Understanding the ever-increasing role of aviation in modern warfare, the leadership of the Red Army was concerned with the creation of modern air defense systems.
The royal legacy in the form of 76-mm Lender anti-aircraft guns, a few 40-mm Vickers machine guns and semi-makeshift Maxim machine gun installations did not meet modern requirements.
The first Soviet anti-aircraft gun was designed by M.N. Kondakov under a machine gun of the Maxim system mod. 1910. It was made in the form of a tripod and connected to the machine gun using a swivel. Possessing simplicity and reliability, installation of arr. 1928 provided all-round fire and large elevation angles.
It was equipped with a ring sight, intended for firing at aircraft moving at speeds of up to 320 km/h at a distance of up to 1500 m. Subsequently, with an increase in flight speed, the sight was repeatedly upgraded.
In 1930, the Design Bureau of the Tula Arms Plant designed a twin anti-aircraft gun, which turned out to be much more massive. The ability to fire from each machine gun separately was retained, which reduced the consumption of ammunition when shooting.
It also entered service, although for a number of reasons it was not widely used.
Due to the need to equip air defense troops with more powerful installations capable of providing massive fire, the famous gunsmith N.F. Tokarev created a quadruple anti-aircraft installation of the Maxim machine gun mod. 1931
It had a high rate of fire, good maneuverability, and constant combat readiness. Firing at air targets from it was carried out using the same sights as in single and twin installations.
Thanks to the presence of a liquid cooling system and a large tape capacity, it was for its time effective means combating low-flying aircraft. It had a high combat rate of fire and fire density.
The good combat effectiveness of the installation, first used in the battle on Khasan, was noted by foreign military observers present in the Japanese army.
The quadruple installation of the Tokarev system was the first complex anti-aircraft installation adopted for service ground forces.
During the Great Patriotic War, the quadruple anti-aircraft gun was successfully used to cover troops, important military installations and cities, and was repeatedly used with great efficiency to combat enemy personnel.
After the ShKAS aviation rapid-firing machine gun was adopted into service, in 1936. Serial production of the twin anti-aircraft gun began. However, ShKAS did not take root on earth. This machine gun required special-issue ammunition; the use of conventional infantry ammunition led to a large number of delays in firing. The machine gun turned out to be poorly suited for service on the ground: it was complex in design and sensitive to contamination.
Most of the existing anti-aircraft installations with ShKAS machine guns were used for air defense of airfields, where they had quality ammunition and qualified service.
In the initial period of the war, to strengthen air defense and compensate for losses incurred, it was decided to use the PV-1, DA and DA-2 aircraft machine guns available in warehouses.
At the same time, it was decided to follow the path of maximum simplification, without a significant reduction in combat effectiveness.
On the basis of PV-1 by N.F. Tokarev in August 1941. a built ZPU was created. In 1941-42 626 such installations were manufactured.
A significant part of them were used in the defense of Stalingrad.
Twin and single aircraft machine guns DA designed by V.A. Degtyarev were mounted on a simple swivel.
This often happened in military workshops and in the field. Despite the relatively low rate of fire and the disc magazine with a capacity of only 63 rounds, these installations played a role in the initial period of the war.
During the war, due to the increase in aircraft survivability, the importance of rifle-caliber installations in the fight against enemy aircraft noticeably decreases, and they give way to the DShK heavy machine gun, although they continue to play a certain role.
February 26, 1939 By resolution of the Defense Committee, 12.7 mm was adopted for service. heavy machine gun DShK (Degtyarev-Shpagina large-caliber) on a universal Kolesnikov machine gun. For firing at air targets, the machine gun was equipped with special anti-aircraft sights. The first machine guns entered service with the troops in 1940. But by the beginning of the war there were still very few of them in the troops.
The DShK became a powerful weapon in the fight against enemy aircraft; with its high armor penetration, it was significantly superior to the 7.62 mm ZPU. in terms of range and altitude of effective fire. Thanks to the positive qualities of DShK machine guns, their number in the army was constantly growing.
During the war, twin and triple DShK installations were designed and produced.
In addition to domestic machine guns, those supplied under Lend-Lease were used for anti-aircraft shooting: 7.62 mm Browning M1919A4 and large-caliber 12.7 mm. "Browning" M2, as well as captured MG-34 and MG-42.
The powerful quad 12.7 mm were especially valued by the troops. American-made M17 installations mounted on the chassis of the M3 half-track armored personnel carrier.
These self-propelled guns have proven to be a very effective means of protecting tank units and formations on the march from air attack.
In addition, M17s were successfully used during battles in cities, delivering heavy fire on the upper floors of buildings.
The pre-war industry of the USSR was unable to fully equip the troops with the necessary anti-aircraft weapons; the air defense of the USSR as of June 22, 1941 was only 61% equipped with anti-aircraft machine gun installations.
