Ukrainian forces destroyed a Russian battalion tactical group attempting to cross the Donets river, described as the deadliest single engagement of the 2022 war.
Key Facts
- Key dates
- 5–13 May 2022
- Russian unit
- 74th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade, 41st Combined Arms Army
- Ukrainian units
- 30th Mechanized Brigade (tanks), 17th Tank Brigade (artillery)
- Crossing sites
- Dronivka, Bilohorivka, Serebrianka (Donets river)
- Decisive event
- Entire Russian battalion tactical group destroyed on 10 May 2022
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Russian forces of the 41st Combined Arms Army sought to advance on the eastern front near Lyman and Sievierodonetsk by crossing the Donets river at multiple points. Ukrainian defenders had already repelled numerous prior crossing attempts, but Russian commanders continued to commit forces to the operation.
Between 5 and 13 May 2022, Ukrainian tanks of the 30th Mechanized Brigade and artillery of the 17th Tank Brigade engaged Russian forces attempting river crossings near Dronivka, Bilohorivka, and Serebrianka. On 10 May, an entire Russian battalion tactical group was destroyed during one such attempt.
The destruction of the battalion tactical group on 10 May was characterized as the deadliest single engagement of the war to that point and a significant military disaster for the Russian army, halting the river-crossing offensive and inflicting severe losses on the 74th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent