The Caspian flotilla will receive its own aircraft for the first time in the post-Soviet period. By the end of next year, it will be replenished with Mi-8 and Ka-27 helicopters. This is part of a large-scale effort to strengthen the Russian Navy in the Caspian sea and create a new main base. With such military equipment, the Association will be able to have a strategic impact on the entire region, experts say.
The Caspian flotilla will receive its own aircraft for the first time in the post-Soviet period. By the end of next year, it will be replenished with Mi-8 and Ka-27 helicopters. This is part of a large-scale effort to strengthen the Russian Navy in the Caspian sea and create a new main base. With such military equipment, the Association will be able to have a strategic impact on the entire region, experts say.
New tasks
As told "Izvestia" a source in the defense Ministry, the task of the helicopters in the Caspian sea will be primarily search-and-rescue operations. If necessary, the vehicles will also be able to transport Marines and paratroopers of the flotilla. In the future, they will be joined by be-200 amphibious aircraft. The issue of putting in the state of shock machines is under consideration, the interlocutors of the publication added. While the marine aviation of the Caspian flotilla (CFL) will not include unique mi-14 amphibious helicopters.
The commander of the Caspian flotilla, rear Admiral Sergei Pinchuk, told reporters about the plans to create an aviation squadron in Kaspiysk in may 2019. But then he did not specify the timing of the appearance of this formation. According to him, in addition to the Be-200, it was planned to receive Mi-14 helicopters — an amphibious version of the mi-8 transport, which is capable of landing on water and taking off from it. This week, the commander of the Southern military district, General of the army Alexander Dvornikov, confirmed the information about the imminent appearance of naval aviation in the Caspian sea in his speech at the final Board of the Ministry of defense (held on December 21).
The appearance of aviation in the CFL will be possible thanks to large-scale work on the creation of a new full-fledged base. At the final Board of the defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported that in Makhachkala this year commissioned military infrastructure and waterfront for ships completed backfilling North and South breakwaters with a total length of about three kilometers.
Earlier, the Ministry of defense reported that by the summer of 2020, the transfer of the flotilla command, its headquarters, ships and coastal units from the Astrakhan region to the bases in the Republic of Dagestan was completed.
Previously, the ships were based in Astrakhan. To go to sea, they had to go about 100 km along the Volga. In winter and during the summer shallowing, this was not easy to do. The new base allows year-round rapid response to any situation in the region.
Even in Soviet times, the flotilla did not have its own aircraft. Its last air units were disbanded in 1948. Since the 1960s, the Caspian sea has been used to develop the technology of amphibious and shock ekranoplans-hybrids between aircraft and ships. The giant "Harrier", nicknamed abroad "the Caspian monster", became very famous among them. Today, when working out joint actions with the flotilla, the aircraft of the black sea fleet and the southern military district are used.
"In Soviet times, relatively small forces were kept in the Caspian sea, since only Iran was near, which never posed a serious threat," former Deputy foreign Minister Sergei Ordzhonikidze told Izvestia. — Today, Russia has good relations with all the States of the region — with Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan. However, this direction can not be called stable. It is enough to recall the recent conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. Therefore, Russia should strengthen the Caspian flotilla and conduct regular exercises there.
The Caspian flotilla demonstrated its strategic importance in 2015, when its ships struck terrorist targets in Syria, the expert said.
"It was a big surprise for the whole world, and especially for the terrorists and their patrons," Sergei Ordzhonikidze said. - Russia has shown that this is its zone of influence, and it has the opportunity to do so. In addition, ships from the Caspian sea can, if necessary, support forces in the Black sea, where the situation is more tense — NATO ships often enter there, Alliance reconnaissance aircraft fly in, and so on.
Strike flotilla
In 2015, the Caspian flotilla made headlines in the world's leading media. on October 7, it launched a massive strike against extremists in Syria. "Dagestan", "Grad Sviyazhsk", "Uglich" and "Veliky Ustyug" used 26 Kalibr cruise missiles on 11 targets. This was a combat debut for both weapons and ships. Before that, they were used and participated only in exercises.
Subsequently, a massive missile strike from the Caspian sea was repeated on November 20, 2015. Then 18 "Calibers" fired at seven IG targets (banned in Russia). At the same time, strikes on the territory of Syria have never been carried out from the Black sea. Due to the peculiarities of geography, the ships of the black sea fleet have to pass through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles Straits and come close to the SAR.
The Caspian flotilla can serve as a reserve for the black sea fleet. Last year, two of its small missile ships — the Grad Sviyazhsk and the Veliky Ustyug-crossed the black sea via inland sea routes, and from there to the Mediterranean, where they joined the Russian group off the coast of Syria. They then returned to their base by the same route.
Currently, the CFL has two patrol ships and three small missile ships, seven small artillery ships and boats, as well as minesweepers. Four combat units have eight Kalibr cruise missiles each. They can hit both ground and surface targets at a distance of at least one and a half thousand kilometers. The Navy can transfer Marines and their armored vehicles on eight landing boats.
In 2018, a marine regiment was formed at the new base in Kaspiysk instead of two separate battalions. A division of the Bal coastal missile system with X-35 anti-ship missiles was also deployed on the coast.
The Caspian flotilla was created by Peter the Great by his decree of November 15, 1722. This played an important role in the establishment of Russian statehood in the region. Currently, it remains the strongest in the Caspian sea, surpassing in number and power of ships all other coastal States combined.
Today, the Caspian sea is an internal reservoir of five States. On its offshore shelf, serious reserves of minerals, primarily oil, have been explored. All post-Soviet times, this caused disputes and political conflicts.
On August 12, 2018, the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan signed the Convention on the legal status of the Caspian sea. Negotiations on its terms have continued since 1996. The main part of the water area and bioresources of the Caspian sea remained in General access. The bottom and subsoil were divided into national sectors. The policy document was intended to reduce tensions between the countries of the region over the allocation of resources.
However, even after the signing, the issue of underwater borders is not settled in all areas, especially in the southern part of the sea. In addition, the agreement has not yet been ratified by the Iranian Parliament.
