Fangs of the Lone Wolf: Chechen Tactics in the Russian-Chechen War 1994-2009

by Dodge Billingsley

Overview

Books on guerrilla war are seldom written from the tactical perspective and even less seldom from the guerrilla’s perspective. Fangs of the Lone Wolf: Chechen Tactics in the Russian-Chechen Wars 1994-2009 is an exception. These are the stories of low-level guerrilla combat as told by the survivors. They cover fighting from the cities of Grozny and Argun to the villages of Bamut and Serzhen-yurt, and finally the hills, river valleys and mountains that make up so much of Chechnya. The author embedded with Chechen guerrilla forces and knows the conflict, country and culture. Yet, as a Western outsider, he is able to maintain perspective and objectivity. He traveled extensively to interview Chechen former combatants now displaced, some now in hiding or on the run from Russian retribution and justice. The military professional will appreciate the book’s crisp narration, organization by type of combat, accurate color maps and insightful analysis and commentary. The civilian reader will discover the complexity of “simple guerrilla tactics” and the demands on individual perseverance and endurance that guerrilla warfare exacts.

The book is organized into vignettes that provide insight on the nature of both Chechen and Russian tactics utilized during the two wars. They show the chronic problem of guerrilla logistics, the necessity of digging in fighting positions, the value of the correct use of terrain and the price paid in individual discipline and unit cohesion when guerrillas are not bound by a military code and law. Guerrilla warfare is probably as old as man, but has been overshadowed by maneuver war by modern armies and recent developments in the technology of war. As Iraq, Afghanistan, the Philippines and Chechnya demonstrate, guerrilla war is not only still viable, but is increasingly common. Fangs of the Lone Wolf provides a unique insight into what is becoming modern and future war.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781909384774
Publisher:	Helion and Company
Publication date:	11/02/2013
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.30(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Dodge Billingsley, is the Director of Combat Films and Research, a fellow at the David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies at Brigham Young University, and a senior faculty member at the Naval Post Graduate School’s Center for Civil Military Relations.

A long time observer of many conflicts, Mr. Billingsley has spent considerable time in the Caucasus where he first became familiar with Chechen insurgent/separatist forces during Georgia’s war with Abkhaz separatists 1992-1993. He has produced two documentary films based on his experiences with Chechen combatants and recently conducted a number of interviews of former Chechen combatants for his current work, Fangs of the Lone Wolf: Chechen Tactics in the Russian-Chechen Wars 1994-2009.

Mr. Billingsley has also spent extensive time in both Afghanistan and Iraq. He was present at the Qala I Jangi Fortress uprising in November 2001 and won both the prestigious Rory Peck and Royal Television Society awards for Best Feature for his footage in the film House of War. Months later he landed with US troops in the Shah i Kot Valley in eastern Afghanistan for Operation Anaconda. His film Shah I Khot: Valley Redoubt, which accompanies Operation Anaconda: America’s First Conventional Battle in Afghanistan, co-authored by Mr. Billingsley and Mr. Les Grau, is a result of his coverage of that operation.

In 2003 he embedded with 3/7 Marines for the invasion of Iraq and his subsequent film Virgin Soldiers was again nominated for the Rory Peck Best Feature category. He embedded with 3-2 Stryker Brigade in Mosul in 2004 for the BBC and in December 2011 he accompanied 4-6 Infantry for the closure of Al Asad Air Base and the final withdrawal of US forces from Al Anbar Province, western Iraq.

His most recent film (2013), Unfortunate Brothers: Korea’s Reunification Dilemma, examines the prospects of Korean reunification through the testimony of experts and the experience of a North Korean defector living in Seoul.

Mr. Billingsley lectures extensively to both academic institution and military installations and is a long time contributor to Jane’s Intelligence Review. He has a BA in History from Columbia University and a MA in War Studies King’s College, London.

