Russian systems topped the ranking of the best air defense systems

Air defense of the USSR

The first years after the war were characterized by growing tensions in relations between the USSR and the USA, and subsequently by threats from NATO countries using atomic weapons.
For defense, districts, special corps and air defense regions of the country are formed. Since 1951, the creation of a single radar space for the country began, which was controlled by new radars and systems of radio engineering troops created in the air defense structure.

Since 1955, a special army formation consisting of 4 corps, which were armed with the new S-25 air defense systems, was formed and took up combat duty for the defense of the capital. Soon the anti-aircraft artillery was transformed into anti-aircraft missile air defense forces, which became an independent separate military branch.

The armed conflicts of the 50s, in which military personnel of the USSR Armed Forces took an unspoken but direct part, make it possible to improve not only the types of weapons, but also the tactics of use, the organization of interaction and support of air defense units during combat operations.

Soviet anti-aircraft self-propelled gun ZSU-23-4 "Shilka"

With the development of rocket and space weapons in the 60s, tests were carried out at the test site of the possibility of intercepting the warhead of a ballistic missile using a high-explosive fragmentation anti-missile system.

The result was positive, which made it possible to develop and gradually put on combat duty segments of the A-35 missile defense system to cover the Moscow region.

Since 1967, the air defense system has included troops that specialize in defense against missiles in air and space. They develop and test spacecraft to destroy missile elements in low-Earth orbits.

In the process of modernization and development of new types of air defense systems, means of detecting an attacking enemy and warning of a possible missile attack, the most important objects of our country were covered by air defense systems of various ranges.

The destructive events of the 80s, which led to the collapse of the socialist camp and the Warsaw Pact Organization, affected the organization and condition of the army: transformations of the Armed Forces, a significant reduction in the external contingent and many weapons, and the release of military products had a negative impact, including on the air defense troops.

Development and role of air defense systems in the air defense system. Part 1

The first guided anti-aircraft missiles (SAMs) were created during the Second World War in Germany.
Work on anti-aircraft missiles intensified in 1943, after the Reich leadership came to the understanding that fighters and anti-aircraft artillery alone were not able to effectively withstand the destructive raids of Allied bombers. One of the most advanced developments was the Wasserfall missile defense system; in many ways it was a smaller copy of the A-4 (V-2) ballistic missile. The anti-aircraft missile used a mixture of butyl ether and aniline as fuel, and concentrated nitric acid served as the oxidizing agent. Another difference was the small trapezoidal wings with a leading edge sweep of 30 degrees.

The missile was aimed at the target using radio commands using two radar stations (radars). In this case, one radar was used to track the target, and a missile was moving in the radio beam of another radar. Marks from the target and the missile were displayed on the same screen of the cathode ray tube, and the operator of the ground missile guidance station, using a special control knob, the so-called joystick, tried to combine both marks.

Wasserfall anti-aircraft missile

In March 1945, test launches of the rocket took place, in which Wasserfall reached a speed of 650 m/s, an altitude of 17 km and a range of 50 km. Wasserfall successfully passed tests and, if mass production was established, could take part in repelling allied air raids. However, preparation for serial production of the rocket and the elimination of “childhood diseases” took too much time - the technical complexity of fundamentally new control systems, the shortage of necessary materials and raw materials and the overload of the German industry with other orders affected it. Therefore, serial Wasserfall missiles never appeared before the end of the war.

Another German missile defense system brought to the stage of readiness for mass production was the Hs-117 Schmetterling (“Butterfly”) anti-aircraft guided missile. This rocket was created using a liquid-propellant jet engine (LPRE), which ran on two-component self-igniting fuel. The fuel used was Tonka-250 (50% xylidine and 50% triethylamine); the oxidizing agent was nitric acid, which was also used to cool the engine itself.

Anti-aircraft guided missile Hs-117 Schmetterling

To point the missile at the target, a relatively simple radio command guidance system with optical observation of the missile was used. For this purpose, a tracer was equipped in the aft part of the tail compartment, which was monitored by an operator through a special device and, using the control stick, aimed the missile at the target.

A missile with a warhead weighing about 40 kg could hit targets at altitudes of up to 5 km and a horizontal range of up to 12 km. At the same time, the flight time of the missile defense system was about 4 minutes, which was quite enough. The disadvantage of the rocket was that it could only be used in the daytime, in conditions of good visibility, which was determined by the need for visual accompaniment of the rocket by the operator.

Fortunately for the pilots of the Allied bomber aviation, the Schmetterling, like the Wasserfall, could not be brought to mass production, although individual attempts at combat use of missiles by the Germans were still recorded.

Anti-aircraft guided missile R-1 Rheintochter

In addition to these anti-aircraft missile projects, which have reached a high degree of readiness for mass production, work was carried out in Germany on the solid-fuel R-1 Rheintochter (“Daughter of the Rhine”) and liquid-propellant Enzian (“Gentian”) missiles.

Enzian anti-aircraft guided missile

After the surrender of Germany, a significant number of finished missiles, as well as documentation and technical personnel, ended up in the USA and the USSR. Despite the fact that German engineers and designers were never able to introduce a combat-ready guided anti-aircraft missile into mass production, many technical and technological solutions found by German scientists were implemented in post-war developments in the USA, USSR and other countries.

Tests of captured German missile defense systems in the post-war period demonstrated that they have little prospects against modern combat aircraft. This was due to the fact that in the few years since the end of World War II, combat aviation has made a giant leap in terms of increasing speed and flight altitude.

In different countries, primarily in the USSR and the USA, the development of promising anti-aircraft systems began, primarily intended to protect industrial and administrative centers from long-range bombers. This work was given particular relevance by the fact that at that time bomber aircraft were the only means of delivering nuclear weapons.

Soon, the developers of new anti-aircraft missiles began to understand that the creation of effective anti-aircraft missile weapons is only possible in conjunction with the development of new and improvement of existing means of reconnaissance of an air enemy, interrogators of a system for determining the state ownership of an air target, missile control means, means of transporting and loading missiles, etc. d. Thus, we were already talking about the creation of an anti-aircraft missile system (SAM).

The first mass air defense system adopted for service was the American MIM-3 Nike Ajax. Production of serial missiles of the complex began in 1952. In 1953, the first Nike-Ajax batteries were put into service and the complex went on combat duty.

SAM MIM-3 Nike Ajax

The Nike-Ajax air defense system used a radio command guidance system. Target detection was carried out by a separate radar station, the data from which was used to guide the target tracking radar to the target. The launched missile was continuously tracked by the beam of another radar.

The data supplied by the radars on the position of the target and the missile in the air was processed by a computer running on vacuum tubes and transmitted via radio to the missile. The device calculated the estimated meeting point between the missile and the target, and automatically adjusted the course. The warhead of the missile was detonated by a radio signal from the ground at the calculated trajectory point. For a successful attack, the missile usually rose above the target, and then dived to the calculated interception point.

The MIM-3 Nike Ajax missile defense system is supersonic, two-stage, with a separable casing of a starting tandem solid propellant engine (solid propellant engine) and a sustainer liquid rocket engine (fuel - kerosene or aniline, oxidizer - nitric acid).

A unique feature of the Nike-Ajax anti-aircraft missile was the presence of three high-explosive fragmentation warheads. The first, weighing 5.44 kg, was located in the bow section, the second - 81.2 kg - in the middle section, and the third - 55.3 kg - in the tail. It was assumed that this rather controversial technical solution would increase the likelihood of hitting a target due to a more extensive cloud of fragments.

The effective range of the complex was about 48 kilometers. The missile could hit a target at an altitude of up to 21,300 meters, while moving at a speed of 2.3 M.

Initially, Nike-Ajax launchers were deployed on the surface. Subsequently, with the growing need to protect complexes from the damaging factors of a nuclear explosion, underground missile storage facilities were developed. Each buried bunker stored 12 missiles, fed horizontally through a drop-down roof by hydraulic devices. The rocket raised to the surface was transported on a rail cart to a horizontal launch pad. After securing the rocket, the launcher was installed at an angle of 85 degrees.

The Nike-Ajax complex was deployed by the US Army from 1954 to 1958. By 1958, about 200 batteries were deployed across the United States, comprising 40 “defensive areas.” The complexes were deployed near large cities, strategic military bases, and industrial centers to protect them from air attack. Most of the Nike-Ajax air defense system was deployed on the East Coast of the United States. The number of batteries in a "defensive area" varied depending on the value of the target: for example, Barksdale AFB was covered by two batteries, while the Chicago area was protected by 22 Nike-Ajax batteries.

On May 7, 1955, by decree of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR, the Soviet S-25 air defense system (1000 targets in one salvo S-25 (BEKUT) (SA-1 Guild)) was adopted into service. This complex became the first adopted for service in the USSR, the first operational-strategic air defense system in the world and the first multi-channel air defense system with vertically launched missiles.

