The Russian Aerospace Forces or Russian Air and Space Forces (VKS) comprise the aerial, space warfare, and missile defence branches of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. It was established on 1 August 2015 with the merging of the Russian Air Force (VVS) and the Russian Aerospace Defence Forces (VVKO), as recommended by the Ministry of Defence to improve efficiency and logistical support. The VKS is headquartered in Moscow.
Organisation
Branches
With the merging of the Russian Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Defense Forces, the Russian Aerospace Forces is a unified command consisting of the following branches:78
Main Command of the Aerospace Forces(Главное командованиеВоздушно-космическими силами)| Command Staff | ||
|---|---|---|
| Commander-in-Chief Aerospace Forces(Главнокомандующий Воздушно-космическими силами) | Army general / Colonel general | |
| Chief of the Main Staff - First Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces(Начальник Главного штаба — первый заместитель Главнокомандующего Воздушно-космическими силами) | Colonel general / Lieutenant general | |
| Deputy Commander-in-Chief Aerospace Forces(Заместитель Главнокомандующего Воздушно-космическими силами) | Colonel general / Lieutenant general | |
| Chiefs of branches, deputy commanders: | ||
| Commander of the Air Force, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Aerospace Forces (Командующий Военно-воздушными силами — заместитель Главнокомандующего Воздушно-космическими силами) | Commander of the Aerospace and Missile Defense Forces, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Aerospace Forces (Командующий Войсками противовоздушной и противоракетной обороны — заместитель Главнокомандующего Воздушно-космическими силами) | Commander of the Space Forces, Deputy Commander-in-Chief Aerospace Forces (Командующий Космическими войсками — заместитель Главнокомандующего Воздушно-космическими силами) |
| Functional deputy commanders: | ||
| Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Aerospace Forces for Military-Political Work (Заместитель Главнокомандующего Воздушно-космическими силами по военно-политической работе) | Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Aerospace Forces for Logistics (Заместитель Главнокомандующего Воздушно-космическими силами по материально-техническому обеспечению) | Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Aerospace Forces for Armaments (Заместитель Главнокомандующего Воздушно-космическими силами по вооружению) |
Leadership
As of 2024:| Position | Name | Start date | End date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commander of the Aerospace Forces | Colonel General Viktor Bondarev | 1 August 2015 | 26 September 2017 |
| Lieutenant General Pavel Kurachenko (acting) | 26 September 2017 | 22 November 2017 | |
| Army General Sergei Surovikin | 22 November 2017 | 22 August 2023 | |
| Colonel General Viktor Afzalov | 20 August 2023 (acting)20 October 2023 | ||
| First Deputy Commander of the Aerospace Forces(Chief of the Main Staff) | Lieutenant General Pavel Kurachenko | 1 September 2015 | July 2018 |
| Lieutenant General Viktor Afzalov | August 2018 | August 2023 | |
| Lieutenant General Aleksandr Maksimtsev | 20 August 2023 | ||
| Deputy Commander of the Aerospace Forces | Lieutenant General Sergey Dronov | 1 August 2015 | 2019 |
| Lieutenant General Andrei Yudin | 2019 | 2023 | |
| Colonel General Vladimir Kravchenko | 2023 | ||
| Deputy Commanders of the Aerospace Forces | |||
| Commander of the Air Force | Colonel General Andrei Yudin | 1 September 2015 | July 2019 |
| Lieutenant General Sergey Dronov | July 2019 | 24 July 2024 | |
| Lieutenant General Sergey Kobylash | 24 July 2024 | ||
| Commander of the Aerospace and Missile Defense Forces | Lieutenant General Viktor Gumyonny | 1 September 2015 | 2018 |
| Lieutenant General Yury Grekhov | 2018 | 2021 | |
| Lieutenant General Andrey Dyomin | 2021 | May 2023 | |
| Lieutenant General Andrei Semyonov | May 2023 | ||
| Commander of the Space Forces | Colonel General Aleksandr Golovko | 1 September 20159 | |
| Deputy Commander for Work with Personnel | Major General Andrei Kazakevich | unknown | unknown |
| Lieutenant General Aleksandr Maksimtsev | 2019 | 2023 | |
| Deputy Commander for Logistics | Lieutenant General Vladimir Trishunkin | unknown | unknown |
| Lieutenant General Zabit Kheirbekov | unknown | ||
| Deputy Commander for Armaments | Colonel Andrei Medvedkov | unknown | unknown |
| Major General Sergei Meshcheryakov | unknown | 2021 | |
| Colonel General Yury Grekhov | 2021 | ||
Order of battle
The Aerospace Forces are organised in air armies.
