The 59th Assault Brigade of Unmanned Systems “Steppe Predators”

History

The 59th Brigade emerged at a decisive moment for Ukraine — in late 2014, when it had become clear that the country needed new, combat-capable units able to hold the front line and rapidly build strength. The brigade was formed in the Vinnytsia region, in Haisyn, and initially consisted of three motorized infantry battalions that became its core.

Less than a year later, the unit received its battle flag — a symbol of its official integration into the Armed Forces of Ukraine. After its first combat rotations in Donbas, the brigade was recognized as one of the strongest motorized infantry units. This recognition was well earned: positions near the Svitlodarsk salient, Avdiivka, and other hotspots demanded endurance and professionalism.

In 2020, the brigade was awarded the honorary name of Yakiv Handziuk, a Ukrainian military figure from the period of the national liberation struggle. This marked an important symbolic step, formally linking the unit to the historical tradition of the Ukrainian armed forces.

When russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, the brigade met the attack in the Kherson region. Its units fought heavy battles in the area of the Oleshky Sands and later conducted an organized withdrawal across the Dnipro River to reinforce the defense of Mykolaiv. There, together with other units, the brigade halted the enemy advance and prevented a breakthrough toward the city.

After the front line stabilized, the 59th took up positions near Posad-Pokrovske and conducted combat operations along the Kherson axis — until Ukraine's autumn 2022 counteroffensive changed the course of events. It was the soldiers of the 59th who entered Zelenyi Hai under cover of night, and later raised the flag in Blahoda tne — and then in Kherson itself — a symbol of the return of Ukrainian authority to the right bank.

In 2023–2024, the brigade's units were operating actively in Donetsk Oblast — from the Avdiivka to the Pokrovsk axis. The fighting was defined by assaults on enemy trenches, breakthroughs through fortified positions, and engagements in which a unit of the 59th destroyed dozens of pieces of Russian equipment during repeated enemy assault attempts. The brigade had always maintained strong reconnaissance and strike elements, but it was during 2023–2024 that their FPV drone expertise became one of the defining pillars of their combat work.

A new chapter began in 2025, when the unit was reorganized as a separate assault brigade and transferred to the Unmanned Systems Forces. The format shifted: the emphasis moved to mobility, assault groups, kamikaze drones, and modern small-unit tactics. Command changed as well — but what remained constant was what has always mattered: the brigade continues to operate on the hardest sections of the front, and to defend the reputation of the "Steppe Predators."

Today, the 59th represents the convergence of ATO/JFO experience, the hard forging of 2022, and the modern technologies that the Ukrainian military is increasingly integrating into its combat operations. Its story is the story of a unit that traveled the full distance — from conventional motorized infantry to a high-technology assault force of a new generation.