How the Russians say they brought anti-aircraft systems to Snake Island: A general learned to operate a crane in an hour because the public was so cowardly.

The Russians began to distribute on their telegram channels and other social media sites the bizarre story of the heroism of the Black Sea naval commander who remained in the country, who would become a crane in an hour to help the soldiers on Snake Island.

The story was noticed by military analyst and American journalist HI Sutton, who appeared in a series of posts on his Twitter account a few days ago and linked it to several photos with the Panzir air defense system. Landing craft.

Sutton also says that these pictures are mostly shared by Russians with the article “The Heroism of Our Snake Island Fighters”. Interestingly, the article acknowledges that in early May the Ukrainians were able to destroy the Tor-M anti-aircraft system established by the Russians on Snake Island. They occupied it On the first day of the war.

The Russian story admits that a Cherna Glass landing ship was destroyed by the Ukrainians, but there is also unconfirmed information in it: the Ukrainians tried to reclaim Snake Island by a landing operation.

The Russians say a general made a personal visit to a crane

The Russians say Admiral Igor Osibov, commander of the Black Sea Navy, has created a fleet of ships carrying Pantsir air defense systems, including the SPK-54150 floating crane on Snake Island.

But in the version of the story widely distributed on Russian social networks, most of the ship’s crew, including civilians, refused to take part in the mission, and the local navy could not even find a crane operator.

According to the story, Deputy Major General Mikhail Yasnikov of the Black Sea Fleet for Transport operations personally visited the home of one of the crane operators and made him realize the important importance of the mission.

“Traveling by helicopter first, and then by boat, they reached the crane floating together,” the Russian story says. The crane will then begin to load the pansy system on board, but it will tilt sharply due to the weight of the anti-aircraft system.

General Yasnikov, crane in an hour

Sutton mentions that in the story it becomes clear that this is Yasnikov, who ordered him to be protected by barges, but 9 of the 12 civilian crew refused to take part in the maneuver, including the crane. .

The Russians say General Yasnikov learned in one hour how to work with a crane and accepted full responsibility for the operation.

Once on Snake Island, the Bansir system began to be attacked by missiles by the Ukrainians, but no one was injured during the attacks, the story goes.

Another 20 minutes later, General Yasnikov, a member of the Panzir organization, is said to have been personally shot dead, and in “a few minutes” began firing back at the Ukrainian attackers. Neptune rocketsAlso used in lead attack Primary Moscow sank In April.

Sutton points out that the story thrives on portraying General Yasnikov as a hero, but it’s interesting because it shows how far the Russian propaganda can go, even if it is based on the kernel of truth.

“The distribution of the computer is real, the photos are real and there is no doubt that the mission involves courage,” Sutton wrote, adding that the authenticity of the images was confirmed by the OSINT website, which tracks weapons used in combat. Ukraine.