Вижити в оточенні: історії двох військових з Покровська

April 3, 2026·20 min·1 clip

Nestoruk and a pilot ran across an open asphalted road toward a well under enemy fire—the pilot was shot beside him, a grenade flew over Nestoruk's head, and the second grenade fell between him and the enemy, causing them to flee.

1. Army FM hosts two Ukrainian combat veterans: Dmytro Yashchenko, a Hero of Ukraine with call-sign 'Irishman,' and Dmytro Nestoruk, assistant commander of unmanned systems in the 7th Corps DSHV rapid reaction force. 2. Yashchenko was mobilised through the TCK (territorial recruitment centre) and went through VLK medical review, BZVP training, and brigade deployment before ending up at Pokrovsk. 3. Nestoruk joined the army in 2020 as a conscript, signed a contract on December 2, 2021, and met a full-scale invasion at the battalion training field weeks later. 4. Yashchenko held a north-south front-line position alone for 90 days in a destroyed building in Pokrovsk, without a functioning radio for extended periods. 5. He lost brothers and a trophy vehicle during the assignment; at the time of the Russian assault on his position, he had already evacuated undetected, and Russian forces spent 30 minutes storming the empty building. 6. Yashchenko went five days without water because a well in the yard was too exposed—emerging would have made him immediately visible to enemy observers. 7. Supplies including food and water were delivered by drone when weather permitted; when weather was poor, soldiers went days without delivery. 8. Yashchenko learned he had been awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine while still in an evacuation group leaving Pokrovsk; the formal handover from the president had not yet occurred at the time of the broadcast. 9. Nestoruk led a zero-experience crew—all newly arrived from BZVP—into Pokrovsk when the situation was already deteriorating, with Russian positions within one kilometre of operating drone crews. 10. His crew was among the last to withdraw, deliberately staying to provide drone cover for other units withdrawing, before weather and enemy activity forced them to shelter and wait. 11. After one week of waiting, the encirclement was complete; it lasted approximately 2.5-3 months. 12. Nestoruk managed his crew's morale in the basement of an eight-apartment, two-storey building by monitoring and interrupting their consumption of demoralising social media posts showing Russian propaganda about the sector. 13. His crew continued flying drone missions throughout the encirclement—doing reconnaissance, identifying Russian positions and equipment, and burning enemy assets every night. 14. Three days without water, Nestoruk and a pilot made a dash across an exposed asphalted road to a nearby well; four enemy infantry opened fire, the pilot was shot and killed beside Nestoruk. 15. Nestoruk dove into low bushes, lost his machine gun, heard the enemy approach and shoot the pilot, and survived two grenades—the first flew 15 metres over him, the second landed between him and the Russians, causing them to flee. 16. Near the end of the encirclement, a Russian thermobaric shell struck the roof of their building and set it on fire; this coincided with a sudden wall of fog that gave the crew cover to escape. 17. Nestoruk recounts that throughout the final night before escape, an enemy APC was firing on a nearby infantry position while Russian infantry were gathered outside their building. 18. Second guest Nestoruk is also a Ukrainian military rap artist, collaborating with Air Max and Andy Off; his verse on the song 'Ruined Track' was written while in the encirclement, recorded after escape. 19. Both soldiers emphasise the importance of voluntary enlistment over conscription, with Yashchenko noting that volunteering allowed him to choose his brigade. 20. The episode is a first-person oral account with minimal host commentary, structured as a double interview giving both soldiers roughly equal time.

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