The 17th Air Army () was an Air army of the

Red Air Force 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 ...

and

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 ...

from 1942.

World War II

It was formed in October (Bonn et al.: November) 1942 on the basis of the Air Forces of the Southwestern Front. Bonn et al. say that it included a mixed air corps, two fighter, one ground-attack, one bomber, and one night bomber division. It immediately took part in the

Battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad (23 August 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad (later re ...

. On 19 November 1942 during the battle of Stalingrad it was under the command of General Major

Stepan Krasovsky Stepan ( uk, Степань; pl, Stepań; he, סטפאן) is an urban-type settlement in Sarny Raion (raion, district) of Rivne Oblast (oblast, province) in western Ukraine. Its population was 4,073 as of the Ukrainian Census (2001), 2001 Ukra ...

. On 1 April 1943, as part of the Southwestern Front, it comprised the *3rd Mixed Aviation Corps (207th Fighter Aviation Division, 290th Assault Aviation Division), *7th Mixed Aviation Corps (202nd Bomber Aviation Division, 235th Fighter Aviation Division), *9th Mixed Aviation Corps (305th, 306th Assault Aviation Division, 295th Fighter Aviation Division), *244th Bombardment Aviation Division, *262nd Night Bomber Aviation Division, *39th, 132nd Bomber Aviation Regiments, *208th, 637th Attack Aviation Regiments, *282nd Mixed Aviation Regiment, *371st Transport Aviation Regiment, *10th, 50th Reconnaissance Aviation Squadrons, *34th Fire Correction Squadron. From March 1943 until the end of the war

Vladimir Sudets Vladimir Alexandrovich Sudets (russian: Владимир Александрович Судец; 23 October 1904 - 6 May 1981) was a Soviet air commander during World War II, commanding the 17th Air Army, and later became Marshal of the aviation ...

commanded the 17th Air Army.
From 1943-45 it participated in the Ostrogozhsk–Rossosh Offensive, Left and Right Bank Ukraine operations, and the capture of Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary, and Austria.
Over 200,000 sorties were flown.

Post War

On 1 May 1945 the army consisted of *the 1614th, 1615th, 1654th, 1676th, 1975th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiments *the 10th Assault Aviation Corps (136th and 306th Assault Aviation Divisions), *244th Bomber Aviation Division, *189th Assault Aviation Division, *the 194th, 288th and 295th Fighter Aviation Divisions, *262nd Night Bomber Aviation Division, *39th Separate Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment, *96th Separate Artillery Correction Regiment, *227th Transport Aviation Regiment, *3rd Medical Evacuation Aviation Regiment, *282nd Aviation Communications Regiment. In June 1945

3rd Guards Fighter Aviation Corps The 3rd Guards Iasi Order of Suvorov Fighter Aviation Corps () was an aviation corps of the Soviet Air Force formed during World War II. The corps was formed in December 1942 as the 4th Fighter Aviation Corps and received Guards status in July 19 ...

arrived in Romania to join the Army. By 1 July 1945 the Air Army had joined the

Southern Group of Forces Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, ...

. Between 1945 and 1947 the 17th Air Army was the aviation component of the Soviet occupation forces in Romania, the

, and had its headquarters in Bucharest. Afterwards it returned to the

Kiev Military District The Kiev Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military district of the Imperial Russian Army and subsequently of the Red Army and Soviet Armed Forces. It was first formed in 1862, and was headquartered in Kiev (Kyiv) for most of its exist ...

and established its headquarters in

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

. The 39th Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment was transferred to

Samarkand fa, سمرقند , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from the top:Registan square, Shah-i-Zinda necropolis, Bibi-Khanym Mosque, view inside Shah-i-Zinda, ...

and the

6th Air Army The 6th Air Army was an air army of the Red Army's Air Force during the Second World War and from 1946-1949. It was formed twice : in 1942 as part of the Red Army's Air Forces, and redesignated in 1944, and in 1946 and redesignated in 1949. The 6 ...

in 1947. Air Force Colonel General

Sergey Goryunov Sergey Alexandrovich Goryunov (russian: Серге́й Александрович Горюнов; born 29 April 1958) is a professional association football coach from Russia and a former Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of ...

was commander of 17th Air Army between 1946 and 1949. In February 1949 it was redesignated the 69th Air Army.
In April 1964 the 69th Air Army became the Air Forces of the

.
In April 1968 the Air Forces of the Kiev Military District became the 69th Air Army once more.
In April 1972 the 69th Air Army was redesignated the 17th Air Army.
In June 1980 the 17th Air Army became the Air Forces of the Kiev Military District.
In May 1988 the Air Forces of the Kiev Military District became the 17th Air Army. In 1992 the air army became part of the

Armed Forces of Ukraine , imports = , exports = , history = , ranks = Military ranks of Ukraine , country=Ukraine The Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Збро́йні си́ли Украї́ни), most commonly known ...