SAM S-25

The S-25 was a purely stationary complex; to create the deployment infrastructure for this air defense system, a large amount of construction work was required. The missiles were installed vertically on the launch table - a metal frame with a conical flame cutter, which in turn was based on a massive concrete base. Radar stations for sector viewing and guidance of B-200 missiles were also stationary.

Central guidance radar B-200

The capital's air defense system included 56 anti-aircraft missile regiments of the near and long echelons. Every 14 regiments formed a corps with its own sector of responsibility. Four corps made up the 1st Special Purpose Air Defense Army. Due to the excessive cost and complexity of constructing capital structures, the S-25 air defense system was deployed only around Moscow.

Layout of the S-25 air defense system around Moscow

Comparing the first American air defense system, the Nike-Ajax, and the Soviet S-25, one can note the superiority of the Soviet air defense system in terms of the number of targets simultaneously fired. The Nike-Ajax complex had only single-channel guidance, but was structurally much simpler and cheaper and, due to this, was deployed in much larger quantities.

The Soviet air defense systems of the S-75 family (the First Soviet mass air defense system S-75) have become truly widespread. Its creation began when it became clear that the S-25 could not become truly widespread. The Soviet military leadership saw a solution in the creation of a highly maneuverable air defense system, albeit inferior in its capabilities to the stationary system, but allowing for the regrouping and concentration of air defense forces and means in threatened areas in a short time.

Taking into account the fact that there were no effective solid fuel formulations in the USSR at that time, it was decided to use an engine running on liquid fuel and an oxidizer as the main one. The rocket was created on the basis of a normal aerodynamic design; it had two stages - a launch stage with a solid propellant engine and a sustainer stage with a liquid one. Homing was also deliberately abandoned, using a proven radio command guidance system based on the theoretical “half straightening” method, which allows you to build and select the most optimal missile flight trajectories.

In 1957, the first simplified version of the SA-75 “Dvina”, operating in the 10-cm frequency range, was adopted. Subsequently, emphasis was placed on the development and improvement of more advanced versions of the S-75, operating in the 6-cm frequency range, the production of which was carried out in the USSR until the early 80s.

Missile guidance station SNR-75

The first combat systems were deployed on the western border near Brest. In 1960, the air defense forces already had 80 S-75 regiments of various modifications - one and a half times more than were included in the S-25 group.

The S-75 complexes defined an entire era in the development of the country's domestic air defense forces. With their creation, missile weapons went beyond the Moscow region, providing cover for the most important facilities and industrial areas throughout almost the entire territory of the USSR.

The S-75 air defense systems of various modifications were widely supplied abroad and were used in many local conflicts (Combat use of the S-75 anti-aircraft missile system).

In 1958, the MIM-14 Nike-Hercules complex (American MIM-14 Nike-Hercules anti-aircraft missile system) was adopted in the United States to replace the MIM-3 Nike Ajax air defense system. A big step forward relative to Nike-Ajax was the successful development in a short time of a solid-propellant missile defense system with high characteristics for those times.

SAM MIM-14 Nike-Hercules

Unlike its predecessor, the Nike-Hercules has an increased combat range (130 instead of 48 km) and height (30 instead of 18 km), which was achieved through the use of a new missile defense system and more powerful radar stations. However, the basic design and combat operation of the complex remained the same as in the Nike-Ajax air defense system. Unlike the stationary Soviet S-25 air defense system of Moscow, the new American air defense system was single-channel, which significantly limited its capabilities in repelling a massive raid, the likelihood of which, however, given the relative small number of Soviet long-range aviation in the 60s, was low.

Later, the complex was modernized, which made it possible to use it for air defense of military units (by imparting mobility to combat assets). And also for missile defense from tactical ballistic missiles with flight speeds of up to 1000 m/s (mainly due to the use of more powerful radars).

Since 1958, MIM-14 Nike-Hercules missiles have been deployed in Nike systems to replace the MIM-3 Nike Ajax. In total, 145 batteries of the Nike-Hercules air defense system were deployed in the US air defense by 1964 (35 were built anew and 110 were converted from batteries of the Nike-Ajax air defense system), which made it possible to provide all major industrial areas with fairly effective cover from Soviet strategic bombers.

Map of Nike air defense systems positions in the United States

Most of the American air defense systems were deployed in the northeastern United States, on the most likely route for Soviet long-range bombers to break through. All missiles deployed in the United States carried nuclear warheads. This was due to the desire to give the Nike-Hercules air defense system anti-missile properties, as well as the desire to increase the likelihood of hitting a target in jamming conditions.

In the USA, Nike-Hercules air defense systems were produced until 1965; they were in service in 11 countries in Europe and Asia. Licensed production was organized in Japan.

The deployment of the American MIM-3 Nike Ajax and MIM-14 Nike-Hercules air defense systems was carried out in accordance with the concept of object-based air defense. It was understood that air defense targets: cities, military bases, industry, should each be covered by their own batteries of anti-aircraft missiles, linked into a common control system. The same concept of building air defense was adopted in the USSR.

Representatives of the Air Force insisted that “target air defense” in the age of atomic weapons is not reliable, and proposed an ultra-long-range air defense system capable of carrying out “territorial defense” - preventing enemy aircraft from even getting close to the defended objects. Given the significant size of the United States, this task was perceived as extremely important.

An economic assessment of the project proposed by the Air Force showed that it is more expedient and will be approximately 2.5 times cheaper with the same probability of defeat. This required fewer personnel and protected a larger area. However, Congress, wanting to get the most powerful air defense, approved both options.

Lobbied by representatives of the Air Force, the new air defense system CIM-10 Bomark (American ultra-long-range anti-aircraft missile system CIM-10 Bomark) was an unmanned interceptor integrated with existing early warning radars as part of NORAD. The guidance of the missiles was carried out according to commands from the SAGE (Semi Automatic Ground Environment) system - a system for semi-automatic coordination of interceptor actions by programming their autopilots via radio with computers located on the ground. Which brought the interceptors to the approaching enemy bombers. The SAGE system, operating according to NORAD radar data, ensured that the interceptor was launched into the target area without the participation of a pilot. Thus, the Air Force only needed to develop a missile integrated into the existing interceptor guidance system. At the final stage of the flight, when entering the target area, the homing radar was turned on.

Launch of the CIM-10 Bomark missile system

By design, the Bomark missile defense system was an aircraft-projectile (cruise missile) of a normal aerodynamic design, with control surfaces located in the tail section. The launch was carried out vertically, using a launch accelerator, which accelerated the rocket to a speed of 2M.

The flight characteristics of the Bomark remain unique to this day. The effective range of modification “A” was 320 kilometers at a speed of 2.8 M. Modification “B” could accelerate to 3.1 M and had a radius of 780 kilometers.

The complex entered service in 1957. The missiles were produced serially from 1957 to 1961. A total of 269 missiles of modification “A” and 301 modifications “B” were manufactured. Most deployed missiles were equipped with nuclear warheads.

The missiles were launched from block reinforced concrete shelters located on well-protected bases, each of which was equipped with a large number of installations. There were several types of launch hangars for the Bomark missile defense system: with a retractable roof, with sliding walls, etc.

The original deployment plan for the system, adopted in 1955, called for the deployment of 52 missile bases with 160 missiles each. This was supposed to completely cover US territory from any type of air attack. By 1960, only 10 positions were deployed - 8 in the United States and 2 in Canada. The deployment of launchers in Canada is due to the desire of the American military to push the interception line as far as possible from its borders. This was especially true in connection with the use of nuclear warheads on the Bomark missile defense system. The first Bomark squadron deployed to Canada on December 31, 1963. The missiles remained in the arsenal of the Canadian Air Force, although they were considered US property and were on combat duty under the supervision of American officers.

Layout of the Bomark air defense system in the USA and Canada

However, a little more than 10 years passed, and the Bomark air defense system began to be removed from service. First of all, this was due to the fact that in the early 70s, the main threat to targets on US territory began to be posed not by bombers, but by Soviet ICBMs, deployed by that time in significant numbers. The Bomarks were absolutely useless against ballistic missiles. In addition, in the event of a global conflict, the effectiveness of using this air defense system against bombers was very doubtful.

In the event of a real nuclear attack on the United States, the Bomark air defense system could function effectively exactly as long as the SAGE global interceptor guidance system was alive (which in the event of the outbreak of a full-scale nuclear war seems very doubtful). Partial or complete loss of functionality of even one link of this system, consisting of guidance radars, computer centers, communication lines or command transmission stations, inevitably led to the impossibility of launching CIM-10 anti-aircraft missiles into the target area.

To be continued…

Based on materials from: https://www.army-technology.com https://rbase.new-factoria.ru https://geimint.blogspot.ru/ https://www.designation-systems.net/

Interesting Facts

At the end of the 19th century, the first training shooting at balloons took place in Russia, and in 1908-1909, experimental shooting at moving targets was carried out: balloons and balloons moved with the help of horses. The tests involved 76-mm guns (“three-inch guns”). The shooting showed both the possibility of hitting aerial targets with gunfire and the need to refine field guns—to create specialized anti-aircraft guns.

