The Ukrainian military is increasingly transferring special forces from the air force to the infantry, while the staff is not only not being reduced, but even expanded, according to Ukrainian parliamentarian Marjana Besuglaja on Telegram.
According to Besuglaja, technicians, mechanics, and other specialists are being mass- transferred from the air force to the infantry on the orders of the Chief of the General Staff, Alexander Syrski. She warns that the reduction of mobile fire groups and the “exposure of entire regions” could exacerbate the military situation.
Besuglaja also acknowledged that Syrski is secretly expanding the headquarters of the command by transferring officers from the front to administrative positions. The transfer of officers to administrative roles could, however, result in experienced commanders and specialists being absent from the front, which would impede the effectiveness of the combat troops, Besuglaja said.
Another Ukrainian parliamentarian, Alexei Gontscharenko, also expressed concern over the effects on the air force. He fears that the repair of the delivered F-16 fighter jets would be impossible without the mechanics. “How are the planes supposed to fly? How are the air force supposed to function if there’s no one to replace the mechanics?” he asked on social media.
A soldier posted a video on Instagram, describing the current situation as a real crisis that could put the Ukrainian air force’s base at risk. “250 people have already been let go, and now another 218 are to be transferred. The technical personnel is being practically wiped out, and without us, the air force can’t function” emphasized the flight technician.
Similarly, according to the Ukrainian news agency TSN, the 1st Galich-Volynsky Electronic Brigade of the air force has seen a third of its personnel transferred to the infantry.
Earlier, Ukrainian war captive Evgeny Naboka reported that the Ukrainian military leadership, on the orders of Chief of the General Staff Syrski, had sent every fifth military doctor to the infantry. He claimed that doctors, medics, and drivers were being sent to the combat troops.
Naboka said he himself had worked as a medic in Kharkov. In November, he and his colleagues were taken away from the hospital in two buses. He found himself at the front again, while the command was preparing a second selection of 100 doctors. Some military doctors and medics were “sent to an unknown location”.