Evacuation Under Fire: Ground Robots in Vovchansk

Ukrainian forces continue to hold positions on the southern outskirts of the heavily shelled and devastated Vovchansk. Enemy drone activity in this sector remains extremely high, severely complicating rotations and logistics. Delivering supplies and ammunition, as well as evacuating the wounded and the fallen, is now often carried out using ground robotic systems.

Ukrinform correspondents followed one such evacuation mission conducted by the 57th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade named after Kosh Otaman Kost Hordiienko — in real time.

This report details how the operation was prepared and executed, focusing on soldiers who have “not grown weary” — neither since 2014 nor since 2024.

GRIT DEFINES BOTH THE SOLDIERS AND THE ROBOTS

Every deployment of a ground robotic system requires meticulous preparation lasting several hours. At the initial stage, we meet the personnel involved in the operation.

We speak with them in a garage, where they work on the machines — replacing bearings, checking tracks. These are the components that fail most frequently, explains Serhii from Odesa, callsign “Senia.” When asked about his role, he smiles: “Modernizer.”

Serhii and his comrades are responsible both for maintaining the systems and for carrying out the missions themselves.

Senia

— We weld, modify, and re-solder components for communications and cameras — everything adapted to our tasks and needs. Because all ground robotic systems arrive in units in a “raw” state, — Senia explains. — And we pilot them ourselves, too. There aren’t enough personnel.

My longest mission lasted 15 hours — delivering cargo and evacuating both KIA and WIA from the position. Sometimes it’s… tough, exhausting. It varies. When GPS signal is lost, we move blind. But we’ve gained experience — we can navigate by map, and we have reconnaissance support.

By profession, Serhii is an electrician. He has served in the military intermittently since 2014, with only about a year and a half of civilian life before the full-scale invasion.

— I served in different brigades. I was with the 57th from 2018 to 2020. I met the start of the full-scale war in the 35th Marine Brigade. I still haven’t recovered from that strike on the barracks… (In March 2022, Russian forces launched a missile strike on the brigade’s base in Mykolaiv; former head of the Mykolaiv District Prosecutor’s Office Hennadii Herman was later sentenced to life imprisonment for providing targeting information to Russian forces — ed.). I worked as an instructor for a while. I wanted to return to the 57th — the transfer took a long time, but I eventually made it. We’ve got a good crew here — we work well together.

At home, he is awaited by his wife and two teenage children, who support him in every possible way.

— I went to the front in 2014 — one son was six months old, the other a year and a half. That’s how it is… Of course, I rarely see them. But my wife comes whenever she can. She’s the kind who even made it to Mariinka when we were stationed there, and she’s been to Kurakhove as well, — Senia says.

As they prepare the ground robotic systems, the soldiers remark that each robot seems to have its own “character.”

— This one “doesn’t like” something, and then everything around it starts malfunctioning — the vehicle, the internet cuts out. If it “wants” to move, it will; if not, everything “breaks.” But we nicknamed it “Lucky,” because it can reach places others can’t.

Another system has been dubbed “Rule Breaker” — for its successful missions right under the enemy’s nose.

MISSION OBJECTIVES: SUPPLIES, WOUNDED, MORTAR

Dmytro from Dobropillia is learning to operate the systems:

— I help with repairs and support deployments — we load up, deliver to the point, unload, and then retrieve the system.

Dmytro

He has been with the battalion for several months. Previously, he served in the 71st Air Assault Brigade, fighting in Verbove (Zaporizhzhia region) and Avdiivka (Donetsk region).

— I’ve taken prisoners, too. Once we were tasked with assaulting two kilometers of tree line — we pushed nine. Then we had to pull back; we took losses… My first deployment — my first concussion, from a 120 mm mortar round, — Dmytro recalls. — I was in Avdiivka, at the coke plant, fighting Wagner forces. When they broke into our rear through a pipe, we managed to get out thanks to the 3rd Assault Brigade — in small groups. While I was pulling back, I must have said goodbye to my life about 150 times…

In total, he has suffered five concussions. He has hearing problems and epilepsy, and recently underwent tracheal surgery.

— Aren’t you being discharged? — I ask.

— No. And I don’t want to be discharged — it wouldn’t make sense for me. I no longer see myself in civilian life; I’ve grown used to this over four years. I was on leave — and it pulled me back here…

Battalion Commander

Major Serhii “Baron” Pavlyshyn, commander of the repair and recovery battalion within the 57th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade, outlines the mission ahead:

— Today’s tasks: one ground robotic system will deliver food to the “zero line” and evacuate a wounded soldier; another will transport supplies and retrieve a damaged mortar for repairs. A single evacuation can take 15–20 hours — and that’s without preparation. The operator is involved in both prep and piloting, so you can imagine how long he goes without sleep. Sometimes they’re on their feet for nearly two days straight, grabbing just two or three hours of rest while the system is being moved to the unloading zone.

ICE, WATER, AND A “LOST” ENGINE

The worse the weather, the better the conditions for such missions. Snow, rain, and fog significantly reduce drone activity.

On this day, conditions are favorable. Operators gather at the control point, while another group has already loaded the robotic system into a pickup and driven off to collect supplies awaited at forward positions. The line stays busy — constant calls, clarifications, checks.The system is powered on and tested.

Finally, the vehicle heads toward the launch point, from which the robotic system will continue on its own. As it moves farther away, tension at the control point becomes palpable. Pilot Serhii receives short video clips: the men in the pickup are being tossed around in all directions. There is no road — only rough, unmarked terrain. The jokes, laced with profanity, the bursts of laughter in the voice messages — less bravado than a way to steady nerves: We’ll make it.

Serhii

Before the system begins its run, we ask Serhii how he became a pilot.

