Russian forces annihilate Ukraine's best tanker

Ukrainian tanker Maxim Gatsanyuk was killed in battle, the local Rada of the city of Pogrebishche, the Vinnytsia region said on social media.

Gatsanyuk, a native of Pogrebishche, was called up on duty as part of mobilisation in June 2022. The soldier was fatally wounded in the Zaporozhye region on November 8. Maxim Gatsanyuk was killed in the village of Sokolovka.

The Ukrainian media dubbed Gatsanyuk as "the best tanker of the Armed Forces of Ukraine”. The fighter had had a number of appearances on national television. According to him, Kyiv was very close to victory in the conflict with Russia.

Reports about the annihilation of elite units and the best fighters of the Armed Аorces of Ukraine have become more frequent lately.

In October it was reported that the Russian Armed Forces obliterated the elite 47th Magura Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Zaporozhye direction near Robotyne. The unit was formed less than a year ago. It was considered to be one of the most combat-ready units of the Ukrainian Army. Its soldiers were trained in Germany by US instructors.

The Washington Post wrote about the annihilation of the 128th separate mountain assault brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Zaporozhye region. Its servicemen were killed in a bloodbath attack, the newspaper said. The brigade was annihilated due to the recklessness of its commanders who decided to hold an awards ceremony in an open area ignoring the threat of an air attack.

In August, it was reported that two Ukrainian L-39 combat training aircraft collided in midair near Zhitomir. The pilot of one of them was known as the "Ghost of Kyiv." Both pilots were killed. Ukrainian officials later said that the "Ghost of Kyiv” was just a collective image of pilots of the 40th tactical aviation brigade. The brigade commander, Colonel Mikhail Matyushchenko, was killed in June 2022.

In October, the Russian Aerospace Forces shot down 31 aircraft and three helicopters of the Ukrainian Air Force. The official representative of the Russian Ministry of Defence, Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov, noted that 20 Mig-29 aircraft, eight Su-25 attack aircraft, a Su-24 bomber, two L-39 combat training aircraft and three Mi-8 helicopters of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were shot down.

According to the Russian Defence Ministry, since the beginning of the special military operation the Russian troops have destroyed:

• 14,684 units of military vehicles,
• 6,893 field artillery pieces and mortars,
• 1,169 combat vehicles of multiple launch rocket systems,
• 12,960 tanks and other armoured combat vehicles,
• 441 anti-aircraft missile systems,
• 515 aircraft,
• 253 helicopters,
• 8,312 drones of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.