Soviet Air Force
Encyclopedia : S : SO : SOV : Soviet Air Force
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| Air Forces of Russia |
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Imperial RussiaAir Force (1909 to 1917)
Soviet UnionRed Air Force (1918 to 1991) Naval Aviation (1918 to 1991) Air Defense (1948 to 1991) Strategic Rocket Forces (1959 to 1991)
Russian FederationAir Force (1991 to present) Naval Aviation (1991 to present) Strategic Rocket Forces (1991 to present) |
History
The VVS was founded as the "Workers' and Peasants' Air Fleet" in 1918. After being placed under control of the Red Army, with the official denomination VVS in 1930, its influence on aircraft design became greater.One of first big tests of the VVS came in 1936 with the Spanish Civil War, where the latest aircraft designs were put to the test by up-to-date German aircraft. Early victories by the I-16 fighter were squandered because of the limited use of that fighter. German Bf-109s arriving later in the war secured air superiority for the Spanish Nationalist cause.
In 1939, the VVS used its bombers to attack Finland in the Winter War, but the losses inflicted on them by the relatively small Finnish army showed the shortcomings of these forces, mainly due to the Great Purge in the 1930s.
The main reason of the great number of aircraft lost was the lack of modern tactics, but time to improve them was short, because the German offensive of 1941 (Operation Barbarossa) pushed the air force into a defensive position, while being confronted with more modern German aircraft.
As with many allied countries in the Second World War the Soviet Union received western aircraft by lend-lease.
During the Cold War the VVS was divided into three segments: Dal'naya Aviatsiya (Strategic Aviation), or DA, focused on long-range bombers; Frontovaya Aviatsiya (Frontal Aviation), or FA, focused on battlefield air defense, close air support, and interdiction; and the Voenno-Transportnaya Aviatsiya (Military Transport Aviation), which controlled all transport aircraft. The Voyska protivovozdushnoy oborony (Air Defense Forces), or Voyska PVO, which focused on air defense and interceptor aircraft, was then a separate and distinct service within the Soviet military organization.
- On September 1, 1983 the Soviet Air Force shot down Korean Air Flight 007 after they mistakenly believed that the civilian airliner had illegally crossed into restricted Soviet airspace and was a spy plane. Soviet government officials finally admitted their mistake much to the anger of the South Korean and the United States governments.
Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in December 1991 the aircraft and personnel of the Soviet VVS were divided among the newly independent states. Russia received the majority of these forces, approximately 40% of the aircraft and 65% of the manpower, with these forming the basis for the new Russian Federation Air Force.
Inventory 1987
Soviet Air Force
- 2780 fighters
- 490 MiG-21 Fishbed
- 1570 MiG-23 Flogger
- 105 MiG-25 Foxbat
- 260 Su-15 Flagon
- 20 Tu-128 Fiddler
- 20 Yak-28 (Yak-28) Firebar
- 275 MiG-29 Fulcrum
- 30 MiG-31 Foxhound
- 10 Su-27 Flanker
- 2835 attack aircraft
- 130 MiG-21 Fishbed
- 830 MiG-27 Flogger
- 895 Su-7/Su-17 Fitter
- 770 Su-24 Fencer
- 210 Su-25 Frogfoot
- 658 tactical reconnaissance and ECM aircraft
- 65 MiG-21 Fishbed
- 195 MiG-25 Foxbat
- 165 Su-17 Fitter
- 65 Su-24 Fencer
- 195 Yak-28 Brewer
- 260 strategic reconnaissance and ECM aircraft
- 115 Tu-16 Badger
- 15 Tu-22 Blinder
- 4 Tu-95 Bear
- 102 Yak-28 Brewer
- 24 MiG-25 Foxbat
1500 trainers and training helicopters
- 576 transport aircraft
- 55 An-22 Cock
- 210 An-12 Cub
- 310 Il-76 Candid
- 2935 civilian and other transport aircraft, usually Aeroflot aircraft which were easily converted
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