By Alexander Smirnov: With 6,000 military men, more than 500 machinery units and 60 aircrafts, Independence Day celebrations in Minsk turned out really spectacular. The number of parade participants was doubled compared to last year — for example, the mechanized column stretched for almost three kilometers.
The parade was opened with a procession of Minsk Suvorov Military School drummers, followed by Military Academy cadets in Great patriotic War uniforms.
The foot-born column featured representatives of 30 formations and units, as well as of 5 education institutions. Territorial troops representing the Molodechno district took part in the parade for the first time. The procession also featured infantry forces, tankmen, motorized infantry, border guards, representatives of the Emergency Situations Ministry, Air Forces, Air Defense, and, of course, special operations forces.
The mechanized column was led by the legendary tank T-34 and featured various types and models of combat vehicles, including the domestically produced light armored automobile V1 and the newest armored vehicle Caiman, as well as domestic unmanned aircraft and helicopter type complexes.
The unmanned vehicles were followed by heavy artillery: mortar complexes, self-propelled howitzers and cannons, artillery systems and multiple-launch rocket systems, including Polonaise, the pride of the national defense industry, along with Smerch, Osa, Tor-M2 and S-300, which emphasized Belarus’ defense potential.
The aircraft parade was opened by three Mi-8 helicopters carrying the national flag and the banners of the Armed Forces and Air Forces, followed by the Emergency Situations Ministry’s Mi-26 helicopter accompanied by two AS-355 Ecureuil helicopters. The helicopter procession was closed by Russian K-52 Aligators.
The Belarusian Air Forces were then succeeded by the Russian Aerospace Defense Forces’ newest Su-34 frontline bombers and a group of Su-27 aircrafts, the military transport aircraft Il-76 accompanied by five L-39s. The peaceful sky was then painted with the colors of Belarus’ national flag.
A spectacular part of the program was a parade of a composite Honor Guard company.
