Олексій Дзюба War 20 January 2025, 14:40

UPD. "We want to develop technologically, but there are "Soviet people" who are slowing down these processes." The platoon commander of the 78th UAV strike company of the ODSHP spoke about the problems in the unit: from the commander's "favorites" to untested electronic warfare

Sergeant Vitaliy Golovnya, commander of the 3rd platoon of the UAV strike company, military unit A7788, 78th ODSHP (separate airborne assault regiment), recorded a video in which he spoke about internal turmoil in his unit.

About Vitaliy Golovnya

Before the start of the full-scale invasion, Vitaliy Golovnya was the head of the provider «West Network» from the town of Polonne, Khmelnytskyi region, and voluntarily went to defend Ukraine in 2022.

Here are the problems Vitaliy Golovnya talks about in the video:

1. About the chief of the BPS. In Vitaliy’s regiment, according to him, there is a chief of unmanned systems who controls all UAVs. «In fact, he usurped all power in our company, everything is «in manual mode.» Until last year, the soldier says, everything was fine while the chief worked «in the fields» with the unit, but «now he has been replaced.»

2. About favorites. According to Vitaliy, his leader has «a category of favorites who can do nothing but receive 100,000 UAH each.» Meanwhile, another category of people «is in his slavery.» «One crew can perform three or four tasks, and this has led to tragic consequences,» the military man adds.

3. About losses. «We published that the unit had combat losses, but in fact they were self-detonations. This is because our Air Force chief „sucked people into lice“ and they blew themselves up while performing tasks. But in order to avoid investigations and checks, they claim that it was enemy shelling, the arrival of FPV, etc. This person died from self-detonation and it is the fault of the Air Force chief. Because he was carrying out his direct instructions, after a few days on the road he was tired and people were physically unable to carry out orders. This leads to neglect of safety precautions,» said Vitaliy Golovnya.

4. About his unit. «My platoon has the same problem.» The soldier recalls an episode where the BPS chief sent two soldiers to the position in his personal vehicle, without electronic warfare equipment, to retrieve items that were in Sudzh (a city in Russia — ed.). The unit was performing combat missions there. «Although the BPS chief’s car is covered in electronic warfare equipment,» says Vitaliy Golovnya. The soldiers who were carrying out the order were killed.

5. About money. «Some people go to positions and receive 100,000 UAH, while others sit in Sumy at a warehouse — an engineering unit, a command and observation post — ed.). People who guard a warehouse in Zaporizhia receive 100,000 UAH. What is the motivation of those who perform combat missions? Why do others also receive 100,000 UAH?» asks Vitaliy Golovnya.

6. About electronic warfare. «The guys are not equipped with electronic warfare. And if there are any electronic warfare, they are not very effective and no one checks them. There are also issues with communications. We carried out tasks in the Kursk and Sumy regions for 1.5 months. We went to positions without communications — we deployed Starlink. And if there was enemy fire on the way, how would we call an evacuation vehicle? No way. The commander needed a result. We achieved a result, but what could the price of this result be?»

7. About group formatting. «When we were on the way to the PPD (permanent deployment point — ed.), I formed my platoon, coordinated the guys so that they would go to combat and together, in teams, perform tasks. When we arrived at the combat, in manual mode, because he needed crews, he began to „break up“ coordinated crews. I explained that it doesn’t work that way, that it’s ineffective. As a result of one of these „breakups“ of a coordinated group, one of the soldiers opened fire on his comrades and wounded one of them. There were no punishments,» said Vitaliy Golovnya.

«I don’t want to die because of stupid instructions. We have to fight with our minds, not with our 'meat.' If we continue to be such a small Soviet army, we won’t defeat the big Soviet army. That’s why I’m forced to go out into the public space,» Vitaliy Golovnya concluded.

We contacted the 78th Regimental Combat Team regarding the situation, but have not received a response at the time of publication. We will add the regiment’s position when we receive a response.

UPD. A response appeared on the official pages of 78 ODSHP in social networks after Vitaliy Holovna’s video. Here’s what it says:

«A message is being spread on social networks that may create a negative image of the servicemen of the 78th Separate Airborne Assault Regiment.

In particular, it concerns accusations made by one of the servicemen of the military unit against his superior. The command of the military unit has already begun an internal investigation into the facts voiced in this video. This investigation is being conducted in compliance with all established procedures and is aimed at objectively clarifying the circumstances.

We urge the public not to draw hasty conclusions based on unverified information. Currently, the 78th Separate Airborne Assault Regiment remains a powerful military organism that performs combat missions to protect the territorial integrity and independence of Ukraine with honor and dignity. Verify information only through official sources and avoid spreading rumors that can undermine the fighting spirit of our soldiers.

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