About a month before the annexation of the Crimea, the Ukrainian military received an order to check the combat readiness of vehicles.

This was told in an interview with Apostrophe by the commander of the 8th battery of the 3rd reactive artillery battalion of the 27th detached artillery brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Andrei Sheiko.

The military said that by the time of the commencement of hostilities in his battery there was a shortage of people. In addition, the technique itself was not in the best condition. According to Sheiko, since 2010, in his part of the technique was without fuel, and when he took the post of battery commander, the cars could not even start.

"And in the winter, somewhere a month before the annexation of the Crimea, we were suddenly given fuel. Liter of 5-10 per car - just to start and test the combat readiness. This was very little, but we got what we could get. What did not happen - we were given a week to identify and troubleshoot, "says Sheiko.

At the same time the military can not name the reasons for a sudden check.

"I still do not know this.

We were instructed to start a machine and we did it. Combat readiness should be checked by a special commission. True, under combat readiness it was understood that the machine was simply wound up, at least one engine. About some kind of synchronization of engines or the fact that the machinery went, then it did not go, "- he says..

According to Sheiko, the military managed to bring the equipment to a normal state within a month, and a month later they went on it to the test site.