; by 1996 it appears to have been dissolved.

Order of battle 1970

Organisation 1970: * 138th Fighter Aviation Division (Mirgorod, Mirgorod Oblast) *255th Separate Mixed Aviation Squadron (Borispol, Kiev Oblast) *135th Separate Communications Regiment (Kiev, Kiev Oblast) *Chernigov Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots (ChVVAUL) (Chernigov, Chernigov Oblast) *Kharkov Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots (KhVVAUL) (Kharkov-Chuguev, Kharkov Oblast) *Voroshilovgrad Higher Military Aviation School of Navigators (VVVAUSh) (Voroshilovgrad (Lugansk), Voroshilovgrad Oblast) April 1972 renamed 17th Air Army. The 138th Fighter Aviation Division joined the 24th Air Army VGK in 1980.

Order of battle late 1980s

The 24th Air Army of the High Command (Operational Purpose) (''24-я ВА ВГК ОН'') was based in the area of responsibility of the Kiev Military District. During peacetime it was subordinated directly to the Air Force High Command and in wartime it would transfer to the High Command of the South-Western Strategic Direction and deploy to airbases in Bulgaria and Romania and attack targets in Greece and Italy. The 24th AA took part in training exercises with the forces of the Kiev MD, which allowed for the military district's own 17th Air Army to become mostly a training formation with control over three air force officer schools and kept as a force-in-being, to convert its training air regiments into combat units during wartime. In the late 1980s its headquarters was at

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

. By 1989 the air army had the following structure: Directly subordinated to 17th Air Army HQ: *135th Separate Signals and Automatized Command and Control Regiment (Kiev (city)) *255th Separate Composite Aviation Squadron (

Borispol Boryspil ( uk, Бориспіль, translit. ''Boryspil'') is a city and the administrative center of Boryspil Raion in Kyiv Oblast (region) in northern (central) Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Boryspil urban hromada, one of the hromada ...

military part of

Boryspil International Airport Boryspil International Airport ( uk, Міжнародний аеропорт «Бориспіль») is an international airport in Boryspil, east of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. It is Ukraine's largest airport, serving 65% of its passenger ...

): transport aircraft - Tu-154, Tu-134, AN-26, An-24, Mi-22, 2

Mil Mi-6 The Mil Mi-6 (NATO reporting name Hook), given the article number ''izdeliye 50'' and company designation V-6, is a Soviet/Russian heavy transport helicopter that was designed by the Mil design bureau. It was built in large numbers for both mili ...

, 7

Mil Mi-8 The Mil Mi-8 (russian: Ми-8, NATO reporting name: Hip) is a medium twin-turbine helicopter, originally designed by the Soviet Union in the 1960s and introduced into the Soviet Air Force in 1968. It is now produced by Russia. In addition t ...

*228th Separate Electronic Warfare Helicopter Squadron (Borispol, military part of Boryspil IAP): 15 Mi-8PPA/SMV *190th Fighter Aviation Regiment ( Kanatovo), flying MiG-23 (disbanded in 1989) *452nd Separate Ground Attack Aviation Regiment ( Blyznetsy, Kharkiv Oblast): Su-25/UB (planned to relocate to Aleksandriia once the 51st Separate ''Guards'' Transport and Combat Helicopter Regiment (an army aviation regiment of the Kiev MD) based there disbanded. This never happened and the helicopter regiment became a separate helicopter brigade of the

UNG Ung or UNG may refer to: People * Woong, a Korean given name also spelled Ung * Ung (surname), a Cambodian and Norwegian surname * Ung Thị (full name Nguyễn Phúc Ung Thị; 1913–2001), Vietnamese-born American businessman * Franz Unger ( ...

in 1992) *94th Separate Squadron of UAV Reconnaissance Assets (

Kharkiv Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.Tu-141 The Tupolev Tu-141 Strizh ("Swift"; russian: Туполев Ту-141 Стриж) is a Soviet reconnaissance drone that served with the Soviet Army during the late 1970s and 1980s, as well as the Ukrainian Armed Forces since 2014. Development ...

