Key facts
- Reconnaissance soldiers with the 60th Mechanized Brigade cleared houses and treelines in northern Donetsk Oblast as part of Operation Vivaldi since spring.
- The 3rd Army Corps reported liberating 277 square kilometers, including 16 villages, in the Lyman sector by mid-October.
- Soldiers said Russian first-person-view drones frequently interrupted house-clearing, forcing teams to take cover for hours.
- A platoon commander said Russian troops use every means at their disposal to destroy reconnaissance soldiers.
Ukrainian reconnaissance soldiers with the 60th Mechanized Brigade described clearing houses and treelines under constant Russian drone surveillance in Kharkiv Oblast, in a report published November 3, 2026. The soldiers, identified by call signs, said first-person-view drones frequently interrupted their work, forcing them to take cover for hours at a time.
A soldier with the call sign Psycho said clearing a house usually took about 20 minutes, with soldiers checking sofas and floors with a flashlight. He said one brief moment of hesitation can cost the team its survival. The company's commander, call sign Hootor, said the role of reconnaissance soldiers has changed since low-cost FPV drones began dominating the battlefield in 2023, with their work now including ambushes, countering Russian infiltrators and clearing Russian positions.
Hootor said his company had been clearing houses and treelines in northern Donetsk Oblast as part of Operation Vivaldi since spring, months before Ukraine officially unveiled it in September. The 3rd Army Corps, which spearheaded the operation, reported liberating 277 square kilometers (107 square miles) of Ukrainian territory, including 16 villages, in the Lyman sector by mid-October.
Hootor estimated that one in ten Russian infiltration attempts succeeds, and said that one must also be countered. Psycho said Russian captives frequently make up information about their positions. A platoon commander, call sign Bonus, recalled walking about 80 kilometers in a week under Russian drone and artillery fire, and described a days-long mission in spring when his team, including three concussed soldiers, crawled out of a building between attacks.