The calculations of the S-75 Dvina air defense system showed high combat effectiveness during the Vietnam War (1965 - 1973). From their fire alone, American troops lost more than 1,300 planes and helicopters.

Air Defense School

Since 1951, the Yaroslavl Higher Military School of Air Defense has been training officers to staff units of anti-aircraft missile and radio engineering troops.

Nowadays, the school is a branch of the Military Space Academy named after. A.F. Mozhaisky, whose departments improve the technical training of specialists for anti-aircraft missile units of the Air Force and Navy (S-300 complexes) and regiment commanders.

The school organizes training in technical specialties for conscripts, who graduate into air defense units and become junior specialists.

Tver Academy of VKS

Since 1957, it was formed in Tver and for more than 60 years, teachers of the Military Academy of Aerospace Defense named after. Marshal of the Soviet Union G.K. Zhukova.

From the first graduations, the teaching process was based on the principle of comprehensive training of officers in various areas:

• the use of fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft artillery;
• organization of reconnaissance and radio countermeasures;
• studying command and staff disciplines;
• the use of radio technical troops, anti-aircraft missile forces;
• organization of automated command and control of troops;
• improving knowledge of foreign languages.

During Soviet times, the educational institution trained army officers from the Warsaw Pact countries.

Nowadays, the academy not only trains officers, but also conducts retraining of technical specialists and advanced training, carries out scientific and technical research on promising models of new weapons and countermeasures for re-equipping the country's air defense.

Smolensk Air Defense Academy

Improving the knowledge and skills of air defense officers, who will continue the glorious traditions, is carried out by teachers of the Military Academy of Military Air Defense of the Russian Armed Forces named after. Marshal of the Soviet Union A.M. Vasilevsky in Smolensk.

Since 1970, officers have been trained at the Smolensk Higher Anti-Aircraft Artillery Command School. In subsequent years, the educational institution was renamed several times and changed the profile of training (in the beginning - command, then - engineering).

In 1992, the Smolensk Higher Engineering School of Radioelectronics of the Air Defense Forces of the Northern Forces was transformed into the Military Academy of Air Defense of the Northern Forces of the Russian Federation.

The Academy was again renamed several times, but retained a decent material base and a high-quality staff of teachers, among whom there are recognized professors.

The initial training of junior officers for air defense troops is carried out at military departments of several civilian universities, as well as in training centers.

USSR Air Defense Forces

Air defense From the revolution to the Great War

After the revolutionary coup, the air defense of the capital city continues to operate. The city was defended by 13 artillery batteries and several units armed with machine guns and searchlights. During the entire period of hostilities, not a single enemy aircraft or balloon broke through to the city.

During the years of Soviet development before the start of World War II, air defense troops developed along with the improvement of the young republic's aviation. In 1932, the Regulations on the Air Defense of the USSR were approved.

Anti-aircraft corps to protect the most important large cities of the country (Moscow, Leningrad, Baku) were created in 1938, Kyiv is defended by an anti-aircraft division.

The staff of these units included:

• anti-aircraft artillery units;
• machine gun anti-aircraft units;
• searchlight units;
• observation posts with means of communication and warning
• air attack;
• barrage units with balloons.

Air defense formation commanders could give orders to aviation fighter units, which were intended to provide air cover for designated targets.

At the end of the 1930s, a complex device for automatic control of anti-aircraft fire using electromechanical parts (PUAZO) was developed and supplied to the air defense forces; sound detectors type ZT-5.

At the beginning of 1941, executing the decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR, the air defense troops were divided into zonal ones for the protection of the country's territory and those operating in the troops; identified a strip up to 1,200 km wide from the state border as a zone of threatened attack.

To protect this territory, they began to create air defense formations, which consisted of:

• 13 zones;
• 3 buildings;
• 2 divisions;
• 9 brigades;
• 39 areas covered by brigades.

At the beginning of the war, there were about 182 thousand military personnel in air defense units. Unfortunately, in the pre-war years, many weapons being developed, including anti-aircraft weapons, did not reach the production stage or were produced, due to a weak scientific and industrial base, in small quantities.

The troops used outdated artillery systems and rangefinders; the theoretical training and skills of the soldiers were unsatisfactory; there were not enough modern searchlights and means for detecting enemy air; the organization of command and control of troops is cumbersome and technically backward.

STRUCTURE OF AIR DEFENSE FORCES WHAT HAS BEEN, WHAT IS, WHAT WILL BE

Aerospace defense No. 1, 200

STRUCTURE OF AIR DEFENSE FORCES: WHAT HAS BEEN, WHAT IS, WHAT WILL BE

A. Hypinen, Colonel General

Air defense (air defense) is a type of armed struggle to protect the state from an air (aerospace) attack by the enemy. With the continuous improvement of air attack forces and means, the volume and complexity of air defense missions are increasing. In this sense, the experience of creating and maintaining our country’s air defense during the Great Patriotic War and local wars (Vietnam, Iraq, Yugoslavia, etc.) is invaluable.

The beginning of the Great Patriotic War showed that the concept of combat in the air sphere, when air defense was assigned the role of an appendage to the fight in the ground sphere, is untenable. The main air defense forces and means of the territory of our country were concentrated in the border military districts, and not in economically important areas, and were subordinated to the assistant commanders of the air defense districts.

Already the first months of the war forced the country's leadership to abandon pre-war ideas about air defense. At the critical moment of the Second World War, a radical reorganization of the pre-war air defense was carried out. On the basis of GKO Decree No. 874 of November 9, 1941 “On strengthening and strengthening the air defense of the territory of the Soviet Union,” a completely new air defense of the country’s territory and a branch of the military were created - Air Defense Troops of the country’s territory, subordinated directly to the People’s Commissar of Defense through the appointed Deputy People’s Commissar of Defense for Air Defense - Commander of the Air Defense Forces of the TS. Air defense forces and means of the country's territory were removed from the command of the military commanders, and 40 fighter aviation regiments were removed from the Air Force.

On April 5, 1942, by order of the People's Commissar of Defense, the Moscow Air Defense Corps Region was reorganized into the Moscow Air Defense Front, and in Leningrad and Baku, the Air Defense Corps Regions were reorganized into the Air Defense Army. Thus, a transition was made to the combined arms basis for conducting combat operations by associations, formations and units of military branches under the leadership of not administrative, but operational commands of these military branches in each sphere (land fronts, fleets, air defense fronts).

As the Red Army moved westward, the airspace within which it was necessary to organize air defense of facilities and communications in the front line increased, the composition and number of air defense formations in the air defense fronts increased, and troop control became more complicated.

Under these conditions, on December 24, 1944, the State Defense Committee made a decision on the next reorganization of the air defense fronts. On the basis of the Northern Air Defense Front, the Western Air Defense Front is being created, consisting of 5 air defense corps, 4 air defense divisions and 8 fighter aviation divisions with the relocation of the front headquarters from Moscow to Vilnius. The Southern Air Defense Front was renamed the South-Western with the transfer of headquarters from Kyiv to Lvov. It included: 7 air defense corps, 4 air defense divisions, 2 fighter aviation divisions.

On the basis of the management of the Special Moscow Air Defense Army, the Central Air Defense Front was created with headquarters in Moscow. It included troops defending Moscow and the Moscow industrial region, the Leningrad Air Defense Army: 2 air defense corps, 3 air defense divisions; an air fighter army consisting of one corps and seven divisions.

The November 1941 reorganization of the air defense of the country's territory, as well as the decision of the NPO of April 5, 1942, subsequently laid the foundations for the creation of the country's air defense system with an independent military formation of the strategic level for the protection and defense of rear front facilities, communications, infrastructure and the economy of the state, the state system and military administration. It did not allow our rear to be destroyed, the defense power of the state and the morale of the people to be undermined, or the governance of the country and the Armed Forces to be disrupted. Only by moving from the rank and file to the combined arms basis of armed combat in the airspace did we learn to fight effectively and win.

This was one of the outstanding achievements of Soviet military science during the Second World War. In fact, the CU air defense troops played the same role in the air sphere of armed struggle as the ground fronts played in the ground battle. On this occasion, G.K. Zhukov spoke as follows: “... During the Second World War, our Armed Forces perfectly mastered the art of conducting not only large operations and field battles, but also combat in the air with a strong and experienced air enemy.”

In the post-war years, the country's leadership took serious measures to strengthen the state's air defense and to strengthen the country's air defense forces quantitatively and qualitatively.

The country's air defense was becoming a factor of strategic importance.

In 1954 - 1961 Major organizational changes took place in the country's Air Defense Forces. By the resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of May 28, 1954, the position of Commander-in-Chief of the country's Air Defense Forces - Deputy Minister of Defense was introduced. The formation of three types of troops has been completed: air defense aviation, anti-aircraft missile and radio technical troops. Associations of Air Defense Forces are created - a separate army and an air defense district, consisting of air defense corps and divisions. Air defense corps (divisions) were formed on a combined arms principle from formations and units of air defense forces, air defense forces, air defense forces, and special forces (1960).

