The 65th Air Army DA was an air army of the

Soviet Air Forces The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...

. The army was formed in November 1942 from the Air Force of the

Karelian Front The Karelian Front russian: Карельский фронт) was a front (a formation of Army Group size) of the Soviet Union's Red Army during World War II, and operated in Karelia. Wartime The Karelian Front was created in August 1941 when ...

as the 7th Air Army and provided air support for the front until the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Postwar, it was transferred to

Khabarovsk Khabarovsk ( rus, Хабaровск, a=Хабаровск.ogg, r=Habárovsk, p=xɐˈbarəfsk) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative centre of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia,Law #109 located from the China ...

and became the 3rd Air Army DA (

Long-range aviation Long-Range Aviation ( rus, Авиация Дальнего Действия, r=Aviatsiya dal'nego deystviya, abbr. to AДД, or ADD, and literally ''Aviation of Distant Action'') is a branch of the Russian Aerospace Forces responsible for delive ...

), controlling Soviet strategic bomber forces for the rest of its existence. In 1949 it was renumbered the 65th Air Army DA. The army was disbanded in mid-1953.

History

World War II

The army was formed on 10 November 1942 from the Air Force of the Karelian Front as the 7th Air Army, commanded by Major General Ivan Sokolov. The army provided air support for the front during the war. Before the beginning of the Svir-Petrozavodsk Offensive in June 1944, the air army carried out an air bombardment of over 3,000 aircraft on the north bank of the

Svir River The Svir (, Veps: , Karelian/ Finnish: ) is a river in Podporozhsky, Lodeynopolsky, and Volkhovsky districts in the north-east of Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It flows westwards from Lake Onega to Lake Ladoga, thus connecting the two larges ...

. In May 1945 it included the 257th and 324th Fighter Aviation Divisions, the 280th Assault Aviation Division, the 80th and 114th Guards Bomber Aviation Regiments, the 679th and 716th Night-Bomber Aviation Regiments, and the 118th and 119th Separate Reconnaissance Aviation Squadrons.

Cold War

In the immediate postwar period, between 1945 and 1946, most of its units were transferred to other armies. On 9 April 1946, the army was renamed the 3rd Air Army of

Long Range Aviation Long-Range Aviation ( rus, Авиация Дальнего Действия, r=Aviatsiya dal'nego deystviya, abbr. to AДД, or ADD, and literally ''Aviation of Distant Action'') is a branch of the Russian Aerospace Forces responsible for delive ...

(DA) and transferred to Khabarovsk. It included the 6th (

Smirnykh Smirnykh (russian: Смирных) is an urban locality (an urban-type settlement) and the administrative center of Smirnykhovsky District of Sakhalin Oblast, Russia, located in the central part of the Sakhalin Island. Population: History Du ...

) and 19th Bomber Aviation Corps (

Vozdvizhenka Vozdvizhenka may refer to: *Vozdvizhenka Street, a street in Moscow, Russia *Vozdvizhenka (air base) Vozdvizhenka (also known as Ussuriysk and before the 1960s Voroshilov) is an air base in Primorsky Krai located close to the village of Vozdvizhen ...

), each with two bomber aviation divisions. On 10 January 1949, the army was renumbered the 65th Air Army DA, and its 6th and 19th Corps became the 74th and 84th Bomber Aviation Corps, respectively. On 9 March, Colonel General

Vasily Zhdanov Vasily Ivanovich Zhdanov (russian: Василий Иванович Жданов; born 12 January 1963) is a retired Soviet road cyclist. He was part of the Soviet team that won the 100 km team time trial at the 1985 World Championships. He c ...

took command of the army. In April 1951, he was replaced by Colonel General Georgy Tupikov. In July 1951, the 74th Corps and its divisions were transferred to the 50th Air Army DA. The army was disbanded in mid-1953, and the 84th Corps became a separate unit.

Commanders

The army was commanded by the following officers. * Major General (promoted to Lieutenant General and Colonel General) Ivan Sokolov (10 November 1942 March 1946) * Colonel General

(9 March 1949 April 1951) * Colonel General Georgy Tupikov (April 1951 mid-1953)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* {{Armies of the Soviet Air Forces Air armies of the Soviet Air Forces Military units and formations established in 1949 Military units and formations disestablished in 1953