(disbanded in 1989, some sources claim the unit existed until the autumn of 1996) *161st Separate Squadron of UAV Reconnaissance Assets (

Honcharivske Honcharivske () is an urban-type settlement in Chernihiv Raion of Chernihiv Oblast, Ukraine. 1st Armored Brigade and 12th Tank Battalion is stationed in the settlement. It hosts the administration of Honcharivske settlement hromada Honcharivs ...

), flying Tu-141 (disbanded in 1990) *? Separate Squadron of UAV Reconnaissance Assets (

Dnepropetrovsk Dnipro, previously called Dnipropetrovsk from 1926 until May 2016, is Ukraine's fourth-largest city, with about one million inhabitants. It is located in the eastern part of Ukraine, southeast of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on the Dnieper Rive ...

), flying Tu-141 (disbanded in 1990)

Lugansk Higher Military Aviation School of Navigators The Lugansk Higher Military Aviation School of Navigators was a flying training school of the Soviet Air Forces and later the Ukrainian Air Force. Established in 1966 in Voroshilovgrad (Lugansk), the school trained navigators until its closure in ...

(Луганское ВВАУШ/Lugansk VVAUSh) *46th Training Aviation Regiment (

Voroshilovgrad Luhansk (, ; uk, Луганськ, ), also known as Lugansk (, ; russian: Луганск, ), is a city in what is internationally recognised as Ukraine, although it is administered by Russia as capital of the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR). A ...

(Lugansk), Voroshilovgrad Oblast) with An-26 *130th Training Aviation Regiment (

Mariupol Mariupol (, ; uk, Маріу́поль ; russian: Мариу́поль) is a city in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is situated on the northern coast (Pryazovia) of the Sea of Azov, at the mouth of the Kalmius River. Prior to the 2022 Russian i ...

Donetsk Oblast The Donetsk Oblast ( ukr, Донецька область, Donetska oblast, ), also referred to as Donechchyna ( ukr, Донеччина, links=no), is an oblast of eastern Ukraine. It is Ukraine's most populous province, with around 4.1 mill ...

) with An-12BK *228th Training Aviation Regiment ( Bagerovo, Krymskaya Oblast): 36 MiG-21; 20 L-29 Kharkhov Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots (Харьковское ВВАУЛ/Kharkov VVAUL) *443rd Training Aviation Regiment ( Velikaya Krucha, Poltava Oblast): 101 L-39 *809th Training Aviation Regiment (

Akhtyrka Okhtyrka ( uk, Охти́рка, ) is a city located in the Sumy Oblast (province) of Ukraine. It is administratively incorporated as a city of oblast significance. The city has also served as the administrative center of the smaller Okhtyrka R ...

, Sumy Oblast); 102 L-39 *810th Training Aviation Regiment (

Chuguev Chuhuiv ( uk, Чугуїв) or Chuguev (russian: Чугуев) is a city in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. The city is the administrative center of Chuhuiv Raion (district). It hosts the administration of Chuhuiv urban hromada, one of the hromadas of ...

, Kharkov Oblast): 103 MiG-21 *812th Aviation Regiment (

Kupyansk Kupiansk ( uk, Куп'янськ, ) is a city in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Kupiansk Raion. It is also an important railroad junction for the oblast. Kupiansk hosts the administrative offices of Kupiansk Ur ...

(Kurlovka), Kharkov Oblast): 102 MiG-21 (or L-39 ?) Chernigov Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots (Черниговское ВВАУЛ/Chernigov VVAUL) *105th Training Aviation Regiment (

Konotop (air base) Konotop is an air base in Ukraine located 4 km west of Konotop. It is a training base. During the end of the Cold War years, it was home to 105 UAP (105th Aviation Training Regiment) flying 101 Aero L-39 training jets. Many helicopters and ...

): 101 L-39 *701st Training Aviation Regiment ( Chernigov air base):

MiG-29 The Mikoyan MiG-29 (russian: Микоян МиГ-29; NATO reporting name: Fulcrum) is a twin-engine fighter aircraft designed in the Soviet Union. Developed by the Mikoyan design bureau as an air superiority fighter during the 1970s, the Mi ...

, L-39 *702nd Training Aviation Regiment (

Uman Uman ( uk, Умань, ; pl, Humań; yi, אומאַן) is a city located in Cherkasy Oblast in central Ukraine, to the east of Vinnytsia. Located in the historical region of the eastern Podolia, the city rests on the banks of the Umanka River ...

): MiG-21 *703rd Training Aviation Regiment ( Gorodnya/Городня): 101 L-39 The Chernigov School was disbanded 30.11.1995. Aircraft numbers are sourced from Vad777. Information is from Michael Holm and Feskov et al.

References

External links