During these same years, the military science of the country's Air Defense Forces was recreated and organized (in 1957, disparate scientific teams were united into a comprehensive institute of the type VS-2 Central Research Institute of Defense and the creation of the country's Air Defense Forces Academy). Reliance on military science and trained personnel made it possible not only to bring air defense out of the post-war decline, but also to ensure its rise.

Thus, by 1961, a unified air defense system was created throughout the country and the process of forming the country’s Air Defense Forces into an independent branch of the Armed Forces was completed. The adopted organizational structure most fully reflected compliance with the tasks of the country's Air Defense Forces and the combined arms nature of the fight against the air enemy, and the trend of its further development.

In the mid-60s. the problem of organizing the defense of the country’s facilities from attacks not only from the air, but also from space, moved towards a practical solution.

On March 30, 1967, by directive of the General Staff of the USSR Armed Forces, anti-missile and anti-space defense troops (ABM, PKO) were introduced into the country's Air Defense Forces. Based on the directive, the Office of the Commander of the Missile Defense and Air Defense Forces was created with the rights to manage the branch of the country's Air Defense Forces. A little later, a missile attack warning system (MAWS) was introduced into the country's air defense forces. Since October 1967, the Directorate of Missile Defense, PKO and PR Troops has been transformed into the Directorate of the Commander of the Missile and Space Defense Forces (RKO).

The creation and development of the RKO troops significantly changed the role and place of the country's Air Defense Forces in the field of combat. In fact, the Air Defense Forces become the Aerospace Defense Forces - VKO (see Fig. 2).

With the adoption of the missile defense system, the re-equipment of the branches of the Air Defense Forces with new equipment, and the automation of control processes at the operational and tactical levels, the combat capabilities of the country's Air Defense Forces have increased significantly. The depth of the reconnaissance zone of the aerospace enemy has increased, the boundaries for intercepting missile-carrying aircraft of a potential enemy have advanced, the maneuvering capabilities of air defense missiles, anti-aircraft missiles, anti-aircraft missiles and their noise immunity have increased, and anti-aircraft missile defense has become all-altitude.

In the early 80s. complete military-strategic parity with a potential enemy was achieved. This period had an important feature - a number of local wars and military conflicts took place.

They used and tested all means of air attack and air defense, and space systems for supporting combat operations. The experience of the combat use of offensive and defensive means was carefully studied and critically assessed with a view to further improving the country's armed forces, including the country's Air Defense Forces.

The nature of the forms and methods of using aerospace attack forces and means of a potential enemy was the basis for the transition to new forms and methods of using air defense forces and means. The theory and practice of conducting a strategic operation to repel enemy aerospace operations and anti-aircraft operations developed. The main content of the strategic operation was the joint actions of strike and defensive forces in the interests of the country’s aerospace defense, which is reflected in the most important regulatory document - “Fundamentals of the combat use of the Armed Forces...”.

In 1979 - 1980 Another reorganization of the country's Air Defense Forces is underway. As a result, the country’s unified air defense system is divided into two parts: air defense of the country’s facilities and troops on the territory of border defenses and air defense of the country’s interior regions. Responsibility for the defense of facilities was accordingly distributed between the commanders of the border defense forces and the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Defense Forces. In fact, we went back to 1954.

As a result of this reorganization, the country's air defense weakened. From 1980 to 1985, in seven border military districts, 13 fighter aviation regiments (8 of them transferred from air defense formations) were re-equipped and reoriented into strike aviation regiments. In the districts, the level of combat training of air defense aviation crews has decreased: over 5 years, the number of interceptor fighter sorties and their targeting of air targets according to the automated control system has decreased by 6 times, and the level of training of fighter missions has sharply decreased. The training and preparation of personnel of air defense units has significantly weakened. In 1982 - 1983 In the Far Eastern Military District alone, six air defense missile systems received unsatisfactory ratings in tactical live-fire exercises.

In 1983, another attempt was made to reorganize the Air Defense Forces - to unite the Air Force command post with the Western Air Defense command post, including the Central Command Center, on the basis of the country's Air Defense Forces command post. Moreover, the aviation commander was appointed senior at the command post. At operational-strategic exercises in the Baltic states in 1983, this idea completely failed.

Major shortcomings in the reorganization of the country's Air Defense Forces led to a return to the previous organizational structure of the Air Defense Forces.

The Air Defense Forces continued serious, scientifically grounded, practice-proven work, including local wars, to rebuild the Air Defense Forces. By the mid-90s, the Air Defense Forces had largely completed many years of work, begun back in the 70s, to prepare for the reorganization of the Air Defense Forces into the country's Aerospace Defense Forces. And so, on July 13, 1993, Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 1032 “On the organization of air defense in the Russian Federation” was issued, which clearly outlined the priority direction - the creation of the country’s aerospace defense, and therefore the transformation of the Air Defense Forces into the Aerospace Defense Forces. The issues of creating the Aerospace Defense Forces have been repeatedly considered by the board of the Russian Defense Ministry. The correctness of such a reorganization was convincingly substantiated by scientific research, tested by a number of major exercises and confirmed by the experience of local wars (Vietnam - 1965 - 1972, Iraq - 1991, Yugoslavia - 1999).

Aerospace defense No. 2 (5) 2002

STRUCTURE OF AIR DEFENSE FORCES: WHAT HAS BEEN, WHAT IS, WHAT WILL BE

A. Hypenen, Colonel General

We are completing the publication of an article by Doctor of Military Sciences, Professor, Colonel General A. Hypenen (VKO No. 1(4) 2002). It reflects the personal opinion of the author and is controversial in nature. We invite everyone who is concerned about the future of the aerospace defense of our country to express their opinion on this issue.

By the mid-1980s. in fact, the organizational and administrative unification and merging of the air defense and missile defense systems into a single branch of the Armed Forces - the Air Defense Forces - took place. This ensured the achievement of strategic goals for the defense of the country from attacks by enemy aerospace assets. Planning of air and missile and space defense and the use of air defense and missile defense troops (forces) began to be carried out by a single body, and responsibility for the result became sole.

During these same years, conditions were created for the formation of an intelligence and information space, the data of which could be used to combat the aerospace enemy. They were submitted to: the Supreme Commander-in-Chief - for making responsible decisions, especially in the event of a nuclear missile strike by the enemy; to the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Defense Forces - for planning and conducting anti-aircraft operations; commander-in-chief of the armed forces - to bring troops into combat readiness.

In the practice of military development of the United States and NATO by that time, a stable trend had formed for the priority development of aerospace attack forces (ASAF). In the Pentagon's Space Policy directive, Fr. By 2022, we should expect a radical change in the forms and methods of warfare and the nature of war in general.

The dependence of a favorable outcome of military operations on the result of confrontation in aerospace, which has become a kind of theater of military operations, has naturally increased. This was confirmed by the fighting in Iraq (“Desert Storm” - 1991, “Fox in the Desert” - 1998) and in Yugoslavia (“Decisive Force” - 1999). The country's aerospace security has actually become one of the most important components of its national security, and the state's aerospace defense has become the top priority in terms of time and the most important in terms of consequences of the strategic task of the RF Armed Forces.

When the means of warfare change and the center of gravity of armed struggle objectively shifts to the aerospace sphere, an adequate change in priorities in matters of state defense is required. The integration of air and space weapons into a single set of means of aggression dictates the need to have a similar set of means of repelling it. Obviously, the interests of national security required the organization of a unified aerospace defense of the state and the presence of its material basis - the Russian Aerospace Defense Forces. By the mid-1990s. this issue has basically been resolved.

Further actions of the country's military-political leadership during the military reform were, at least, surprising. It seemed that the objective laws of logic, dialectical materialism and simply common sense ceased to apply in our country. Otherwise, how can one show, prove and explain the correctness and lack of alternatives to the measures carried out as part of the military reform in relation to one of the main types of our country’s armed forces - the Air Defense Forces?

According to Decree of the President of the Russian Federation dated July 16, 1997 No. 725 (despite the fact that Decree No. 1032 dated July 13, 1993 has not been repealed), the basis for structural reforms of the Armed Forces was, in fact, the liquidation of the Air Defense Forces as an independent branch of the armed forces. As a result, the important strategic task of implementing the country’s aerospace defense was to be carried out by two independent types of armed forces - the Strategic Missile Forces and the Air Force. For this purpose, the RKO troops were transferred to the former from the Air Defense Forces, and the air defense formations and formations that form the basis of the anti-aircraft defense were transferred to the latter. This decision actually led to the destruction of Russia’s fairly strong air defense system (VKO), which has no analogues in the world.