The situation with large-caliber machine guns was no less difficult. January 1, 1942. in the active army there were only 720 of them. However, with the transition to a military footing, industry is increasingly supplied with weapons to the troops.
Six months later there are already -1947 units in the army. DShK, and by January 1, 1944 - 8442 units. In two years, the number increased almost 12 times.
The importance of machine gun fire in military air defense and the country's air defense remained throughout the war. Of the 3,837 enemy aircraft shot down by frontline troops from June 22, 1941 to June 22, 1942, 295 were due to anti-aircraft machine gun installations, 268 were due to rifle and machine gun fire from troops. Since June 1942, the staff of the army anti-aircraft artillery regiment included a DShK company, which had 8 machine guns, and since February 1943 - 16 machine guns.
The anti-aircraft artillery divisions (zenads) of the RVGK, which were formed in November 1942, had one such company in each small-caliber anti-aircraft artillery regiment. Quite characteristic is the sharp increase in the number of heavy machine guns in the army in 1943-1944. Only in preparation for Battle of Kursk 520 12.7 mm machine guns were sent to the fronts. True, from the spring of 1943, the number of DShKs in the Zenad decreased from 80 to 52 while the number of guns increased from 48 to 64, and according to the staff updated in the spring of 1944, the Zenad had 88 anti-aircraft guns and 48 DShK machine guns. But at the same time, by order of the People's Commissar of Defense dated March 31, 1943, from April 5, an anti-aircraft artillery regiment was introduced into the staff of tank and mechanized corps (16 anti-aircraft guns of 37 mm caliber and 16 heavy machine guns, the same regiment was introduced into the cavalry corps), in The staff of tank, mechanized and motorized brigades is an anti-aircraft machine gun company with 9 heavy machine guns. At the beginning of 1944, anti-aircraft machine gun companies of 18 DShKs brought into the staff some rifle divisions.
DShK machine guns were usually used by platoons. Thus, an anti-aircraft machine gun company of a division usually covered the area of artillery firing positions with four platoons (12 machine guns), and the division command post with two platoons (6 machine guns).
Anti-aircraft machine guns were also introduced into medium-caliber anti-aircraft batteries to cover them from enemy attacks from low altitudes. Machine gunners often successfully interacted with air defense fighters - cutting off enemy fighters with fire, they provided their pilots with evasion from pursuit. Anti-aircraft machine guns were usually located no further than 300-500 m from the front edge of the defense. They covered forward units, control posts, front-line railways and roads.
At the beginning of the war, the situation with anti-aircraft artillery was very difficult.
As of June 22, 1941 there were:
-1370 pcs. 37 mm. automatic anti-aircraft guns model 1939 (61-K)
-805 pcs. 76 mm. field guns model 1900 on anti-aircraft installations of the Ivanov system
-539 pcs. 76 mm. anti-aircraft guns mod. 1914/15 Lander system
-19 pcs. 76 mm. anti-aircraft guns mod. 1915/28
-3821 pcs. 76 mm. anti-aircraft guns mod. 1931 (3-K)
-750 pcs. 76 mm. anti-aircraft guns mod. 1938
-2630 pcs. 85 mm. arr. 1939 (52-K)
A significant part of them were hopelessly outdated systems, with weak ballistics, and not having Anti-Aircraft Fire Control Devices (FAD).
Let's focus on the guns that had real combat value.
37 mm. The automatic anti-aircraft gun model 1939 was the only small-caliber machine gun adopted for service before the war; it was created on the basis of the Swedish 40-mm Bofors cannon.
The 37-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun of the 1939 model is a single-barrel small-caliber automatic anti-aircraft gun on a four-frame carriage with an inseparable four-wheel drive.
The gun's automatic operation is based on the use of recoil force according to a scheme with a short recoil of the barrel. All actions necessary to fire a shot (opening the bolt after firing with extracting the cartridge case, cocking the firing pin, feeding cartridges into the chamber, closing the bolt and releasing the firing pin) are performed automatically. Aiming, aiming the gun and feeding clips of cartridges into the magazine are carried out manually.
According to the gun service manual, its main task was to combat air targets at ranges of up to 4 km and at altitudes of up to 3 km. If necessary, the gun can be successfully used to fire at ground targets, including tanks and armored vehicles.
During the battles of 1941, anti-aircraft guns suffered significant losses - before September 1, 1941, 841 guns were lost, and in total in 1941 - 1204 guns. Huge losses were hardly made up for by production - on January 1, 1942, there were about 1,600 37-mm anti-aircraft guns in stock. On January 1, 1945, there were about 19,800 guns. However, this number included 40 mm. Bofors guns supplied under Lend-Lease.
61-K during the Great Patriotic War were the main means of air defense of Soviet troops in the front line.
Shortly before the war, a 25-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun of the 1940 model (72-K) was created, borrowing a number of design solutions from the 37-mm. 61-K. But by the beginning of hostilities it did not reach the troops.
