Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!att!cbnews!military
From: bcstec!shuksan!major@uunet.UU.NET (Mike Schmitt)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Infantry vs. Air Support -- Any problems?
Message-ID: <1990Sep24.001221.22483@cbnews.att.com>
Date: 24 Sep 90 00:12:21 GMT
References: <1990Sep10.053550.5189@cbnews.att.com> <1990Sep14.042342.630@cbnews.att.com>
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From: bcstec!shuksan!major@uunet.UU.NET (Mike Schmitt)

In article <1990Sep14.042342.630@cbnews.att.com>, yngla@ida.liu.se (Yngve Larsson) writes:
> 
> 
> From: yngla@ida.liu.se (Yngve Larsson)
> Does anybody know how the Soviets partition their air assets? I seem
> to recall areas such as "Frontal Aviation" (tactical air), "Long-range
> Aviation" (i.e. their SAC), "Naval Aviation" (mostly long-range
> anti-shipping) and [some term I cannot recall] for Air defense of the
> SU (against strategic strikes, presumably).

  The Soviet Air Force (VVS - Voenno Vozdushnye Sily) has three primary arms: 
      Frontal Aviation (Frontovaya Aviatsiya)
      Long-Range Aviation (Dal'naya Aviatsiya)
      Air Transport (Voenno-Transportnaya Aviatsiya)

  and two secondary arms:
      Fighter Aviation/Air Defense Command
      Naval Aviation


> Is this "Frontal aviation" subordinated to the army at any level (Division,
> Army or Front), thus giving ground commanders more control of air support?

      Normally, only at 'Front' Level will a 'ground commander' also command
      the air forces.  For instance, the CINC GSFG's forces include not only
      the ground Armies but also the 16th Tactical Air Army.

      Frontal Aviation is divided into sixteen Tactical Air Armies.  An Air
      Army is divided into divisions - each with a specific role (bomber,
      fighter, recce, etc).  Each Air Division is comprises three regiments,
      each regiment operating a single type aircraft.  Each regiment has
      three squadrons - 12 aircraft make up a squadron.  

   I suspect that, even though recent Soviet military publications expound on
   close cooperation between air and ground forces ("all arms coordination")
   that it's not very successful and/or too unwieldy to ever be very 
   successful.    

       mike schmitt