This option for “reforming” the Air Defense Forces was the worst possible. Its implementation led to the elimination of one of the most combat-ready types of strategic deterrence armed forces and, what is especially bad, the Air Defense Forces were torn apart in the literal and figurative sense. At the same time, one of the most important principles of reforming the Armed Forces was violated—the unification of branches or types of Armed Forces that have a common physical and technical nature. Thus, the Air Force and Air Defense Forces are incompatible, as are the RKO and Strategic Missile Forces troops, and now the RKO and Space Forces (KS), which have different missions, control systems, methods of combat use, etc.

Nowadays, when the leading states of the world continue to intensively build up and develop their means of aerospace attack, Russia with its own hands is destroying what is the basis of its defense and strategic deterrent - the air defense system.

Military scientific research convincingly shows that in the event of a possible armed conflict involving nuclear powers, the response threshold of each of the conflicting parties largely depends on the capabilities of the aerospace defense. If its effectiveness is insufficient, the stability of strategic nuclear missile parity is disrupted, the danger of escalation of the exchange of initially limited nuclear strikes increases, and the threat of a military conflict escalating into a global nuclear catastrophe arises. In my opinion, the weakening of our country’s aerospace defense was one of the reasons for the US denunciation of the ABM Treaty.

This reform ignored the combat experience of the Great Patriotic War, local wars and military conflicts, exercises and operational training of the USSR Armed Forces. And, on the contrary, in the West they took this experience into account. Thus, in Great Britain, air defense forces are consolidated into one formation under the control of the Joint Air Defense Headquarters; In the USA, the THAAD missile defense system is being tested to destroy operational-tactical missiles and, being coupled with a missile attack warning system, it can become a means of combating ICBMs, etc. The air defense system of the North American continent NORAD is becoming an aerospace defense system

It’s a paradox, but the air defense system has been preserved in the CIS, but Russia, as its basis, does not have a state air defense system! As a result of the “reform”, instead of a unified aerospace defense system, the creation of which was provided for by the Presidential Decree of July 17, 1993, the country received two first-time created and never before seen hybrids - “Air Force and Air Defense” and “Strategic Missile Forces and RKO Air Defense”, and now “ RKO and KS".

How to organize the interaction of troops and forces of these hybrids in the fight against hypersonic airborne missile systems operating in outer space and airspace? Who organizes the control and interaction between the “new” Air Force and the now new Space Forces when repelling attacks from aerospace attack weapons? Who will carry it out, from which control points and using what technical means? Who and when will develop, receive into service, deploy, prepare for combat use new weapons, as well as personnel, regulatory documents, etc.? There are too many such questions, but no answers. In the USSR, it took decades to solve the corresponding problems.

But that was not the end of the matter. Now the roots are being dug out - personnel training and science. Reform - the liquidation of the country's Air Defense Forces continues.

Military Air Defense Academy named after. G.K. Zhukova became a university. But this is not just a change in the status of the educational institution. This is an algorithm for the final destruction of a unified system of combating an aerospace enemy, since:

• The training of air defense officers (RKO) with military academic education for air defense forces, RTV, RKO and IA is stopped. Becoming a commander of an air defense formation becomes very problematic for them;
• research potential is lost, the basis of which is scientists who are not found in other types of aircraft;
• the loss of a scientific school in the field of aerospace defense that has developed over decades leads to a decrease in the country’s security for many years, since administrative measures alone cannot quickly recreate it, even under normal conditions;
• training of air defense (VKO) specialists, which is carried out on a unique educational and material base that has no analogues (32 command posts equipped with automation equipment, including command posts of associations and formations of air defense and air defense defense, 95 specialized classes, 349 classrooms, 25 laboratories, 22 computer classes, complexes weapons and military equipment of air defense, missile defense), may be discontinued as unnecessary;
• the opportunity to develop the theory of operational art, which is the basis of the theory of aerospace defense, and the training of operational personnel is lost. From here comes the direct danger that the aerospace defense capability of the Russian Federation will lose both its scientific foundation and trained personnel. The principle “Theory illuminates the path to practice” ceases to work, since there are simply no other scientific and pedagogical schools in Russia that can make up for this loss.

What needs to be done first and immediately?

1. Create a competent commission with the involvement of scientists, designers and industry specialists to develop specific proposals and measures for the restoration of the East Kazakhstan region.
2. Until the final conclusion of the commission is developed, stop weakening the air defense of Moscow and the central industrial region, as well as facilities (districts) that form the basis of the state’s economy.
3. The Air Force, as a branch of the Armed Forces, will be renamed the Air Force and Air Defense (the form must correspond to the content); transfer (more precisely, return) the RKO troops to the combined branch of the Armed Forces; restore the status of the Air Defense Academy named after. G.K. Zhukov and consider the issue of giving it interspecific status.

I am confident that the implementation of all these measures will be one of the most important contributions to the return of our state to the ranks of powerful and respected powers in the international arena, and therefore will contribute to a general reduction in tension throughout the world.

Congratulations on Air Defense Day

Congratulations on the Day of the Strongest, Bravest Troops, Air Defense. I wish you service, responsible and proud, with all my heart.

May there always be order in life, May your thoughts be clear in your head. Always be fair to everyone, honest to yourself and others!

***

I sincerely congratulate the air defense troops, I wish the brave guys good luck.

So that they are healthy, successful, strong, just let there be no war, guys.

May your family be a stronghold of peace for you, may your spirit grow stronger and your strength not diminish.

***

Happy Air Defense Day! You protect us from all sides! We wish you a peaceful sky, Be strong and strong!

We wish you a reliable rear, so that your dear ones wait at home, we wish you great courage, strong male friendship!

***

I hasten to congratulate the air defense troops today from the bottom of my heart, I wish you a peaceful sky, peace and quiet.

I will say thank you to everyone for your service, for each of your brave flights, I wish you happiness and friendship, I wish you to live without worries.

Air defense troops during the war

Theoretical developments in the field of radio electronics led to the creation at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War of systems for detecting the enemy in the air at long distances: on the principle of continuous target irradiation - RUS - 1; using pulsed radiation - RUS - 2 211, which could determine the range and direction of movement of aircraft.

In subsequent years, the second model was repeatedly improved, even target identifiers of the “friend or foe” type appeared with the installation of a radio transponder on their aircraft.

In the initial period of the war, there was an acute shortage of anti-aircraft weapons, which allowed enemy aircraft to attack ground troops and targets with impunity.

Taking into account the experience of the first months of fighting, instructions were issued for soldiers on organizing counteraction to enemy aviation on their own. Infantry units began to massively use massive fire from rifles, machine guns and anti-tank rifles for air defense.

In 1942, the troops began to receive gun guidance stations (SON - 2ot215), which made it possible to detect aircraft at altitudes of up to 40 km and operated in the wave range of 4 m. The re-equipment of air defense units with 85-mm anti-aircraft guns was actively carried out, and they began receiving radio spotlights.

Coaxial and quadruple machine gun mounts were widely used on industrial and homemade machines (Maxim, DT-29, DA, DA-2) with anti-aircraft sights; built PV-1.

They were gradually replaced by specialized anti-aircraft guns with 25-mm and 37-mm machine guns that were developed and put into service. Special aviation air defense units received domestic aircraft, which in terms of characteristics caught up with, and subsequently overtook, enemy German types of aircraft.

Field airfields were guarded by homemade anti-aircraft installations using 7.62 mm ShKAS and 20 mm ShVAK aircraft machine guns.

To increase the mobility of air defense units in order to repel enemy raids, armored trains and the placement of anti-aircraft machine guns on armored vehicles, tanks, simple equipped vehicles and ships began to be widely used.

During the war, air defense units, taking into account the accumulation of combat experience in their use, were gradually reorganized into separate military formations, which, in cooperation with other units of the army and navy, performed specific tasks of protecting troops, ships, industrial facilities and large territories from enemy air raids.

During the war, air defense forces shot down and destroyed more than 7,500 aircraft, more than 1,000 tanks and over 1,500 various guns on the ground; over 80 thousand soldiers and officers of this type of troops were awarded orders and medals, 92 people became Heroes of the Soviet Union.

New generation air defense missile defense

In Russia, by the end of the 90s of the last century, through deep modernization and the introduction of the latest scientific and technical solutions, it was possible to create a fourth-generation air defense and missile defense system, which to this day has no analogues in the world.

Speaking about the new generation of air defense weapons and military equipment supplied to the troops, the following should be noted: the tests carried out, live firing at training grounds, including during special research exercises, and full-scale digital modeling in general showed that the military and military equipment of air defense of the ground forces of generations 4 and 4 + began to have many times higher tactical and technical characteristics and capabilities in comparison with the basic equipment of the third generation.

Thus, the range of destruction of aerodynamic targets by the S-300V4 system increased by 2.8-3.3 times (up to 400 km) with the same weight and size characteristics of the missiles. The system began to ensure the destruction of medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBMs) at a launch of 2500 km or more, as well as those maneuvering on the trajectory of the IRBM. The American Patriot of the latest modifications does not have such characteristics.

