Russia’s Baltic Fleet hosts CIS air defence exercise

RTR Russia TV, Moscow
8 Apr

[Presenter] Joint exercises of the air defence forces of CIS countries
have taken place at a naval base of the Baltic Fleet. Crews of Russian
warships demonstrated their hardware to guests, while commanders
practised joint actions in the even of a threat.

Marina Naumova reports from Kaliningrad Region.

[Naumova] The air defence commanders of the armed forces of Armenia,
Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and other CIS countries decided not to drive into
the main naval base of the Baltic Fleet but to walk into it. Despite
the protocol, the generals set off on foot for ships on combat
duty. Representatives of those countries which do not have their own
navies showed particular interest towards destroyers.

[Unidentified officer] Ships carry out combat duty in turn to ensure
air defence of the Baltic base, well, their own area of stationing, in
the stipulated readiness to open fire.

[Naumova] According to experts, the Baltic Fleet is the ideal base for
training assemblies of members of the council of the joint air defence
system of CIS countries. Strike aviation, land- and ship-based systems
of tracking and destroying air targets are concentrated here. Each of
the warships is part of the air defence system. All fighting hardware
has been set up on board the flagship to show how it works. Missiles
are being delivered to launchers.

A series of training episodes to repel an enemy in the air using the
air defence forces of the ship were demonstrated on board the
destroyer. The main part of these forces is the Uragan air defence
missile system.

The range at which such a missile can hit air targets attains 25
km. The warhead’s homing system is itself capable of correcting the
course. In just a few seconds, the notional target is destroyed.

[Vladimir Bashtayenko, first deputy chief of staff of the air force
and air defence force of Belarus] We were more interested in the air
defence component. Everything has been coordinated. The senior
assistant for air defence clearly set tasks to find and destroy air
targets.

[Naumova] Designer Yakov Bezel has already visited ships of the Baltic
Fleet. He has been designing automatic systems of tracking and
destroying air targets for 45 years.

[Yakov Bezel, designer-general of the automatic control system of the
Russian air defence forces and air force] Our system, air defence
systems – they are the most modern in the world. No-one else has them,
whether they lay claims to that or not.

[Correspondent] At the air defence command post, the guests were shown
how the coordination of all navy forces is being ensured. Airspace is
being controlled from here not only over Kaliningrad Region, but over
the whole of the western direction.

[Murezin Otashev, head of the command post of the air force and air
defence force of the Baltic Fleet] Crews are very well trained,
because they constantly accompany their air targets and those of
bordering countries. The number of flights is very high. Therefore,
the level of professional skills of the crews is high.

[Correspondent] Next time, the air defence commanders of the armed
forces of CIS countries will meet at the Ashuluk military range in
Astrakhan Region.

It is planned to hold there full-scale exercises of air defence forces
in the conditions of increased difficulty with launches of target
missiles at extremely low altitudes.

[070629-070904 Video shows a ship in a port, officers walking, officer
briefing other officers, two radars, guns and other hardware of a
ship, missile being fired from a ship, Bashtayenko speaking, officers
visiting a ship, Bezel speaking, officers working on computers,
electronic equipment, Otashev speaking, ground-based air defence
systems.] 06