The 72-K anti-aircraft guns were intended for air defense at the rifle regiment level and in the Red Army occupied an intermediate position between the large-caliber DShK anti-aircraft machine guns and the more powerful 37-mm 61-K anti-aircraft guns. However, the use of clip-on loading for a small-caliber anti-aircraft machine gun greatly reduced the practical rate of fire.
Due to difficulties in mastering their mass production, a significant number of 25-mm anti-aircraft guns appeared in the Red Army only in the second half of the war. Anti-aircraft guns 72-K and twin mounts 94-KM based on them were successfully used against low-flying and diving targets. In terms of the number of copies produced, they were much inferior to the 37 mm. automatic machines.
The most numerous at the beginning of the war was 76 mm. anti-aircraft gun mod. 1931 (3-K) was created on the basis of the German 7.5 cm anti-aircraft 7.5 cm Flak L/59 from Rheinmetall as part of military cooperation with Germany. The original samples, manufactured in Germany, were tested at the Anti-Aircraft Research Site in February-April 1932. In the same year, the gun was put into service under the name “76-mm anti-aircraft gun mod. 1931."
A new projectile was developed for it, with a bottle-shaped cartridge case, which was used only in anti-aircraft guns.
76-mm anti-aircraft gun mod. 1931 is a semi-automatic gun, since opening the bolt, extracting spent cartridges and closing the bolt during firing are done automatically, and feeding cartridges into the chamber and firing are done manually. The presence of semi-automatic mechanisms ensures a high combat rate of fire of the gun - up to 20 rounds per minute. The lifting mechanism allows firing in the range of vertical aiming angles from -3° to +82°. In the horizontal plane, shooting can be carried out in any direction.
Gun arr. 1931 was a completely modern weapon with good ballistic characteristics. Its carriage with four folding frames ensured all-round firing, and with a projectile weight of 6.5 kg, the vertical firing range was 9 km. A significant drawback of the gun was that transferring it from a traveling position to a combat position took a relatively long time (more than 5 minutes) and was a rather labor-intensive operation.
Several dozen guns were installed on YAG-10 trucks. The self-propelled gun received the index 29K.
In the back of a YAG-10 truck with a reinforced bottom there is a swinging part of a 76.2-mm anti-aircraft gun mod. 1931 (3K) on a standard stand. To increase the stability of the platform when firing, the gun pedestal was lowered relative to the platform by 85 mm. The car was complemented by four folding “paws” - “jack-type” stops. The body was supplemented with protective armor plates, which, in the combat position, folded horizontally, increasing the service area for the gun. In the front part of the cabin there are two charging boxes with ammunition (2x24 rounds). On the folding sides there were places for four crew numbers “on the march”.
On the basis of the 3-K gun, a 76-mm anti-aircraft gun of the 1938 model was developed. The same weapon was installed on a new, four-wheeled cart. This significantly reduced deployment time and increased the speed of system transportation. In the same year, a synchronous tracking drive system was developed by Academician M.P. Kostenko.
However, the increase in the speeds and “ceiling” of aircraft, the increase in their survivability required an increase in the height reach of anti-aircraft guns and an increase in projectile power.
Designed in Germany 76 mm. the anti-aircraft gun had an increased safety margin. Calculations have shown that it is possible to increase the caliber of the gun to 85 mm.
The main advantage of the 85-mm anti-aircraft gun over its predecessor - the 76-mm anti-aircraft gun of the 1938 model - is the increased power of the projectile, which created a larger volume of damage in the target area.
Due to the extremely short time frame allocated for development new system, leading designer G.D. Dorokhin decided to put an 85-mm barrel on the platform of a 76-mm anti-aircraft gun mod. 1938, using the bolt and semi-automatic nature of this gun.
A muzzle brake was installed to reduce recoil. After development tests, the anti-aircraft gun was put into mass production on a simplified carriage (with a four-wheeled carriage) of a 76.2-mm anti-aircraft gun mod. 1938
Thus, a qualitatively new anti-aircraft gun was created at minimal cost and in a short time.
In order to increase the accuracy of firing at air targets, batteries of 85-mm anti-aircraft guns were equipped with PUAZO-3 artillery anti-aircraft fire control devices, which made it possible to solve the problem of meeting and develop the coordinates of the lead target point within a range of 700-12000 m, an altitude of up to 9600 m at base size up to 2000 m. PUAZO-3 used electrical synchronous transmission of generated data to the guns, which ensured high rates of fire and its accuracy, as well as the ability to fire at maneuvering targets.
85 mm. The 52-K anti-aircraft gun became the most advanced Soviet medium-caliber anti-aircraft gun during the war. In 1943 in order to improve service and operational characteristics and reduce production costs, it was modernized.
Very often, Soviet medium-caliber anti-aircraft guns were used to fire at ground targets, especially in anti-tank defense. Anti-aircraft guns sometimes became the only barrier in the way of German tanks.
