The Aerospace Forces will replace people in several key positions
After the resignation of the commander-in-chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces, Sergei Surovikin, as it became known on August 23, the main command is waiting for serious personnel changes, sources in the Russian Defense Ministry told Izvestia. In particular, a new chief of staff, first deputy, as well as the commander of the strongest air army — the 4th Army of the Air Force and Air Defense will be appointed. Currently, the commander-in-chief is headed by Colonel-General Viktor Afzalov. Sources of Izvestia reported that he has been in the status of acting commander-in-chief since the beginning of July. Experts note that Afzalov already has a wealth of experience and his appointment will serve to strengthen the defense capability.
Personnel decisions
Colonel-General Viktor Afzalov is the main candidate for the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces of the Russian Federation, sources in the Russian Defense Ministry told Izvestia. Now he officially holds the position of chief of the General Staff of the Aerospace Forces, but, in addition, since July, he has been temporarily acting as commander-in-chief. However, so far there is no decree on the appointment of Afzalov, and it is possible that in the end another officer will take this position, the interlocutors of the publication noted.
In any case, in the near future, the main command of the VKS is waiting for serious personnel changes. According to Izvestia sources, simultaneously with the departure of Sergei Surovikin, the deputy commander-in-chief of the VKS, Colonel-General Andrei Yudin, and the commander of the 4th Army of the Air Force and Air Defense, General Nikolai Gostev, also left their posts (according to media reports, he had been on vacation since July). Candidates for their positions are currently being considered. In addition, if Viktor Afzalov is appointed commander-in-chief of the VKS, it will be necessary to find a candidate for the position of chief of the general Staff.
Photo: RIA Novosti/Vitaly Timkiv
Image source: iz.ru
The 4th Army of the Air Force and Air Defense is the most powerful aviation association in the Russian Aerospace Forces. It includes two air defense divisions, three mixed aviation divisions, as well as separate regiments. Units and formations of the army are located on the territory of the North Caucasus, Volgograd and Rostov regions, Crimea, Krasnodar and Stavropol Territories. Among the tasks it performs is the protection of the southern and south—western borders of the country from air attack. It was on this army that the main burden fell during the special military operation in Ukraine.
Professional rocketeer
Colonel-General Viktor Afzalov — born in 1968. In 1989 he graduated from the Pushkin Higher Military School of Radioelectronics of Air Defense. He served in anti-aircraft missile units. He studied at the Air Defense Military University and the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces.
Chief of the General Staff of the VKS, Colonel-General Viktor Afzalov
Image source: Photo: Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
According to the ex-deputy head of the Air Force, Lieutenant General Aytech Bizhev, a representative of the air defense forces at the head of the VKS is a normal phenomenon.
— Previously, the air defense forces were a separate type of the armed forces, — he told Izvestia. — We had fighter aircraft in our composition. And aviation comrades took courses in anti-aircraft missile systems. And rocket scientists took courses on the ability to control aviation. This is a normal practice.
According to Aytech Bizhev, Afzalov's appointment would serve to strengthen the country's defense capability and, in particular, to protect the airspace from drones.
Photo: RIA Novosti
Image source: iz.ru
— General Afzalov is a pure air defense officer who has passed all positions, — he explained. — Therefore, he has a unique opportunity to realize all his abilities. The former commander-in-chief often traveled to the SVO zone, and Afzalov performed his duties at these moments. He got a lot of practice of independent work. I know him well as a skilled organizer. He thoroughly knows all systems of anti-aircraft missile weapons, is a master of the combat use of anti-aircraft missile systems. He held positions from commander of an anti-aircraft missile regiment, division to commander of the 11th Army of the Air Force and Air Defense. A worthy, demanding, independent, skillful general.
The General's Way
The name of the now former head of the Russian Aerospace Forces, Sergei Surovikin, became known to the general public on October 8, 2022, when the Ministry of Defense reported that by the decision of Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, he was appointed commander of a group of troops in the area of the SVO.
In the summer of 2022, Surovikin was called by the military department as the commander of the Southern Group of troops taking part in a special military operation. On January 11, 2023, when Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov was appointed commander of the special military operation, Sergei Surovikin was appointed deputy commander.
At the end of June 2023, the general disappeared from the public field. They started talking about him again two months later, when the first reports of personnel changes in the leadership of the VKS appeared.
Former head of the Russian Aerospace Forces Sergey Surovikin
Image source: Photo: RIA Novosti/Alexey Druzhinin
The appointment of Sergei Surovikin in 2017 as the commander—in-chief of the VKS also came as a surprise - his career before that was only connected with the Ground Forces. He has a reputation as an experienced general who has gone through several military campaigns.
Surovikin was born in 1966 in Novosibirsk. In 1987 he graduated from the Omsk Higher Command Military School, in 1995 - the Frunze Military Academy, in 2002 — the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.
He commanded a battalion of the Taman Division, which during the coup of the GKCHP in August 1991 turned out to be a participant in the incident in the tunnel on the Garden Ring. Then, while trying to block the exit of a column of armored vehicles from the tunnel, three defenders of the White House were killed. They tried to bring Surovikin to justice. But as a result of the investigation, the charge was dropped, and Russian President Boris Yeltsin personally stood up for the young captain.
In the 1990s, Sergei Surovikin served in Tajikistan as part of the 201st Motorized Rifle Division, where he rose to Chief of Staff. In the 2000s, he commanded divisions in Russia, including the 42nd Motorized Rifle Division in Chechnya, and then the 20th Army.
Since 2013, he headed the Eastern District, and since May 2017, in parallel, he led a group of Russian troops in Syria. He held the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces since October 31, 2017.
Sergey Surovikin is almost the only general to whom the song is dedicated. It is called "Komdiv" and is still popular in the Southern Military District and the 42nd Division. There are such words in it: "Seryozha Surovikin is the commander of the 42nd. / In Chechnya, and not in Barvikha, he is fighting a deadly battle. / There are not many and not a few wounds and orders. / General's shoulder straps instead of thug ranks."
Roman Kretsul
Alexey Ramm