Battle for Hill 3234 The Battle for Hill 3234 was a successful defensive battle fought by the 345th Independent Guards Airborne Regiment , Soviet Airborne Troops , in Afghanistan against a force of 200 to 250 Mujahideen rebels . Two of the soldiers killed , Vyacheslav Alexandrovich Alexandrov and Andrey Alexandrovich Melnikov , were posthumously awarded the Gold Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union . All of the paratroopers in this battle were given the Order of the Red Banner and Order of the Red Star . The battle was dramatized in the 2005 movie " The 9th Company " . Background . In November 1987 , the Soviet 40th Army under General Boris Gromov began Operation Magistral to open the road from Gardez to Khost near the Pakistani border . Khost had been cut off for months by mujahideen led by Jalaluddin Haqqani and had to be resupplied by air . Negotiations were undertaken with the local Jadran tribe as well as with Haqqani . These talks did not succeed , mostly due to the unshakable resolution of Haqqani who wanted to control the city as the core of his independent Afghan state and as a base for future incursions deeper into the country . Before the operation , there was also a widespread propaganda campaign , with a special radio station set up , calling on the Jadran people to cease supporting the mujahideen and leave the combat areas . Even during the negotiations , a detailed operation plan was formed and the required forces put on alert . After talks finally collapsed , the offensive was set in motion . The operation involved the 108th and 201st Motor Rifle Division s and the following paratroopers : 103rd Guards Airborne Division ( 345th Regiment ) and 56th Brigade . They were supported by five infantry divisions and a tank division of the Afghan government . Prior intelligence and aerial reconnaissance had identified a number of important fortified rebel held sites on the road between Kabul and Khost . Fortifications included a minefield with mines about 3 km deep , 10 BM - 21 rocket launchers , numerous anti - aircraft guns and DShK heavy machine gun positions , recoilless guns , mortars and RPGs . The rebels were well prepared for defense and made the main pass and the surrounding hills impenetrable . The Soviet command was aware that a direct attack would be suicidal and therefore decided to trick the rebels into revealing their positions . On October 28 , 1987 , a fake landing was made in the areas controlled by the mujahideen , throwing dressed up mannequin s from the air . Thanks to this , a reconnaissance aircraft was able to transmit the coordinates of rebel positions to the air force and after several air strikes and a four hour long artillery barrage , Operation Magistral began . The battle . As the operation went on , Soviet commanders wanted to secure the entire section of the road from Gardez to Khost . One of the most important points was the nameless hill designated by its height of 3234m , which was assigned to the 9th company of the 345th Independent Guards Airborne Regiment led by Colonel Valery Vostrotin . The 39 man company landed on the hilltop on January 7 , 1988 , tasked with creating and holding a hilltop strong point from which to observe and control a long section of the road beneath and thus secure it for the safe passage of convoys . Shortly after landing , the airborne troopers , who were well trained and experienced in Afghan conditions , started to take up positions which covered both the road and the uphill passages . Just as they had dug in , the mujahideen began their attack at 1530 hrs . First they fired with all possible weapons including recoilless guns and RPG . After a few salvos , Soviet artillery replied and silenced some of the Mujahideen ' s guns , with the commander of the first platoon , Lt . Viktor Gagarin , directing fire via a radio . When rebel fire slackened , it was clear that this was the beginning of an infantry assault . The airborne troopers were attacked by a coordinated and well - armed force of between 200 and 250 mujahideen . Attacks were made from two directions , indicating that the assailants may have been assisted by rebels trained in Pakistan . During the ensuing battle , the Soviet unit was in constant communication with headquarters and received everything the leadership of 40th Army had to offer in terms of artillery support , ammunition , reinforcements , and helicopter evacuation of the wounded . The first attack at 1530 on January 7 was followed by eleven more attacks until just before dawn on January 8 , when the mujahideen retreated after suffering severe casualties leaving Hill 3234 in the hands of the Soviet paratroopers . The exhausted and mostly wounded Soviets were nearly out of ammunition but continued to occupy the hill until the last convoy passed through the road below . Casualties . Soviet Union . The Soviet forces sustained heavy casualties , with 6 men out of 39 killed and 28 injured . Two of the soldiers killed , Vyacheslav Alexandrovich Alexandrov and Andrey Alexandrovich Melnikov , were posthumously awarded the golden star of the Hero of the Soviet Union . All of the paratroopers in this battle were given the Order of the Red Banner and Order of the Red Star . Mujahideen . According to the Soviet estimates , the Mujahideen lost over 200 men . The Mujahideen wore black uniforms with rectangular black - yellow - red stripes . It was claimed by at least two sources that the mujahideen were actually members of the Special Services Group , a commando unit of the Pakistan Army . In popular culture . The 2005 Russia n / Finnish / Ukrainian movie " The 9th Company " was loosely based on this incident . In 2008 , the Russian " documentary video game " " The Truth About 9th Company " was also released .