Air defense systems played a very important role in the Great Patriotic War. According to official data, during the war, 21,645 aircraft were shot down by ground-based air defense systems of the ground forces, including 4,047 aircraft by anti-aircraft guns of 76 mm caliber or more, 14,657 aircraft by anti-aircraft guns, 2,401 aircraft by anti-aircraft machine guns, and 2,401 aircraft by machine gun fire. 540 aircraft
But one cannot fail to note a number of mistakes in the creation of air defense systems.
In addition to the clearly unsatisfactory quantitative saturation of the troops with anti-aircraft weapons, there were serious shortcomings in the design and creation of new models.
In 1930, the USSR and the German company Rheinmetall, represented by the dummy LLC BYUTAST, entered into an agreement for the supply of a number of types of artillery weapons, including automatic anti-aircraft guns. According to the terms of the agreement, Rheinmetall supplied the USSR with two samples of a 20-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun and complete design documentation for this gun. It was adopted in the Soviet Union under the official name “20-mm automatic anti-aircraft and anti-tank gun mod. 1930." However, in the USSR, for production reasons, they could not be brought to an acceptable level of reliability. In Germany, this machine gun, designated 2 cm Flugabwehrkanone 30, was put into service and was widely used until the very end of the war.
At the end of 1937 at the plant named after. Kalinin, the first prototype of a 45-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun was manufactured, which received the factory index ZIK-45, later changed to 49-K. After modifications, it successfully passed tests, but the military leadership short-sightedly considered that the 45-mm. the projectile has excess power, and the designers were asked to develop a similar 37-mm one. anti-aircraft gun
Structurally, 49-K and 61-K were almost no different, had a similar cost (60 thousand rubles versus 55 thousand rubles), but the reach and destructive effect of 45-mm shells was significantly higher.
Instead of the not very successful 25 mm. The 72-K assault rifle had manual clip loading, which limited the rate of fire; for the air defense needs of the regimental level, a 23-mm aircraft gun designed by Volkov-Yartsev (VYa), which has a belt feed and a high rate of fire, would be more suitable. During the war, VYA were installed on Il-2 attack aircraft, where they proved themselves to be excellent. Only in the navy, to arm torpedo boats, a certain number of twin 23-mm ones were used. anti-aircraft guns.
Only after the war, twin anti-aircraft guns ZU-23 and ZSU "Shilka" were created under the cartridge of the VYa cannon.
The opportunity to create a highly effective 14.5 mm anti-aircraft weapon during the war was also missed. PTR cartridge. This was done only after the end of hostilities in the Vladimirov Heavy Machine Gun (KPV), which is still in service today.
The implementation of all these missed opportunities would significantly increase the potential of the Red Army air defense forces and speed up victory.
Based on materials:
Shirokorad A. B. Encyclopedia of domestic artillery.
Ivanov A.A. USSR artillery in World War II.
http://www.soslugivci-odnopolhane.ru/orugie/5-orugie/94-zenitki.html
http://www.tehnikapobedy.ru/76mm38hist.htm
http://alexandrkandry.narod.ru/html/weapon/sovet/artelery/z/72k.html
From the first battery of 75-mm naval guns, adapted for firing at aircraft...
Air defense troops. History and importance of air defense troops
The emergence of the Air Defense Forces dates back to the beginning of the First World War and is associated with the use of aviation, balloons and airships not only to attack troops on the battlefield, but also to destroy targets behind enemy lines.
The country's air defense forces have traveled a long and glorious path of development in a relatively short historical period. From individual field guns adapted for firing at aircraft, small units of anti-aircraft artillery and fighter squads to large formations of fighter aircraft and anti-aircraft artillery, equipped with advanced means of detecting enemy aircraft in the air, guiding fighters and ensuring the firing of anti-aircraft artillery during the Great Patriotic War, and then to formations and associations of modern Air Defense Forces, equipped with anti-aircraft guided missiles, missile-carrying fighter aircraft and highly effective automated detection and control systems - this is this path in a nutshell.
The development of aviation brought significant changes to the course of military operations, as the armed forces began to have an effective means of influencing the enemy’s deep rear. The rear of the warring countries has ceased to be a zone outside the sphere of armed struggle. As aviation developed and improved and its bomb load increased, the force of attacks on rear targets increased, the combat zone expanded, and the influence of the results of attacks on rear targets on the course of the war became more and more noticeable.
The increasing importance of reliable operation of the rear for the successful outcome of the war required the organization of its protection from air strikes. This led to the emergence during the First World War of a new type of combat operations - air defense. At the same time, the beginning was made of the creation of special units, the main purpose of which was to combat air attack weapons.
