People have heard a lot about the heroic deeds of the military in Novofedorivka at different times. Local operations were often classified as «top secret». The village has been in the center of international attention several times.
The secret operation «Argonaut» is connected with Novofedorivka. Its primary purpose was to ensure air safety for the «landing strip facility in Saki, Crimea for planes transporting British and American delegates to the Conference of the three states in Yalta». In February 1945, distinguished guests of the Yalta/Crimea Conference – Winston Churchill and Franklin Roosevelt – were welcomed and escorted here. These were 252 aircrafts of at least nine different types. Numerous delegations of diplomats, journalists, advisers, even daughters of world leaders – all of them traveled to Yalta through Novofedorivka. The first to arrive and the last to leave the conference was the Group Captain of the Royal Air Force Walter J. Pickard, the commander of the operation. In his homeland, the two-month work of Pickard would be called a heroic deed. Then his team overcame the harsh weather conditions, administrative and communication problems that were «always inherent to Russia». Despite multiple agreements, his planes were even attacked by Soviet fighter jets.
In February-March 2014, Ihor Bedzai also made a historic decision in Novofedorivka. He had just been put in charge of the unit. The previous brigade commander, Colonel Volodymyr Khomenko, died at the beginning of March 2014. Under the threat of Russian occupation, his deputy for flight training planned a secret operation.
Bedzai began his career in naval aviation in 1993, having just graduated from the Syzran Higher Military Aviation School. At that time, the history of naval aviation of independent Ukraine had just began. On February 22, 1992, the 555th Naval Helicopter Regiment in Ochakiv was the first to take the oath of allegiance to the people of Ukraine. On March 16, 1992, the commander of the 299th Shipborne Aviation Regiment in Novofedorivka was the first in his regiment to take the same oath. On April 10, 1992, the 1063rd Center for the Combat Use of Naval Aviation in Saki also swore allegiance to Ukraine. In the 1990s, despite pressure and blackmail, the military chose to serve the independent Ukraine, but they were often left without equipment and weapons. The majority was appropriated by the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation.
Bedzai could choose between service in Ukraine and the Russian Federation. He chose Ochakiv, next to his native Mykolaiv region. Later, he served in Novofedorivka for almost 10 years starting from 2004. He remembered the lessons of the distribution of military property together with the Russians from the 1990s.
Russian troops arrived in Novofedorivka on February 27, 2014. The military unit was blocked so that «the Tatar population does not take possession of weapons and attack the Russian-speaking population of the village». Part of the local population – from the marginalized groups to teachers and entrepreneurs – believed in this tale of Russian propaganda. It was quite difficult to recognize Russian aggression and understand its hybrid methods. Even those who dared to resist sometimes thought that in the near future they would be mostly threatened by the «united Crimean forces» and not by the actual Russian occupation. This can be clearly heard in the video, the operator of which films and comments the withdrawal of the Ukrainian air group from Novofedorivka.
Only a limited number of personnel were aware of the decision for immediate and secret relocation of aviation equipment to the mainland. They even had to be informed additionally about the start of the operation. The Ukrainian soldiers, surrounded by the Russian military, were waiting for a moment when the Russians would let their guard down, when the air and sea would be relatively safe for an aircraft to fly. They calculated the route over the sea so that neither the «Moskva» cruiser nor the anti-aircraft missile systems «Buk» in Yevpatoria would interfere.
«Let's go» was the code word for that day. 15 minutes was enough for Ukrainian pilots to get started. Helicopters took off from parking lots to reduce takeoff time. The altitudes and flight modes of the Ukrainian planes prevented the Russian air defense forces from countering them effectively. The crews were ordered to head out to sea at maximum speed and reach the 12-mile zone of neutral waters, where interception was illegal. On March 3, 2014, the crews managed to save two An-26s, three Mi-14s, one Be-12, and one Ka-27. The Saki aviation group eventually successfully reached Mykolaiv. Even at the Kulbakyne air base, no one knew about the secret operation.
Bedzai and his team members received many anonymous threats, messages and phone calls that March. One of them asked if the planes would return to the base. The acting commander assured that they would return, but not today. Four days later, another Ka-27PS assigned to the flagship «Hetman Sagaidachnyi» was successfully redeployed.
On March 9, 2014, Russian troops seized the airfield with the support of Mi-35M helicopters. Despite constant pressure, part of the personnel of the 10th Sevastopol Naval Aviation Brigade remained loyal to Ukraine even after the so-called «referendum» and the illegal decision of the Russian Federation «on the admission to the Russian Federation of the Republic of Crimea and the formation in the Russian Federation of new subjects - the Republic of Crimea and the city of federal importance of Sevastopol». The military unit was planned to be seized several times, including on March 19, 2014. However, Bedzai joked with another anonymous caller that they should not spoil the birthday of his 8-year-old daughter.
The Saki aviation brigade became an integral part of the community due to its stationing in Crimea for many years. There are many news stories and other testimonies where residents of Novofedorivka celebrate holidays with the military, thank them for their help in emergency situations. However, on March 22, 2014, local residents joined the assault on the military unit. The brigade was pelted with smoke grenades. The weapons were deposited in warehouses before the beginning of those events. The Ukrainian military spent half a day under siege, but even after the assault, the personnel gathered together and sang the national anthem of Ukraine.
They continued their service in Mykolaiv and Ochakiv. The base of the 10th Naval Aviation Brigade of the Military Naval Forces of Ukraine in Novofedorivka was illegally occupied by the 43rd Separate Naval Assault Aviation Regiment of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation.
the village of Novofedorivka, Yevpatoria district, Autonomous Republic of Crimea
2014-03-03