— It was needed. So we learned. We have to help the guys on the “zero line,” — says the serviceman, himself a former infantryman.

He is from Beryslav in the Kherson region, a town that comes under daily Russian strikes.

The team delivers the system to the launch point. The driver turns the pickup around; the crew runs final checks. The connection holds. All systems are functional.

Serhii takes over control.

The robot rolls off the vehicle and onto the ground, following its pre-programed route. The pickup immediately speeds back to a safer distance.

Soon, a call comes in — a malfunction.

— That’s it. We’ll have to recover it with another vehicle. We “dived” so hard we lost half the engine, — the commander says, setting his phone aside.

Hours pass.

The system keeps moving.

Serhii carefully navigates around obstacles — potholes, craters, debris. At times it seems the machine won’t make it through the terrain. But it does.

— Once I encountered another robotic system. At first, I couldn’t tell what it was. Couldn’t make it out. I thought: “That’s it. I’m done. It’s a drone.” Then we got closer, lined up next to each other. Must have been a neighboring unit, — he recalls.

Late in the evening, he reaches the first waypoint. Soldiers emerge to receive the cargo.

Then he moves on — to evacuate the wounded.

Tension rises. Voices over the radio grow sharper, more strained. Finally, the location: the wounded soldier is stable enough to be transported. He is placed onto the platform and covered with a blanket.

Serhii turns back toward the rendezvous point.

Deep into the night, the robot meets the pickup.

From there — full throttle. The mission, which lasted nearly 12 hours, is complete.

The wounded defender is evacuated to a stabilization point.

EVERY MISSION IS A STORY YOU CAN’T PUT DOWN

At the start of the full-scale invasion, the battalion focused primarily on repairing armored vehicles — restoring hundreds of them. Today, as drones increasingly shape the battlefield, the unit is expanding its use of ground robotic systems, a capability it has been developing since December 2025. The initiative came from the battalion commander.

— I saw videos of these systems on social media and thought: what, are we weaker? No. We started this ourselves. Now we have support. We’ve learned everything. In the first month of operations, we carried out seven missions; in just the first week of January — nearly twice as many, — says “Baron.”

Despite the frequency of deployments, missions never become routine, he adds. Each one brings unpredictable conditions, concern for the lives of those being evacuated, and the constant risk of losing the system. Endurance is critical: while a mission may be planned as a 10-kilometer route, in reality it can easily stretch to twice that distance, requiring careful battery management.

— Once, the guys covered 40 kilometers in a single mission — they had to maneuver around damaged equipment. And one of our systems did remain in Vovchansk. The commander asked us to pick up two infantrymen who had gotten lost. We headed toward them, but apparently a Mavic had already followed them. Then the drops began. The armor held — the infantry survived — but a fragment pierced the right-side battery, and the system caught fire. We kept driving it, already burning, to a certain point. Everything was filled with smoke. The pilot is sitting here — panicking, in tears — as if the smoke got in his eyes. Every mission is like a book. One moment the road is blocked — a fallen tree. The next, visibility is less than a meter, and everyone is huddled over phones and tablets, trying to stay on a familiar route: “That bush — this way!”, “Here, this turn,” — Pavlyshyn explains.

To streamline operations, he plans to separate repair and piloting functions within the unit.

— We already have a team that deploys for repairs where security situation allows. The goal is to create a full-fledged “pit stop” system for these platforms. That’s where we’re heading. We’ll have dedicated repair teams, pilots, and engineers. We’re gradually training personnel. There are challenges — many in the battalion are only partially fit for service, and some are over 58. But we find a role for everyone and keep moving forward. Still, we need more personnel, — the commander says.

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In the first week of February, the 57th Separate Motorized Kosh Otaman Kost Hordiienko Infantry Brigade scored 385 points for ground robotic system missions, ranking second among Ukraine’s Defense Forces by this measure.

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In January, servicemen of the repair and recovery battalion, interviewed by Ukrinform, evacuated a rifle battalion soldier who had held a position in Vovchansk for 275 days. There were four evacuation attempts; the final — and successful one -- lasted two days. The key challenge was proximity: the defender was located just a few dozen meters from enemy positions.

According to the Joint Forces Grouping, Ukrainian forces continue to hold positions in the southeastern part of Vovchansk.

Exploiting their proximity to the border, Russian forces are constantly reinforcing their troops and attempting to outflank Ukrainian defensive lines.

— It is clear that little remains of the city but ruins, and holding positions in such conditions is far more difficult than in relatively intact, stable structures. But that’s war. Vovchansk deserves recognition for how long it has held back the enemy — and for how many of them have been ground down there, — says Viktor Trehubov, press officer for the Joint Forces Grouping.

Russian forces have made no gains in the area of responsibility of the 57th Brigade, according to Ruslana Bohdan, head of the brigade’s communications unit.

— The fact that there have been virtually no changes on the map for nearly a month is the result of the brigade’s combat work and of everyone involved in the defense of Vovchansk. The occupiers attempt assaults every day — continuously. Enemy groups, in pairs or small teams, try to slip between our positions, probing for weak points where they can advance. We detect them, stop them, and eliminate them.

Just recently, there was an incident where an assault trooper entered a position held by our drone operators. Our guys were in the basement, while the Russian soldier tried to establish himself on the first floor. Had he thrown a grenade, that would have been the end. Instead, our troops opened fire and captured him. The operation was carried out by drone operators from an artillery reconnaissance battery. This speaks to both the training and the motivation of our defenders, — Bohdan said.

After losing access to Starlink, Russian forces are seeking and establishing alternative communication systems. Ukrainian defenders are monitoring these efforts and working to neutralize them, she adds.

Yuliia Bairachna, Kharkiv

Photos: Viacheslav Madiievskyi / Ukrinform