In the Russian army, the first battery of 75-mm naval guns, adapted for firing at aircraft, was formed in October 1914. In 1915, production of the first anti-aircraft guns began and the world's first fighter aircraft, RBVZ-S-16, was built. Anti-aircraft batteries of anti-aircraft artillery and fighter aviation squadrons were created for the air defense of large centers of the country (Petrograd, Odessa, etc.). To detect enemy aircraft, monitor their actions, to notify air defense forces and equipment, as well as the population of cities about air danger, an air surveillance, warning and communication system (VNOS) is being created.
In the Soviet Republic, the first experience of air defense of important objects dates back to the period of the Civil War, during which not only troops on the battlefield and communications, but also important centers of the republic (Petrograd, Moscow, Astrakhan, Baku, etc.) had to be protected from air raids by interventionists and White Guards. .). The first school for anti-aircraft artillery command personnel was created in 1918 in Nizhny Novgorod.
Although the experience of air defense during the First World War was relatively small, the basic principles of organizing air defense of rear facilities began already then: the circular nature of building defense with the strengthening of the most threatened areas; complex application all air defense systems in close cooperation with each other; concentration of the main forces for the defense of the most important objects; air defense readiness to conduct effective combat operations at any time of the day. These basic principles in the Russian army stemmed from the experience of air defense of Petrograd and the facilities of the Odessa Military District.
The role of air defense increased significantly during the Second World War, when air attack weapons were significantly improved and could deliver powerful strikes against targets deep in the country's rear. Thus, German aviation suffered heavy losses during the Great Patriotic War. During the war, our air defenses shot down more than 7,500 aircraft, destroyed over 1,000 tanks, more than 1,500 guns and many other enemy military equipment. During the Great Patriotic War, the main task of the Soviet air defense forces of the country was to protect large industrial centers, facilities and areas from enemy air strikes.
The rich combat experience of the country's Air Defense Forces, accumulated during the Great Patriotic War, as well as during a number of local conflicts and other wars, has not lost its significance at the present time, despite the fact that the emergence of nuclear weapons and various means of aerospace attack caused profound changes in the armament of the country's air defense forces and the methods of their combat use. The history of the country's Air Defense Forces convincingly teaches that the basis for the success of their combat use and the accomplishment of the tasks facing them is the high combat readiness of all units, units and formations.
The experience of combat operations irrefutably demonstrates that the most critical period for the Air Defense Forces is the initial period of war, when the bulk of air attack means are used to seize the strategic initiative. The development of events at the front in the first days of the war, which was extremely unfavorable for our Armed Forces, as well as shortcomings in the actions of the country’s Air Defense Forces, which took place when repelling Nazi air raids on Gorky and Saratov in June 1943, were associated primarily with insufficient combat readiness of troops. This lesson from historical experience becomes especially relevant in modern conditions, when our potential adversaries have a powerful arsenal of nuclear weapons and using the latest means its delivery to targets. In this regard, studying the experience of the Great Patriotic War, in particular, ways to ensure high combat readiness of units and subunits and the introduction of these methods in new conditions with modern weapons remains one of the daily tasks of the country's Air Defense Forces.
The history of the country's Air Defense Forces teaches that ensuring high combat readiness and reliably repelling enemy attacks on various targets is unthinkable without all soldiers of units and subunits mastering the combat equipment in service. Deep knowledge of the combat properties and capabilities of equipment provides in battle the best conditions for coordinated actions of all crew members and crews, to achieve mutual understanding in the most difficult situations and for the most effective use weapons in the interests of performing a combat mission.
The country's air defense forces had their own system for training and improving officer personnel, starting from the platoon commander and ending with the highest command level. The required number of command and engineering personnel for ground air defense forces was provided by military educational institutions of the country's Air Defense Forces and military educational institutions of other branches of the Armed Forces. The training and improvement of officer cadres of the country's air defense fighter aviation was carried out through the system of military educational institutions of the Air Force Soviet army. In addition, in 1946, the Higher Military School of Air Defense of the Red Army was reorganized into the Military Academy of Artillery Radar (currently the Marshal Artillery Radio Engineering Academy Soviet Union L.A. Govorova), which became a major training and scientific center of the country's Air Defense Forces.
In 1949, two anti-aircraft artillery schools and one radar technical school were additionally created for the country's Air Defense Forces. However, these measures did not satisfy the growing demand for trained, qualified personnel in the country’s air defense system. There was a particularly large shortage of personnel in military-technical specialties.
Therefore, in 1953, the Gomel Higher Radio Engineering School (now the Military Academy of the Republic of Belarus) and the Kiev Higher Radio Engineering School were created, which were tasked with training radio engineers.
In November 1956, the Military Air Defense Command Academy was created, which began training command personnel for all branches of the country's Air Defense Forces. As a result of all these measures, the problem of providing the country's Air Defense Forces with personnel was successfully resolved.
The rapid development of new means of air attack, as well as the emergence and development of new means of air defense, necessitated further restructuring of the organizational structure of the country's air defense and the establishment of a more flexible form of command and control of air defense forces throughout the country.