Air Forces High Command (Главное командование ВВС) (Moscow)
- Units directly subordinated to the High Command (Части центрального подчинения ВВС)
- operationally subordinated to the High Command:
- Military Transport Aviation Command (Командование военно-транспортной авиации) (Moscow)
- Long-Range Aviation Command (Командование дальней авиации) (Moscow)
- operationally subordinated to the Western Military District:
- 6th Leningrad Red Banner Army of Air Forces and Air Defence (6-я Ленинградская Краснознамённая армия ВВС и ПВО) (Saint Petersburg)
- operationally subordinated to the Southern Military District:
- 4th Red Banner Army of Air Forces and Air Defence (4-я Краснознамённая армия ВВС и ПВО) (Rostov-on-Don)
- operationally subordinated to the Central Military District:
- 14th Red Banner Army of Air Forces and Air Defence (14-я Краснознамённая армия ВВС и ПВО) (Yekaterinburg)
- operationally subordinated to the Eastern Military District:
- 11th Red Banner Army of Air Forces and Air Defence (11-я Краснознамённая армия ВВС и ПВО) (Khabarovsk)
- operationally subordinated to the Northern Fleet Joint Strategic Command:
- 45th Air and Air Defence Forces Army (45-я Армия ВВС и ПВО) (Severomorsk-2) - uniquely the aviation units of the 45th Army belong administratively to the Naval Aviation and the ground-based missile air defence units belong to the Air Forces air defence branch.
Air Defence and Anti-Missile Defence Forces Command (Командование войск ПВО-ПРО) (Moscow)
- 1st Order of Lenin Air and AntiRocket Defence Army (Special Purpose) (1-я ордена Ленина армия противовоздушной и противоракетной обороны (особого назначения)) (Balashikha, Moscow Oblast) - air cover of the Moscow area.
- 4th Air Defence Division "Hero of the Soviet Union Lt.-Gen. B. P. Kirpikov" (4-я дивизия ПВО имени Героя Советского Союза генерал-лейтенанта Б.П. Кирпикова) (Dolgoprudny, Moscow Oblast) (armed with the S-300PM/PS and the S-400 missile systems)
- 5th Air Defence Division (5-я дивизия ПВО) (Petrovskoe, Moscow Oblast) (armed with the S-300PM and the S-400 missile systems)
- 9th Anti-Ballistic Missile Defence Division (9-я дивизия ПРО) (Sofrino, Moscow Oblast) (armed with the A-135 anti-ballistic missile system)
Space Forces Command (Командование космических войск) (Krasnoznamensk, Moscow Oblast)
- 15th Aerospace Forces Army (Special Purpose) (15-я армия Воздушно-космических сил (особого назначения)) (Krasnoznamensk)
- 1st State Test Cosmodrome of the Russian Federation Ministry of Defence "Plesetsk" (1-й Государственный испытательный космодром Министерства обороны Российской Федерации «Плесецк»)
- Space Forces Arsenal (Арсенал космических войск) (Znamenka-1 village, Tambov Oblast)
Ranks and rank insignia
Main article: Aerospace Forces ranks and insignia of the Russian Federation
Officer ranks| Rank group | General / flag officers | Senior officers | Junior officers | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Russian Aerospace Forces10
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Генера́л а́рмииGenerál ármii | Генера́л-полко́вникGenerál-polkóvnik | Генера́л-лейтена́нтGenerál-leytenánt | Генера́л-майо́рGenerál-mayór | Полко́вникPolkóvnik | Подполко́вникPodpolkóvnik | Майо́рMajór | Kапита́нKapitán | Старший лейтена́нтStárshiy leytenánt | ЛейтенантLeytenant | Mла́дший лейтена́нтMládshiy leytenánt | ||||||||||||||
