Ukraine honors defenders of Donetsk Airport today

It was on this day 11 years ago that the fighting for the airport, which had been going on since May 2014, ended, Ukrinform reports.

The Head of the Office of the President, Kyrylo Budanov, emphasized that the heroic defense of Donetsk Airport has become a symbol of the indomitable Ukrainian spirit and the professionalism of Ukrainian soldiers.

"They held the defense then; we are holding it now. On January 20, Ukraine honors the defenders of Donetsk Airport. The 242 days of heroic defense have become a symbol of the indomitable Ukrainian spirit and professionalism of soldiers, whom the enemy, in despair at their own powerlessness, called “cyborgs,” Budanov wrote on Telegram.

“The cyborgs did not give up! We remember the courage and heroism of each and every one of them,” the Head of the Presidential Office emphasized.

The order to establish January 20 as the Day of Remembrance for the Defenders of Donetsk Airport was jointly adopted by the Minister of Defense and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in 2022. Previously, the memory of the “cyborgs” was honored on January 16, Ukrinform reports.

Ukrainian military personnel, military volunteers, medics, and civilian volunteers resisted Russian occupation forces and pro-Russian militants for 242 days. The fighting took place at the Serhii Prokofiev International Airport in Donetsk.

During the defense of the airport, the defenders began to be called “cyborgs.” The phrase “The people stood firm, but the concrete couldn't hold” succinctly described the long period of confrontation on a small bridgehead.

The airport, opened in 1933, was significantly modernized on the eve of Euro 2012, with a new runway and terminal built. It was this terminal that pro-Russian illegal armed groups blew up on January 20, 2015, destroying the airport.

Russian forces made their first attempt to capture the airport on April 17, 2014, and from May 6, all flights through it were suspended. The active phase of the fighting began on May 26, when Russian troops and militants entered the new terminal. As a result of coordinated actions, the Ukrainian Air Force and Land Forces drove out the enemy, and the airport came under the control of the Anti-Terrorist Operation forces.

Later, the city of Donetsk was completely destabilized, the occupation began, and the enemy made endless attempts to take control of the airport, but Ukrainian soldiers did not give up their positions and held their defenses under heavy fire.

Throughout the summer of 2014, combat clashes were sporadic, but from the beginning of September, the fighting intensified again as the enemy stepped up its offensive in violation of the Minsk Agreements.

Ukrainian military personnel held the old and new terminals. The stronghold of the Anti-Terrorist Operation forces was the village of Pisky, through which provisions and ammunition were supplied to the airport defenders, and rotations took place. Artillery fire support was also deployed in this village.

Pro-Russian forces systematically stormed the terminals, occupied new positions, lost them, and prepared for new assaults. In December 2014, the old terminal suffered significant damage, and on January 13, 2015, the control tower of Donetsk Airport, which was held by Ukrainian fighters, collapsed. It was the “eyes” of the Donetsk Airport defenders and became a symbol of their heroism and of the airport's defense as a whole.

In the new terminal, fighting took place across different floors—in the final stages of the battle, Ukrainian soldiers held the first floor, while the basement and upper floors were under enemy control. When pro-Russian forces blew up the new terminal on January 20, concrete floors and ceilings collapsed in many sections, burying Ukrainian defenders beneath them. On January 22, 2015, the surviving defenders left the terminal. This date is considered the day when Donetsk Airport was destroyed.

The defense of Donetsk Airport was one of the first battles of the Russian-Ukrainian war and an important stage in the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

Photo: Military Television