The centralization of control of the country's Air Defense Forces in modern conditions is acquiring exceptionally great importance, since the protection of the Armed Forces and the entire population of the country, industry and communications from air strikes is becoming an integral and decisive part of the entire armed struggle.
The organization of air defense created in peacetime is based on the principle of the most expedient operational formation of the country's air defense troops. In modern conditions, missile and nuclear weapon further expanded the ability to deliver significant strikes deep in the rear, which led to the almost complete elimination of the distinction between the front and the rear, since the entire territory of the warring countries becomes an arena of hostilities.
The operational structure of the country's air defense forces is created in each case in such a way that it corresponds to the general plan of organizing the country's air defense and ensures the interaction of military branches, as well as the possibility of maneuver to increase the efforts of the air defense forces in the decisive direction.
Our main task was and remains to have the air defense of our state insurmountable to any means of the aggressor. Nothing - neither the enemy's use of thermonuclear weapons and other means of mass destruction, nor the creation of strong radio and radar countermeasures - should prevent the troops, if necessary, from successfully fulfilling their duty to defeat the air enemy.
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AIR DEFENSE FORCES (V. PVO), view Armed Forces(AF), designed to protect administrative, industrial centers and regions of the country, armed forces groups, important military and other facilities from enemy strikes from the air and from space (in the USSR and the Russian Federation since 1932 - a branch of the military, in 1954-98 - a type of armed forces ). B. Air defense included: missile and space defense troops, air defense aviation; anti-aircraft missile forces (ZRV); radio technical troops (RTV); special troops(engineering, communications, electronic warfare, radiation, chemical and biological protection, as well as formations and units of radio reconnaissance, technical, geodetic, engineering and airfield support and logistics). The Air Defense Forces carried out their tasks independently and in cooperation with other types of Armed Forces and branches of the military.
The appearance of V. air defense is associated with the combat use of aircraft and other aircraft in the 1st world war. In Germany, France and Russia, guns were created for firing at aircraft, which contributed to the emergence of anti-aircraft artillery (AA). In 1915, in a number of countries for air cover major cities and troops, fighter aviation (IA) detachments are formed. In 1915-16, barrage balloons began to be used as means of air defense, and anti-aircraft searchlights began to be used to support firing for air defense and IA operations at night. To detect an air enemy and notify troops about it, an air surveillance, warning and communications service (VNOS) was organized in Russia.
IN Civil War 1917-22 In 1918, the first staff of an anti-aircraft battery and an anti-aircraft artillery battalion were approved. The main work to improve air defense systems and equipment began during the years of military reform of 1924-25. In 1924, the 1st Regiment FOR the Red Army was formed in Leningrad; in 1925, fighter aviation brigades were created for Moscow's air defense; in 1927, an anti-aircraft artillery brigade was created. In 1926, the ZA was divided into military and positional; a special department was formed at the Red Army Headquarters, which was responsible for developing issues of air defense of the USSR and organizing the air defense service in the troops. In 1928, the Regulations on Air Defense of the USSR were approved. In peacetime, the leadership of the country's air defense was entrusted to the People's Commissar for Military and Naval Affairs through the Headquarters of the Red Army. On the territory of the military districts, these functions were performed by the commanders of the military forces. In wartime, direct control of air defense in the front-line and army areas of the theater of operations was carried out by army commanders. For the general management of the air defense of the entire country, by May 1930, a special department was created at the Red Army Headquarters, which in May 1932 was transformed into the Red Army Air Defense Directorate, directly subordinate to the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR. In 1932, local air defense was approved as an integral part of the country's air defense. Air defense divisions were deployed for the defense of Moscow and Leningrad, and air defense brigades and regiments, as well as aviation brigades and IA squadrons, for the defense of other large installations. In May 1932, V. Air Defense was formalized as independent genus troops. In 1932, the first anti-aircraft artillery divisions were created, and in 1937-38 - air defense corps for the defense of Moscow, Leningrad and Baku. In 1939-40, the VNOS service received the first detection radars RUS-1 and RUS-2. In December 1940, the Red Army Air Defense Directorate was transformed into the Red Army Air Defense Main Directorate. Since February 1941, air defense zones have been created in border and some internal military districts.