The Buk-M2 medium-range air defense system has changed from a 6-channel to a 24-channel one and has acquired the ability to hit cruise missiles at a flight altitude of 10 m at a range of up to 40 km, maintaining a deployment time of 5 minutes. No other system in the world has such characteristics, including the S-350 Vityaz system, which has not yet been adopted for service.

Summarizing what has been said, it should be noted that from the moment of its creation to the present, the main task of the air defense and missile defense troops has been and remains not only the protection of the country’s airspace from any means of the aggressor, but also the complete destruction of the enemy. Therefore, the constant improvement of the country’s entire air defense and missile defense system and structure is of great importance for ensuring the security and independence of Russia.

Notes

1. ↑
2. ↑
3. ↑ Deputy Commander of the Aerospace Defense Forces for Air Defense, Major General Kirill Makarov.
   .
   Radio station "Russian News Service".
   Online publication "RIA Novosti" . MIA "Russia Today" (04/04/2015).
4. . Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
   . Internet portal of the Russian Ministry of Defense.
5. . Structure of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
   . Internet portal of the Russian Ministry of Defense.
6. ↑ Andrey Demin, Major General, Commander of the Air Defense-Missile Defense Command of the Aerospace Defense Forces.
   .
   Article published in newspaper issue No. 30 (548)
   . Newspaper "Military-Industrial Courier" (August 20, 2014).
7. ↑ . Website “Vestnik Air Defense”. Author's project of Said Aminov
   (02.03.2008).
8. ↑ Office of the Press Service and Information of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
   .
   News
   . Internet portal of the Russian Ministry of Defense (04/14/2013).
9. Dmitry Sergeev.
   . Internet portal of the television and radio company “Zvezda” (3.08.2015).
10. . News
    . Internet portal of the Russian Ministry of Defense (04/08/2012).
11. Directorate of Press Service and Information of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
    .
    News
    . Internet portal of the Russian Ministry of Defense (04/12/2014).
12. Order of the USSR Minister of Defense of August 20, 1954
13. (unavailable link). Retrieved November 5, 2022.
14. . Defending Russia
    (Oct 23, 2014). Retrieved October 9, 2022.
15. ↑ (09/21/2016). Retrieved May 3, 2022.

Air defense educational institutions of the USSR and Russian Armed Forces

Academy

• Military Academy of Aerospace Defense named after Marshal of the Soviet Union G.K. Zhukov (Tver)
• Military Engineering Radio Engineering Academy of Air Defense named after. Marshal of the Soviet Union L. A. Govorov (Kharkov)

RTV schools

• The Vilnius Higher Command School of Radioelectronics of Air Defense was relocated to the LVVPU Air Defense base and transformed into the St. Petersburg Higher Military School of Radioelectronics - disbanded in 2011.
• Kiev Higher Engineering Radio Engineering School of Air Defense - disbanded in 1999.
• Krasnoyarsk Higher Command School of Air Defense Radioelectronics - disbanded in 1999.
• Yaroslavl Higher Military School of Air Defense

Loading into an S-400 during a training exercise of the 93rd Guards Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment of the 4th Air Defense Division.

RKO schools

• Pushkin Higher Command School of Air Defense Radioelectronics (also provided training for air defense systems) - disbanded.
• Zhytomyr Higher Command School of Air Defense Radioelectronics - disbanded.

ZRV schools

• St. Petersburg Higher Anti-Aircraft Missile Command School of the Order of the Red Star (in 1941-1968 - "LATUZA") - disbanded in the 1990s.
• Minsk Higher Engineering Anti-Aircraft Missile School of Air Defense
• Yaroslavl Higher Military School of Air Defense
• Dnepropetrovsk Higher Anti-Aircraft Missile Command School of Air Defense - disbanded in 1995.
• Gorky (Nizhny Novgorod) Higher Anti-Aircraft Missile Command School of Air Defense - disbanded in 1999.
• Ordzhonikidze Higher Anti-Aircraft Missile Command School of Air Defense named after Army General Issa Aleksandrovich Pliev - disbanded in 1990.
• Engels Higher Anti-Aircraft Missile Command School of Air Defense - disbanded in 1994.
• Military training center at RGRTU

Air Defense Aviation Schools

• Stavropol Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots and Navigators named after Air Marshal V. A. Sudets - disbanded in 1993.
• Armavir Higher Military Aviation Red Banner School of Pilots named after Chief Marshal of Aviation Kutakhov P.S., since 2002, the training aviation center of the Krasnodar VVAUL - disbanded in 2012.
• In 1993, the Daugavpils Higher Military Aviation Engineering School named after Jan Fabricius was transferred to the base of the disbanded Stavropol School of Pilots and Navigators and transformed into the Stavropol Higher Aviation Engineering School of Air Defense - disbanded in 2010.
• Lomonosov Military Aviation Technical School, in the Air Defense Forces since 1989 - disbanded in 1993.

Other

• The Leningrad Higher Military-Political School of Air Defense was disbanded in 1992, the VVKURE Air Defense was transferred to the LVVPU Air Defense base and the St. Petersburg Higher Military School of Radio Electronics was created - disbanded in 2011.
• Center for training specialists (calculations) of radio technical troops of the Air Force (Vladimir)

Day of the Air Defense Forces of the Russian Ground Forces, history

Each branch of the military has its own historical moment, in connection with which there was a need to conduct new methods of war. The need for offensive or defensive weapons caused the creation of unique types of troops. For example, a strong jump in the arms race took place with the advent of military aviation. The troops needed protection from enemy raids. During the First World War, the first air defense units began to emerge. In the modern Russian army, this branch of troops is called the air defense of the Russian Ground Forces.

The task of protecting against air attacks is assigned to two types of troops at once - air defense and missile defense, which belong to the air defense of the Ground Forces and the Aerospace Forces. Despite the different purposes of the units, they have a common purpose - protecting the airspace through the early detection of flying objects of a potential enemy and their elimination. However, their goals are different. Thus, air defense and missile defense troops monitor the airspace of the entire country. The task of the Air Defense of the Ground Forces is to protect facilities and units of the relevant troops in the process of implementing military operations.

Even during the First World War, the need arose to create the first units that were entrusted with covering combined arms formations from air attacks. On December 26, 1915, General Alekseev signed an order to create light artillery batteries designed to open fire on aircraft. The Chief of Staff of the commander of the Russian troops thus initiated the creation of the Air Defense Forces, which protected ground units. A similar order of the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation was issued already in February 2007.

In the current state, the air defense troops of the Ground Forces provide reliable protection of Russian military formations from attacks by a potential enemy from the air. Thanks to modern means, the destruction of ships at a remote distance is guaranteed. If necessary, the liquidation of the flying vehicle can be carried out in the stratosphere. The reliability of air defense systems is affected by weather conditions, target speed and time of day.

To ensure the proper level of support, modern means of detecting and destroying air targets are used. Today, the air defense forces are armed with radar systems, missile, anti-aircraft, and artillery systems, including portable and stationary ones. Many countries around the world have recognized their effectiveness. The names of the installations are known to specialized specialists in this industry - “Igla”, “Strela”, “Osa”, “Tor”, “Buk”, “Krug”, as well as the larger “Shilka”, “Pantsir”, “Tunguska” and “ S-300".

Domestic air defense systems are in demand in the global air defense market. The name of the Almaz-Antey concern stands apart among other world brands, which presented a number of developments known to all countries.

Development of air defense and missile defense systems after the war

After the war, the improvement of combat aviation led to the emergence of aircraft capable of carrying a nuclear charge over vast distances.

In 1952, more than thirty cases of air violations of the borders of the USSR were recorded (in the areas of Leningrad, Minsk, Kyiv and in the Moscow region). And only in three cases was it possible to damage the intruder aircraft.

It became clear that only fundamentally new anti-aircraft weapons - anti-aircraft guided missile weapons (ADM) - can effectively and reliably resist air attack weapons (AW) with nuclear weapons on board. To solve this problem, as well as to create its own nuclear weapons, it was necessary to focus almost the entire scientific and production potential of an economically weakened state that had just completed the bloodiest war in history.

The first anti-aircraft missile system (AAMS), called the S-25 Berkut, began to be developed for the air defense of Moscow and the Moscow administrative-industrial region as the most important target for American air defense systems. The development of the system was entrusted to the specially created design bureau KB-1, which later became known as Almaz.

Transport-loading vehicles of the S-25 anti-aircraft missile system with B-300 missiles at a parade in Moscow

It should be noted that if the USSR was catching up with the USA in the field of creating nuclear weapons, then in the field of creating anti-aircraft missile systems, domestic science was the first on the planet. The main designer of the system was A.A. Raspletin, later a full member of the USSR Academy of Sciences, the founder of almost the entire arsenal of weapons of the country's Air Defense Forces.

Even before the completion of work on the stationary S-25 system, KB-1 was given the task of creating a transportable (“quasi-mobile”) air defense system to provide anti-aircraft missile defense for other cities and critically important objects of the country, which received the name S-75 (“Desna”, “Dvina” ”, and then - “Volkhov”).

