Presentation of the banner of Air-space forces 03

The Russian Aerospace Forces or Russian Air and Space Forces ( rus, Воздушно-космические силы, r=Vozdushno-kosmicheskiye sily) or VKS ( rus, ВКС}) comprise the air and

space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consi ...

branch A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term '' twig'' usuall ...

of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Russia established the VKS as a new branch of its military on 1 August 2015 with the merging of the

Russian Air Force "Air March" , mascot = , anniversaries = 12 August , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = , decorations = , batt ...

(VVS) and the Russian Aerospace Defence Forces (VVKO) - as recommended by the Ministry of Defence. The VKS has its headquarters in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. Russia's

Defense Minister A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in s ...

Sergei Shoigu explained the merger as improving efficiency and logistical support.

Organisation

Sub-branches

According to Jane's Information Group, with the merging of the Russian Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Defense Forces, the new Russian Aerospace Forces consist of three sub-branches:Russia creates new Aerospace Force service branch
, janes.com, 4 August 2015 *

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...

* * Space Forces

Leadership

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 Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

) * ''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 Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the Eas ...

) * ''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 Yekaterinburg ( ; rus, Екатеринбург, p=jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( rus, Свердло́вск, , svʲɪrˈdlofsk, 1924–1991), is a city and the administra ...

) * ''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 Army of Air Forces and Air Defence (''45-я Армия ВВС и ПВО'') (

Severomorsk-2 Severomorsk-2 (also Safonovo-1 (USSR), Murmansk Northeast (US)) is a naval air base in Murmansk Oblast, Russia located 7 km southwest of Severomorsk and just 11 km northeast of Murmansk. The primary operator of Severomorsk-2 (after 1 ...

) - 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-Ballistic Missile Defence Forces Command (''Командование'' ''войск ПВО-ПРО'') (Moscow) * 1st ''

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...

'' Air Defence and

Anti-Ballistic Missile An anti-ballistic missile (ABM) is a surface-to-air missile designed to counter ballistic missiles (missile defense). Ballistic missiles are used to deliver nuclear, chemical, biological, or conventional warheads in a ballistic flight trajec ...

Defence Army (Special Purpose) (''1-я ордена Ленина армия противовоздушной и противоракетной обороны'' (''особого назначения'')) (

Balashikha Balashikha ( rus, Балашиха, p=bəlɐˈʂɨxə) is a city in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located on the Pekhorka River east of the Moscow Ring Road. Population: Etymology In Finno-Ugric languages, ''Bala-shika'' means ''land of celebrations, ...

Moscow Oblast Moscow Oblast ( rus, Моско́вская о́бласть, r=Moskovskaya oblast', p=mɐˈskofskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ), or Podmoskovye ( rus, Подмоско́вье, p=pədmɐˈskovʲjə, literally " under Moscow"), is a federal subject of R ...

) - 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 system The S-400 Triumf (russian: link=no, C-400 Триумф – Triumf; translation: Triumph; NATO reporting name: SA-21 Growler), previously known as the S-300 PMU-3, is a mobile, surface-to-air missile (SAM) system developed in the 1990s by Russ ...

s) ** 5th Air Defence Division (''5-я дивизия ПВО'') ( Petrovskoe, Moscow Oblast) (armed with the S-300PM and the

s) ** 9th Anti-Ballistic Missile Defence Division (''9-я дивизия ПРО'') (

Sofrino Sofrino (russian: Софрино) is an urban locality (an urban-type settlement) in Pushkinsky District of Moscow Oblast, Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Nort ...

, Moscow Oblast) (armed with the

A-135 anti-ballistic missile system The A-135 (renamed to A-235) ( NATO: ABM-4 Gorgon) is a Russian anti-ballistic missile system deployed around Moscow to intercept incoming warheads targeting the city or its surrounding areas. The system was designed in the Soviet Union and ente ...

) Space Forces Command (''Командование космических войск'') (

Krasnoznamensk Krasnoznamensk (russian: Краснознаменск) is the name of several urban localities in Russia: * Krasnoznamensk, Kaliningrad Oblast, a town in Krasnoznamensky District of Kaliningrad Oblast *Krasnoznamensk, Moscow Oblast, a closed town ...

) * 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

;Officer ranks ;Other ranks

References

External links

Russian Aerospace Forces official site
(English) {{Space forces Military of Russia * Russian military aviation Space warfare Military units and formations established in 2015 2015 establishments in Russia