Table of Contents

Foreword Lester W. Grau x

Preface & Acknowledgements xiii

Map: Vignettes by Location xviii

Chapter 1 A Brief History of the Chechen Conflict 1

Chapter 2 Defense of an Urban Area 8

Vignette 1 First Phase of the Battle for Serzhen-Yurt 9

Vignette 2 Second Phase of the Battle for Serzhen-Yurt 15

Vignette 3 Defending Bamut 21

Vignette 4 Encircling Russian Forces on the Left Hank of the Defense of Bamut 27

Vignette 5 Holding the Eastern Flank of Goyskoe against a Russia Armored Attack 31

Vignette 6 The Battle for Goyskoe 36

Chapter 3 Breakout of an Encirclement 43

Vignette 7 Small Unit Retreat from Grozny 44

Vignette 8 Escaping Grozny 48

Chapter 4 Raids 55

Vignette 9 RPG Attack on Russian Armored Column near Argun 56

Vignette 10 Attack on a Russian Tank Position in Grozny 61

Vignette 11 Failed Raid on Russian Position Near the Former Chernorechie Prison 65

Vignette 12 Attack on Russian Tank Position near Shalazhi 70

Chapter 5 Ambush and Counter-Ambush 76

Vignette 13 Ambush of Russian Column between Benoi and Vedeno 77

Vignette 14 Ambushed in the Woods 82

Vignette 15 Ambush of Russian Convoy on the M-29 Highway 86

Chapter 6 Defense of Lines of Communication 91

Vignette 16 Defending the Permykanie Junction on the Road From Argun to Grozny 92

Vignette 17 Holding the Road to Shali, Part 1 97

Vignette 18 Holding the Road to Shali, Part 2 102

Vignette 19 Fighting a Delaying Action while Covering a Withdrawal from Kurchaloy 106

Chapter 7 Defense of a River Line 112

Vignette 20 The Failed Defense of Argun 113

Vignette 21 Defending against a River Crossing 117

Chapter 8 Mine and Anti-Tank 123

Vignette 22 Mine Warfare near Chiri-Yurt 124

Vignette 23 Shaitan (Devil) Rocket Launcher 128

Chapter 9 Attack 134

Vignette 24 Pinning down Russian Control Point in the Battle for Grozny 135

Vignette 25 First Battle for Hill 825 140

Vignette 26 Night Attack on a Temporarily-Positioned Russian Tank and Ural Trucks 145

Vignette 28 The Second Battle for Hill 825 149

Vignette 27 Chechens Attack Ring of Villages Along Mountain Frontier 154

Chapter 10 Shelling and Sniping Attacks 160

Vignette 29 Mortar Attack on Russian Armor Position 161

Vignette 30 Sniping Attack on a Russian Senior Officer 164

Chapter 11 Conclusions 168

Guide to Symbols 173

Bibliography 174

Index 176

Editorial Reviews

… presents a unique and effective study of the soldiers, terrain and tactics of the complex and largely undocumented Chechen wars … essential reading for scholars of the region seeking deeper understanding of the combatants and their tactics, or for any interested reader trying to make sense of the seemingly endless conflict in Chechnya

The Russian Review

"The author's unique insights, enabled by his close working relationship with the Chechens, makes for a technical but interesting read. His narrative is blunt, honest and balanced and he does not shy away from critical conclusions of the Chechen efforts where warranted."

Canadian Army Journal

Massively outnumbered and outgunned by the Russian military, the story of the Chechens' ability to hold and then humble them in the First Chechen War is an extraordinary one, hardly overshadowed by the Russians' capacity to learn from their mistakes in the Second. Through well-chosen case studies, this book explores the tactics of both sides and in the process becomes the best military study of this conflict yet."

Mark Galeotti

"Fangs of the Lone Wolf sheds light on a poorly understood unconventional war and does so from a rare perspective, that of Chechens who fought against Russia from 1994 to 2009. Billingsley captures the voices of the Chechens from years of interviews conducted in Chechnya and in exile."

Mark von Hagen

"Dodge Billingsley saw the Chechen War from the inside. His insights into the extraordinary battle between one of the world's largest armies and the insurgents who fought it to a standstill are second to none."

Thomas de Waal

"Dodge Billingsley saw the Chechen War from the inside. His insights into the extraordinary battle between one of the world's largest armies and the insurgents who fought it to a standstill are second to none."

Russia and Eurasia Program Carnegie Endowment for Thomas de Waal

"Fangs of the Lone Wolf sheds light on a poorly understood unconventional war and does so from a rare perspective, that of Chechens who fought against Russia from 1994 to 2009. Billingsley captures the voices of the Chechens from years of interviews conducted in Chechnya and in exile."

Professor of History and Global Studies at Arizona Mark von Hagen

Massively outnumbered and outgunned by the Russian military, the story of the Chechens' ability to hold and then humble them in the First Chechen War is an extraordinary one, hardly overshadowed by the Russians' capacity to learn from their mistakes in the Second. Through well-chosen case studies, this book explores the tactics of both sides and in the process becomes the best military study of this conflict yet."

Professor of Global Affairs at the Center for Glob Mark Galeotti