SAM S-75

The S-75 air defense system became the main anti-aircraft missile system of the Air Defense Forces, was widely supplied abroad, and took part in hostilities, including during the US aggression in Vietnam. The losses suffered by US aircraft there were one of the decisive factors that forced the Americans to end the war.

In 1972 alone, the last year of the Vietnam War, the S-75 air defense system destroyed 421 American aircraft, including 51 B-52 “flying fortresses.” In 1960, the same air defense missile system shot down a violator of the airspace of the Soviet Union, a U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, flying at an altitude of more than 20 km, unattainable at that time by our interceptor aircraft.

KB-1 (SKB Almaz) became the leader in the development and creation of subsequent models of missile defense systems for the country's Air Defense Forces - the S-125 (Neva) and S-200 (Angara) anti-aircraft missile systems.

These specialized complexes (S-125 - an air defense system with solid fuel missiles, designed to destroy low-flying targets, S-200 - a long-range complex - “long arm”), together with the S-75 air defense system, made it possible to create quite effective defense systems for the country’s most important facilities. These weapons were also widely supplied abroad, took part in hostilities, having in fact confirmed their high performance, and in a number of countries they are in use to this day.

In 1958, a new branch of the military was created as part of the Ground Forces - the Air Defense Forces of the Ground Forces (Air Defense Forces). The armament system of the Air Defense Forces was supposed to include anti-aircraft missiles, missile-artillery and artillery systems and complexes, enemy air reconnaissance equipment and automated combat control systems. At the same time, all of these weapons had to not only provide high efficiency in the fight against the promising air defense systems that existed at that time, but also be highly mobile, the same as the covered troops themselves. The air defense systems of the ground forces were required to provide combat work on the move, from short stops and from unprepared positions occupied on the move. In other words, the air defense weapon system of the SV was supposed to, in fact, work like a biathlon, that is, it could “shoot” effectively and “run” well.

At that time, the world-famous anti-aircraft missile and anti-aircraft artillery systems “Krug”, “Cube” (“Square”), “Osa”, “Shilka” were created. At the same time, portable air defense systems of the Strela-2M type, mobile reconnaissance and automated control systems were created. This was the weapon system of the Second Generation Air Defense Forces.

Battery of the air defense missile system "Cube"

SAM "Krug" at the parade in Moscow

By 1983-1985, the development of third-generation air defense systems was almost completed, which included long-range and medium-range air defense missile systems, short-range air defense systems, short-range anti-aircraft gun-missile systems (ZPRK) and man-portable anti-aircraft guns. - missile system (MANPADS) of direct cover. These weapons were put into service, which made it possible to create complex highly effective air defense-missile defense groups in theaters of military operations, the structure of which is still relevant to this day.

The armament system of the Air Defense Forces of the third generation included such basic weapons as the S-300V long-range air defense missile defense system, the Buk, Buk-M1 medium-range air defense systems, the Tor short-range air defense system, and the anti-aircraft gun-missile system. short-range "Tunguska", MANPADS "Igla". At the same time, automated control systems and means (ACS), such as the S-300V air defense system and the Buk-M1 air defense system, the Polyana-D4 automated control system, and automated control systems for the tactical level of the Air Force and Air Defense ACS subsystem " Maneuver", unified battery command posts "Rangier", mobile control posts PU-12, mobile reconnaissance and control posts "Assembly", portable electronic tablets (PEP).

ZRS S-300V1

Buk-M1 air defense system

ZRAK "Buk" and modifications

Since 1970, this complex was still located by the Soviet army. Currently, this anti-aircraft missile system is in Russian service and is listed in the technical documentation as 9K37 Buk. The complex includes the following components:

• command post 9s470;
• firing installation 9A310;
• charging installation 9A39;
• station for target detection 9S18.

Parts of the complex are installed on conventional tracked platforms, which are characterized by high maneuverability. The Buk fires 9M38 anti-aircraft missiles. According to military experts, with the help of such an air defense system it is possible to hit an air target at an altitude of up to 18 km and a distance from the system of up to 25 km. In this case, the probability of an accurate hit is 0.6. After modernization, a new air defense system was created - Buk-M1. If we compare it with its analogue, then this option has a higher probability of destruction and an increased area. In addition, the Buk-M1 has a function that allows you to recognize a flying object. The new model is much more protected from anti-radar missiles. The main purpose of the air defense system is to shoot down helicopters, airplanes, enemy drones and cruise missiles.

In the 1980s a new version has appeared - 9M317, firing modern missiles. The use of 9M317 required engineers to make improvements to the design of the complex. A missile with smaller wings and increased range at an altitude of 25 km. The main advantage of the 9M317 is that its fuse operates in 2 modes. Upon contact with the missile or at a certain distance from it, the target will be destroyed. The self-propelled fire unit has new equipment, thanks to which it detects 10 targets simultaneously and can eliminate four of them, which it considers the most dangerous.

ZRAK "Buk"

In order to completely replace outdated electronics with modern digital equipment, military engineers developed the Buk-M3 air defense system. The rocket itself was also replaced. Now shooting is carried out with the modern 9M317M, which has high characteristics. Despite the fact that there is no specific information about this complex yet, experts suggest that such an air defense system can shoot down a flying object at an altitude of more than 7000 meters with a hit probability of 0.96.

Modern air defense systems and air defense systems in the Russian air defense forces

One of the main air defense systems in service with air defense forces is the S-300V system. This system is capable of hitting air targets at a distance of up to 100 km. Already in 2014, the S-300V air defense system began to be gradually replaced by a new system, which was called the S-300V4. The new system is improved in all respects; it is an improved modification of the S-300B, differing from it in its increased range, more reliable design, which has improved protection against radio interference. The new system is capable of more effectively combating all types of air targets that appear within its range.

The next most popular system is the Buk air defense system. Since 2008, a modification of the complex called Buk-M2 has been entering service with the air defense forces. This air defense system can simultaneously hit up to 24 targets, and the range of destruction of targets reaches 200 km. Since 2016, the Buk-M3 complex has been put into service, which is a model made on the basis of the Buk-M2 and seriously modified.

Another popular air defense system is the TOR complex. In 2011, a new modification of the air defense system began to enter service, called “TOR-M2U”. This modification has the following differences from the base model:

• She can conduct reconnaissance on the move;
• Fire at 4 air targets at once, thereby ensuring an all-angle defeat.

The newest modification is called “Thor-2”. Unlike previous models of the TOP family, this modification has a doubled ammo capacity and is capable of firing on the move, ensuring complete safety of troops on the march.

In addition, Russian air defense systems also have man-portable anti-aircraft missile systems. The ease of training and use of this type of weapon makes it a serious problem for enemy air forces. Since 2014, the air defense units of the Ground Forces began to receive new Verba MANPADS. Their use is justified when it is necessary to operate in conditions of powerful optical interference, which complicate the operation of powerful automatic air defense systems.

Currently, the share of modern air defense systems in the air defense forces is about 40 percent. The latest Russian air defense systems have no analogues in the world, and are capable of providing complete protection against sudden air attacks.

Holiday traditions and how they celebrate

Air Defense Forces Day is intended to preserve and strengthen the traditions of military brotherhood of all defenders from air threats. With this holiday, the country and citizens pay tribute to all those who provide air defense. Official traditions include the following events:

• making notes of gratitude in the personal files of military personnel;
• awarding medals and orders;
• presentation of certificates of honor and memorable gifts;
• promotion in positions;
• assignment of titles.

On Air Defense Forces Day, military units hold ceremonial formations of personnel. Meetings of veterans and colleagues are held. Museums of military units and educational institutions organize exhibitions and commemorative events on the holiday. The next conferral of titles is often timed to coincide with the holiday, so an unofficial tradition of the holiday is the ritual of washing the stars.

Ceremonial events are held at the Museum of Air Defense Forces. Europe's only museum of the history of air defense forces is located in the city of Balashikha, Moscow region. It was founded in 1978.

The museum's collections number more than 16 thousand exhibits. In the museum you can see real examples of military equipment and weapons that were and are used to protect against threats from the sky. More than 400 units of real equipment and weapons are presented here. The museum is still one of the best in the country in terms of its content, scope and seriousness of organization.

Museum of Air Defense Forces in Balashikha

The holiday allows you to preserve the memory of important events related to air defense units:

• the creation of the first anti-airplane squads in the First World War;
• heroic air defense actions during the Second World War, including the successful defense of the skies over Moscow, Leningrad and other strategically important objects;
• improving the country's air defense system in the post-war Soviet period;
• real combat experience acquired in the second half of the 20th century (wars in Korea and Vietnam, Arab-Israeli conflicts, modern confrontation in Syria);
• the formation of an effective system for protecting the skies of modern Russia.

Ceremonial events are held at military-industrial complex enterprises involved in the development and production of anti-aircraft weapons and weapons.