In total, by the beginning of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, the V. Air Defense had: 3329 medium-caliber anti-aircraft guns, 330 small-caliber ones, 650 machine guns, over 1.5 thousand searchlights, 850 barrage balloons, about 70 detection radars. To solve air defense problems, 40 aviation regiments were also allocated, numbering about 1.5 thousand aircraft. However, the beginning of the war showed a discrepancy between the organization and technical equipment of the country's air defense forces (ADF) and the level of development of enemy air attack weapons. In November 1941, troops intended for air defense of the country's facilities were withdrawn from the subordination of the commanders of the military forces, fronts and fleets (with the exception of formations and units covering Leningrad). By the Decree of the State Defense Committee of November 9, 1941, the position of commander of the V. Air Defense of the CU was introduced, the headquarters of the V. Air Defense of the CU, the departments of the IA, ZA and other control bodies were created. The air defense of the CU is divided into air defense of the country and air defense of the troops. On the basis of the air defense zones of the European part of the USSR, corps (Moscow, Leningrad) and divisional air defense regions were formed. In January 1942, air defense aviation was formed as part of the country's Higher Air Defense as a branch of the military, to which 40 fighter aviation regiments were transferred from the Air Force. The Moscow corps region was reorganized into the Moscow Air Defense Front, the Leningrad and Baku regions - into the Leningrad and Baku Air Defense Armies. The country's air defense was entrusted with the task of combating enemy air attack weapons over the entire territory of the country within their reach. For the first time, the operational construction of air defense zones was not tied to the boundaries of land fronts and air defense. In June 1943, the country's air defense was divided into the Western and Eastern air defense fronts, which in December 1944 were reorganized into the Northern, Southern and Transcaucasian air defense fronts. In July 1943, the post of commander of the country's air defense was abolished due to the subordination of the country's air defense directly to the artillery commander of the USSR Armed Forces. By the end of the war, the country's air defense had 4 fronts (Western, South-Western, Central and Transcaucasian) and 6 air defense armies. In total, these formations included: Air Defense Air Fighter Army, 15 air defense corps, 4 air defense fighter aviation corps, 18 air defense divisions, 24 air defense fighter aviation divisions, 5 separate brigades Air defense. They were armed with about 3.2 thousand fighter aircraft, about 9.8 thousand medium-caliber and over 8.9 thousand small-caliber anti-aircraft guns, 5.4 thousand searchlights, 1.4 thousand barrage balloons, about 300 detection radars. When repelling enemy air raids, the country's air defense destroyed over 7.3 thousand enemy aircraft. For military exploits in the Great Patriotic War, over 80 thousand soldiers of the country's air defense were awarded orders and medals, 95 of them were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, 29 formations and units received the title of guards, and 11 received an honorary title.
In the post-war years, the USSR carried out a reorganization of air defense fronts and armies. On their basis, 3 air defense districts and 2 separate air defense corps were created. In February 1946, the post of commander of the country's air defense was restored. In 1948-49, districts, armies and separate buildings Air defenses are disbanded, and air defense areas of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd categories are created on their basis: in the border zone, subordinate to the commander of the military forces, in the internal regions of the country - to the commander of the military. The air defense of the country, the air defense of naval bases was carried out by the military air defense of the corresponding fleets. In 1954, the country's Air Defense Forces were reorganized from a branch of the armed forces into a branch of the Armed Forces. They included almost all the air defense forces of the USSR. The border of responsibility of the country's Air Defense Forces has been established (along the state border of the USSR). Air defense associations (districts, armies) and formations (corps, divisions) were created. The Air Force IA was quickly subordinated to the command of the country's Air Defense Forces. Only military air defense units of ground formations were left in the military districts, and naval air defense systems were left in the fleets. In the 1950s and 60s, air defense became multi-echelon and more maneuverable. In the military air defense of the country, they were distinguished as the branches of the RTV and ZRV troops. The country's military air defense received the following fighter aircraft: Mig-15, Mig-17, Mig-19, Yak-25, Su-9, Su-11, etc.; anti-aircraft artillery systems (with 57 mm, 100 mm and 130 mm guns) and air defense systems; new radars. In March 1967, the country's air defense included forces and means of missile attack warning, anti-missile, anti-space defense and space control. In 1980, the country's V. Air Defense was transformed into V. Air Defense. The command apparatus of the military air defense (air defense of the Ground Forces) is subordinate to the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Defense Forces. The air defense system was divided into air defense of the border territory and air defense of the internal regions of the country. On the territory of the border military district, responsibility for air defense was assigned to the commanders of military defense troops; in the interior regions, the centralized system of leadership of military air defense was preserved. In 1986, in the border areas in the main strategic aerospace directions, separate armies Air defense, directly subordinate to the commander-in-chief of the V. Air defense and the operational commander-in-chief of the troops of the directions. In 1992, V. Air defense on the territory of the Russian Federation, as well as on the territories of the republics former USSR, which did not fall under their jurisdiction, became part of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation as a type of aircraft. In 1997, the missile and space defense troops were transferred from the Higher Air Defense Forces to the Strategic Missile Forces. In 1998, the Air Defense Forces were merged with the Air Force into one type of armed forces - the Air Force.
In the United States, air defense tasks for the country's territory are assigned to a special aerospace defense command, in other countries - to the Air Force, which includes all air defense forces and means.
Lit.: Agrenich A. A. Anti-aircraft artillery. M., 1960; The country's air defense forces. M., 1968; Gatsolaev V. A. Anti-aircraft units in battle. M., 1974; Development of air defense. M., 1976; Batitsky P.F. Country's air defense troops. M., 1977; Andersen Yu. A., Drozhzhin A. I., Lozik P. M. Air defense of ground forces. M., 1979; Air defense forces of the country in the Great Patriotic War, 1941-1945. M., 1981; Air defense of the country (1914-1995). M., 1998.