| Rank group | General / flag officers | Senior officers | Junior officers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Russian Aerospace Forces11
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ста́рший пра́порщикStárshiy práporshchik | Пра́порщикPráporshchyk | Старшина́Starshyná | Ста́рший сержа́нтStárshiy serzhánt | Сержа́нтSerzhánt | Мла́дший сержа́нтMládshiy serzhánt | Ефре́йторEfréĭtor | Рядово́йRyadovóy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
See also
- Russian Naval Aviation
- Strategic Missile Forces
- United States Department of the Air Force
- List of Russian military bases
Notes
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Russian Aerospace Forces.- Russian Aerospace Forces official site (English)
References
"Russia establishes Aerospace Forces as new armed service — Defense Minister". Archived from the original on 2017-03-21. Retrieved 2017-03-20. http://tass.com/russia/812184 ↩
Russian: Воздушно-космические силы, romanized: Vozdushno-kosmicheskiye sily /wiki/Russian_language ↩
"6 Dead in Fire at Russian Aerospace Defense Research Institute – State Media". The Moscow Times. 21 April 2022. https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2022/04/21/6-dead-in-fire-at-russian-aerospace-defense-research-institute-state-media-a77446 ↩
Russian: ВКС /wiki/Russian_language ↩
Compare: Russia establishes Aerospace Forces as new armed service — Defense Minister Archived 2016-05-13 at the Wayback Machine, tass.ru, 3 August 2015. - "'The formation of the Aerospace Forces by combining the Air Force and the Aerospace Defense Force is the optimal option for improving the system of the country's aerospace defense,' Shoigu said. [...] 'Now the single command unites aviation, air defense and anti-missile defense troops, space forces and means of the armed forces' [...]." http://tass.ru/en/russia/812184 ↩
Шойгу объявил о создании нового вида ВС - Воздушно-космических сил Archived 2015-08-05 at the Wayback Machine, ria.ru/defense, 3 August 2015 http://ria.ru/defense_safety/20150803/1160022393.html ↩
Russia creates new Aerospace Force service branch Archived 2015-12-27 at the Wayback Machine, janes.com, 4 August 2015 http://www.janes.com/article/53416/russia-creates-new-aerospace-force-service-branch ↩
"Воздушно-космические силы". structure.mil.ru. Retrieved 2023-07-26. https://structure.mil.ru/structure/forces/vks/structure.htm ↩
Russia creates new Aerospace Force service branch Archived 2015-12-27 at the Wayback Machine, janes.com, 4 August 2015 http://www.janes.com/article/53416/russia-creates-new-aerospace-force-service-branch ↩
"Указ Президента Российской Федерации от 11 марта 2010 года № 293 "О военной форме одежды, знаках различия военнослужащих и ведомственных знаках отличия"". rg.ru (in Russian). Российской газеты. 12 March 2010. Retrieved 26 May 2021. https://rg.ru/2010/03/12/forma-dok.html ↩
"Указ Президента Российской Федерации от 11 марта 2010 года № 293 "О военной форме одежды, знаках различия военнослужащих и ведомственных знаках отличия"". rg.ru (in Russian). Российской газеты. 12 March 2010. Retrieved 26 May 2021. https://rg.ru/2010/03/12/forma-dok.html ↩