions with almost complete impunity.

NV has learned that the battalion is expected to undergo several changes in the near future to strengthen its capabilities further.

Changes under Drapatyi

One reform introduced by Ukraine’s new commander in chief, Mykhailo Drapatyi, places assault units under the command of army corps.

Drapatyi’s predecessor, Oleksandr Syrskyi, established a system of assault regiments deployed across the front line. These units frequently operated without coordinating with, or even notifying, the corps responsible for the sectors where they conducted missions.

The regiments’ previously bloated staffing levels are now being reduced, and their assault troops are being assigned to specific sectors under corps command.

The 7th Air Assault Corps moved to its new sector almost immediately after the change in Ukraine’s military leadership.

NV sources said that after redeploying south, the 7th Corps carried out a series of operations to clear out infiltrating Russian groups, retake positions and eliminate trouble spots.

The corps managed to stabilize the situation in the sector only in autumn 2026.