It has a history of more than a century, which began in the suburbs of St. Petersburg in 1890. The first attempts to adapt the existing artillery for firing at flying targets were made at the training grounds near Ust-Izhora and Krasnoe Selo. However, these attempts revealed the complete inability of conventional artillery to hit air targets, and of untrained military personnel to operate guns.
Start of air defense
The decoding of the well-known abbreviation means, that is, a system of measures to protect territory and objects from attack from the air. The first firing near St. Petersburg was carried out from four-inch cannons using ordinary bullet shrapnel.
It was precisely this combination of technical characteristics that revealed the inability of the available means to destroy airborne objects, the role of which was then played by balloons and Balloons. However, based on the test results, Russian engineers received technical specifications for the development of a special gun, which was completed in 1914. At that time, not only artillery guns were technically imperfect, but also the airplanes themselves, unable to rise to a height exceeding three kilometers.
World War I
Before 1914, the use of air defense systems in combat conditions was not very relevant, since aviation was practically not used. However, in Germany and Russia the history of air defense begins already in 1910. The countries obviously anticipated an imminent conflict and tried to prepare for it, taking into account the sad experience of previous wars.
Thus, the history of air defense in Russia goes back one hundred and seven years, during which they have significantly developed and evolved from guns that fired at balloons to high-tech early warning systems capable of hitting targets even in space.
The birthday of the air defense system is considered to be December 8, 1914, when a system of defensive structures and means directed against air targets began to function on the approaches to Petrograd. To secure the imperial capital, an extensive network of observation posts was created on the remote approaches to it, consisting of towers and telephone points, from which information about the approaching enemy was reported to headquarters.
Fighter aircraft in the First World War
An integral part of the air defense system of any country and at any time is fighter aircraft, capable of neutralizing attacking aircraft at distant approaches.
In turn, effective operation requires a significant number of highly qualified pilots. It was for these purposes that the first Officer Aeronautical School in Russia was formed on Volkovo Pole near St. Petersburg in 1910, which aimed to train first-class aeronauts, as pilots were called at that time.
In parallel with the network of observation points, a system was created that received the official name “Radiotelegraph Defense of Petrograd.” This system was intended to intercept communications of hostile pilots attacking the Russian army.
After the revolution
Deciphering air defense as air defense creates the illusion that the system is extremely simple and is intended only to shoot down enemy aircraft. However, already on the fields of the First World War it became clear that the troops were faced with numerous and complex tasks not only in controlling the skies, but also in reconnaissance, camouflage and the formation of the front line of front-line aviation.
After the victory of the October Revolution, all air defense forces available on the territory of Petrograd came under the control of the Red Army, which began to reform and reorganize them.
The actual abbreviation PVO and its decoding appeared in 1925, when official documents The terms “national air defense” and “front line air defense” were used for the first time. It was at this time that the priority directions for the development of air defense were determined. However, more than ten years passed before their full implementation.
Air defense of the largest cities
Since defense against air attacks required significant resources, both human and technical means, the Soviet leadership decided to organize air defense defense of several key cities of the USSR. These included Moscow, Leningrad, Baku and Kyiv.
In 1938, air defense corps were formed to protect against air attacks and Leningrad. An air defense brigade was organized for the defense of Kyiv. The transcript mentioning the means used to repel enemy air attacks is as follows:
- flak;
- aerial reconnaissance;
- communication and notification;
- anti-aircraft projectors.
Of course, to current situation Such a list of cases has little relevance, since over the past eighty years the structure has become significantly more complex, and the technology has become more universal. In addition, radio reconnaissance and information warfare now play a great role in air defense.
By the beginning of World War II, early detection of enemy air forces and their destruction became especially important. To solve this problem, special electronic reconnaissance means are being developed. The first country to deploy a wide network of radar stations was Great Britain.
The first devices designed to control anti-aircraft fire were also developed there, which significantly increased its accuracy and increased density.
Current state of air defense
The decoding of the well-known abbreviation does not fully correspond to modern realities, since today in the world non-contact methods of warfare based on missile weapons and special low-visibility aircraft are becoming increasingly important.
In addition, the abbreviation PRO, which refers to missile defense, is increasingly being used next to the abbreviation PVO. It is impossible today to imagine effective air defense without the use of missile weapons, which means that systems that are fundamentally important for integration are becoming increasingly important various systems from anti-aircraft guns to radar warfare systems.
In the age of the Internet, competent search and the ability to distinguish reliable information from incorrect information is of great importance. Increasingly, users are looking for a decoding of the Air Defense Department of the Internal Affairs, which means the passport and visa department of the Department of Internal Affairs - the police department involved in passporting the population.
