The whole situation is surreal in changing weather. It is strange enough to make the stones by the Fire Ring look comfortable. The War is underway, third day, and there is stiff resistance by Ukrainian units and people. They have a foe with a history. Our panel of former experts remembers individual Soviet units of the Red Army, a determined and implacable foe from the years we looked at the Fulda Gap as the pathway to Red domination of a war-torn Europe. It is strange- semi-unreal- to be considering uninvited Russian Army movement into an area that had been at peace.

Things do not appear to be going smoothly for this invasion. Two IL-76 air transport aircraft have been shot down in the latest effort. But the discussion was not so much about the hundreds of young men who plunged to their deaths yesterday. They of course are part of the confusion, since part of our reality is shaped by the fathers and grandfathers of those whose deaths are recent and new.

Loma is a bit of a historian. He likes the old narratives to be played against the new ones. He started early, up before dawn to get the news of a day dying in the East. His first target was to see if Kyiv had fallen overnight. He then started a rambling discourse after the news that a second IL-76 transport had been shot down. He spoke generally to anyone moving to-or-from the coffee percolator. “The 76thGuards Red Banner Chernihiv Airborne Division was supposed to be part of the decisive action on the Ukrainian capital.” There had been sketchy reports of losses from the first, near 200, but the second lost aircraft had no reports. Loma slumped next to the stove and peered at his tablet with phone balanced on right thigh.

“The unit involved is interesting. Originally formed in September of 1939 from the 157th Infantry Regiment, a cadre formation of the Taman Railway Division. Dates back to the 1925 post-Revolution reorganization of the former Czar’s forces by Vladimir Lenin.” Melissa and Buck slowed down and stopped to listen.
“Always a vanguard unit, the 76th was a shock formation designed to be transported rapidly by rail. It has a history in Ukraine. In the Great Patriotic War it was rushed to aid the heroic defenders of Odessa in 1941.”

“So, they have been the defenders of that territory before they were invaders?”
Loma looked up. “The swirl of the War in the East is interesting. In 1942, the 76th fought continuous battles along the Don River. ‘43 brought them to the battles at Stalingrad, where it’s men killed more than 10,000 Germans and captured the same number. For their success, the unit became the 76th Guards Rifle Division. For their continued success in ground combat with the Nazis, the Division was commended and was awarded the honorary title of Chernigov.” Both Melissa and Buck started moving again, the unit history losing interest with age.

“They transitioned to an Airborne Division after the war, and the occupation of what had been East Prussia. Then, the period of preparation and the rigors of forming a parachute mission in Cold War times. In the period between 1988 to 1992, the 76th “put out” ethnic conflicts in Armenia and Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Republic of Transdniestria, North and South Ossetia. In 1994-1995 operations in Chechnya resulted in the loss of 120 soldiers in the struggle to “restore constitutional order.” So their background in contemporary operations is good. With a recent exception.”

Melissa was sorting out the various geographic parts of the puzzle, mentally moving them across the surface of the coffee in her cup. “Which ‘Stan was that?”
Loma frowned. “South Chechnya. Early 2000. Moscow had announced counter-terrorism ops were over, but later the same day a company-sized unit of the 76th got surrounded in a place called Height 776. It was a disaster of leadership from the Army corps on down.”

Buck took a sip of scalding hot Chock Full o’ Nuts coffee. “It wasn’t played out that way in the Faculty Lounge. What is your version?”

Loma shook his head. “Almost the entire company – 84 out of 90 men – were killed. But it became useful as a symbol of military heroism, and especially of the valor of the Russian Airborne. It prompted a television series and a four-part film. Plus, Putin unveiled a monument to the dead. But there are still legal challenges for compensation to the families of those who were killed.”

Buck stood and reached out to take Melissa’s coffee cup. “So, we understand some of the units fighting there have a history in that place, both sides. Wonder how they are going to feature this in the narrative of what is going on?”

“The Ukrainian Heroes of Snake Island were big yesterday. There are people who want to see NATO impose a no-fly zone on the Russians.”
“What do you think the 76th Airborne will think about that?”

“Can’t jump if you can’t fly. But we are seeing a situation where somebody could make a mistake. And a big mistake could let something fly out of a bottle that has been shut for a long time,” said DeMille, having stood out of the line of fire. “Why don’t we figure out something useful to say about it?”

There was general agreement on that, but the discussion went off into oil, and why the hell we were buying it from the Russians.

Copyright 2022 Vic Socotra
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