Launch of a missile by an air defense system as part of combat operations

The Air Defense Forces are a separate branch of the Ground Forces, the main task of which is to cover troops and military installations from the actions of enemy air attacks during the introduction of combined arms formations and combat operations, marching (regroupings) and positioning on the spot.

The main tasks of the air defense troops

1. Conducting combat duty to ensure air defense.
2. Reconnaissance for the presence of an air enemy and timely notification of covered troops.
3. Destruction of enemy air attack weapons in flight.
4. Participation in missile defense in theaters of military operations.

What are air defense troops made of?

The Air Defense Forces of the Ground Forces organizationally consist of military command and control bodies, missile and artillery (anti-aircraft), air defense command posts and radio engineering units, military units and subunits. They can destroy air attack weapons in the entire range of flight speeds and altitudes: up to 200 meters - extremely low, from 200 to 1000 meters - small, from 1000 to 4000 meters - medium, from 4000 to 12,000 meters - large, more than 12,000 meters – in the stratosphere).

Military units, subunits and air defense formations of the Air Force are equipped with anti-aircraft missile systems, anti-aircraft gun-missile systems (complexes), anti-aircraft artillery and man-portable anti-aircraft missile systems that vary in channel, reach and methods of missile guidance. Depending on the range of damage, they are divided into complexes:

• long-range – more than one hundred kilometers;
• medium range - up to one hundred kilometers;
• short range - up to thirty kilometers;
• short-range - up to ten kilometers.

The subsequent development of air defense troops is carried out by increasing survivability, mobility, stealth operation, fire performance, degree of automation, expanding the parameters of the affected area, reducing reaction time and weight-dimensional indicators of missile and artillery (anti-aircraft missile) systems.

History of air defense

The date of formation is the date of creation of the Petrograd air defense system, namely December 8 (November 25), 1914.

• 1930 - the first Air Defense Directorate (since 1940 - the Main Directorate).
• 1941 – Air Defense Forces were formed.
• 1948 - withdrawal of air defense troops from the subordination of the artillery commander and transformed into a separate branch of the armed forces.
• 1954 – the High Command of the Air Defense Forces was formed.
• 1978 - the transportable S-300PT air defense system entered service (it replaced the old analogs of the 3RS S-25, S-75 and S-125).
• Mid-80s - the S-300PT air defense system underwent numerous modernizations, as a result, receiving the designation S-300PT-1.
• 1982 - a new version of the S-300PT air defense system entered service - the S-300PS (self-propelled complex) with a record deployment time of five minutes, making it highly vulnerable to enemy aircraft.
• 1987 was not the best year in the history of the air defense forces. On May 28, Matthias Rust's plane landed on Red Square in Moscow (at 18.55). This clearly demonstrated the vulnerability of the legal basis for the actions of the duty forces of the Air Defense Forces. That is, it became obvious that the tasks assigned to the Air Defense Forces were not completed. Then many military men were removed from their positions: three Marshals of the Soviet Union were injured (among them Sokolov S.L., Koldunov A.I.), as well as about 300 generals and officers. The army has not seen such a personnel pogrom since 1937.
• 1991 – The Air Defense Forces, due to the collapse of the USSR, were transformed into the Russian Air Defense Forces.
• 1993 - an improved version of the S-300PS, the S-300 PM, entered service.
• 1997 – 3RS S-300MP2 “Favorit” entered service.
• Until 2000, many types of armed forces were reorganized, the number of which was reduced from 5 to 3. All this was due to the acceleration of the physical aging of military equipment and weapons. Within the framework of the organization, two types of armed forces were united - the Air Defense Forces and the Air Force.
• In 1998, on the base of the Air Force and Air Defense Forces, the Directorate of the General Staff of the Air Force and the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force was formed, and the Air Force and Air Defense troops were united into a new type - the Air Force. At that time, the Air Defense Forces included: an operational-strategic formation, two operational, four operational-tactical formations, five air defense corps, ten air defense divisions, 25 fighter regiments, 63 units of anti-aircraft missile forces, 35 units of radio-technical troops, 5 units of radio-electronic struggle, 6 units and formations of reconnaissance. It was armed with 20 aircraft of the A-50 radar patrol and guidance complex, more than 700 air defense fighters, 420 radio engineering units with radar stations of various modifications and more than 200 anti-aircraft missile divisions. As a result of all the activities, a new organizational structure of the Air Force was created. Instead of air armies, air defense and air force armies were formed, operationally subordinate to the commanders of the military districts.
• 2005 – 2006 - part of the military air defense formations and units equipped with ammunition complexes and S-300V anti-aircraft missile systems was transferred to the Air Force.
• In 2007, the S-400 Triumph anti-aircraft missile system entered service with the Air Force, the main task of which is to defeat all modern and promising air and space attack weapons.
• 2008 - at this time the Air Force included: an operational-strategic formation (KSpN), 5 operational-tactical and 8 operational formations (air defense corps), 165 units and 15 formations. This year began the transition to the formation of a new image of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (including the Air Force). As a result, the Air Force switched to a different organizational structure. Air Defense and Air Force commands were formed, subordinate to the newly created operational-strategic commands: Eastern (headquarters in the city of Khabarovsk), Central (Ekaterinburg), Southern (Rostov-on-Don) and Western (St. Petersburg).
• 2009-2010 – transition to a two-level air force control system (the system was called brigade-battalion). As a result, the total number of Air Force formations was reduced from 8 to 6, all air defense formations (4 corps and 7 divisions) were reorganized into 11 aerospace defense brigades.
• In 2011, three air defense brigades of the operational-strategic command of the aerospace defense became part of a new type of troops - the Aerospace Defense Forces.
• 2015 The Aerospace Defense Forces were merged with the Air Force and a new branch was formed - the Aerospace Forces. In their composition, a new type of troops was organizationally identified - the Air Defense and Missile Defense Troops (air defense and missile defense troops). The air defense and missile defense troops are represented by a missile defense and air defense unit.

As part of the subsequent development and improvement of the air defense system, the creation of a new generation of 3RS S-500 is currently underway, which implies the use of the principle of separately solving the problems of destroying aerodynamic and ballistic targets. The main task of the complex is to combat the combat equipment of medium-range ballistic missiles, and, if necessary, intercontinental ballistic missiles in the final section of the trajectory, and, to some extent, in the middle section.

Main prospects for the development of the Air Defense Forces

The main areas that the development of modern air defense forces is aimed at are the following:

• Reorganization and change of all structures related to air defense to one degree or another. The main task of the reorganization is the maximum use of combat power and all the resources of missile weapons entering service. Another key task is to maximally establish interaction between the air defense forces and other groups of troops of the Russian Army.
• Development of new generation military equipment and weapons that will resist not only existing air attack weapons, but also further developments in the field of hypersonic technologies.
• Improving and changing personnel training systems. Special attention should be paid to changing the training program, since it has not changed for many years, despite the fact that new air defense systems have long been put into service.

Priority continues to be the planned development of the latest air defense models, the modernization of older ones and the complete replacement of outdated air defense systems. Generally speaking, the development of a modern air defense system is taking place in accordance with the words of Great Marshal Zhukov, who stated that only a powerful air defense system can repel sudden enemy attacks, thereby enabling the Armed Forces to engage in a full-scale battle.

According to experts, in 2022 the complex air defense system of the Russian Federation is the most powerful and advanced in the whole world, and Russian airspace is a minefield. Experts also note the particular accuracy and mobility of Russian air defense systems.

Air Defense Forces Day in Russia is celebrated annually on the second Sunday of April.

Air defense training centers

In Orenburg there is a training center for air defense forces named after. Hero of the Soviet Union, Marshal of Artillery V.I. Kazakov military unit 33860 (106 Air Defense Training Center).

For military positions, technical specialists are trained for 6 months. with consolidation of knowledge through practical training taking place at the training grounds.

All cadets pass exams and are assigned to air defense units for further service.

In Yeisk (Krasnodar Territory), since 1992, there has been a training center for the air defense forces of military unit 33859 (726 TC). Training for junior specialist positions takes place on a modern material and technical base, cadets are trained in practical work at military complexes (Osa, Buk, Tor, Tunguska, Shilka, Pantsir).

Launch of a missile from the anti-aircraft missile system (SAM) 9K332MK "Tor-M2K"

Graduates of the center are assigned to the Air Defense Forces, Coastal Forces of the Navy, and Airborne Forces. The center trains anti-aircraft specialists for foreign armies.

Since 2004, not far from the Kapustin Yar missile test site, a training center for the combat use of air defense forces of the North began to operate (167 training center). On the territory of the training ground, during the exercises, they conduct practical firing of various air defense systems at several targets simultaneously, train military specialists from other countries within the framework of military-technical cooperation, and improve the command skills of students at Russian air defense academies.

On the basis of the training center, the latest types of weapons and military equipment, equipment for training grounds and training facilities are tested for implementation in the future.

In addition to the training center, several institutes in their departments teach technical specialties to students who end up in the reserves of the Russian Armed Forces with the possibility of further conscription into the air defense forces.