Remember when Russian positions were attacked after they tried to shoot down a flag?

It's been more than 700 days since Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and in all that time the world witnessed the reality of what was once considered the second-best military force on the planet.

Some Russian soldiers and units don't seem to be very intelligent. Nothing exemplifies that point more than the troops who were eliminated after revealing their positions while trying to shoot down a Ukrainian flag.

Photo Credit: Telegram @StepanychUA

The story is a weird one. But in September 2023, a group of Russians unwittingly revealed their positions while attempting to shoot down a helium balloon carrying a Ukrainian flag. 

The large flag was attached to dozens of balloons according to a report by Business Insider, which also noted that the flag was launched from the Ukrainian town of Avdiivka to commemorate the 245th founding of the town. 

Photo Credit: Telegram @StepanychUA

Vitalii Barabash was the head of the Avdiivka City Military Administration at the time and he went on national television to explain what happened in the skies above the occupied territories after the flag was launched into the air by Ukrainian forces.

"Today is the 245th anniversary of the founding of Avdiivka. We started the day with activity—we launched the state flag on balloons into the sky. It flew towards Donetsk,” Barabash explained according to a translation of his comments by Ukrianska Pravda.

Photo Credit: Telegram @StepanychUA

“We can already hear the interceptions; they are a little freaked out about it. They tried to shoot it down. But the state flag is already flying over the Kyivskyi district of Donetsk,” Barabash continued as he spoke about the flag’s flight over Donetsk. 

Photo Credit: Telegram @StepanychUA

Launching a flag over occupied Donetsk from Avdiivka on the anniversary of the town's founding has become a tradition for Ukraine, and during the most recent release, troops had to unfurl the flag in the local stadium due to its size. 

Photo Credit: Telegram @StepanychUA

“When the Ukrainian flag flew from Avdiivka to Donetsk, the Russians tried to shoot it down with all the means at their disposal and revealed all their firing positions,” Barabash said according to a translation of his comments by Euromaidan Press. 

The attempt to shoot down the Ukrainian flag ultimately allowed soldiers on the opposing side of the frontline to target the revealed positions with a deadly counterattack, a situation that allegedly didn't go well for the invading Russian troops. 

“Yesterday, the 110th Brigade worked very hard on this,” Barabash wrote about the counterattack operation. However, any possible casualties that may have resulted from the counterattack were unknown. 

What happened to the Russian soldiers attacked by Ukraine's 110th Brigade wasn't known but the flag-flying ceremony turned out to be a wild success even before the Kremlin's troops revealed their positions to Ukrainian forces. 

Photo Credit: Telegram @StepanychUA

Barabash said the launch of the giant flag was probably the most successful attempt the ceremony ever had and explained that the Ukrainian flag flew over the occupied territory of Donetsk for several hours.

Photo Credit: Telegram @StepanychUA

“I had a lot of messages from people living in the occupied territory,” the military official explained, “who told me they are waiting for the liberation of Donetsk.” Unfortunately, it didn’t last forever; the flag eventually floated to the ground. 

The Kyiv Independent reported the giant Ukrainian flag floated above several districts of occupied Donestks before it eventually landed in the Leninsky District of the city, thus bringing an end to the flag but not to the trouble Russian troops would face. 

Avdiivka is located in the middle of Donetsk Oblast and it has been at the center of a brutal struggle ever since Russian forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022. However, tough defenses around the town have kept it in Ukrainian hands.

Photo Credit: Wiki Commons By Anastasiya Fedorenko, CC BY-SA 3.0

Unfortunately, Avdiivka isn’t what it once was, and the formerly thriving town home to as many as 31,000 people has been left devastated and destroyed due to constant shelling by Russian forces according to The Kyiv Independent. 

In June, The New York Times reported that only 1700 people remained from Avdiivka’s pre-war population and noted that those still living there relied on the help of volunteers to survive since the town had no running water, electricity, or regular food supply. 

Avdiivka has been at the forefront of a Russian offensive against the small town for several months. However, the area is still under the control of the Ukrainian Armed Forces as of February 4th.