Operation "Caucasus". Soviet rocket men in Egypt
It's nice that the publication of some articles, especially those related to our recent past, provoke a response from readers. There are a lot of people among the readers of our publication who either themselves took part or knew those who took part in any operations. It is clear that secrecy for quite a long time did not allow them to tell even their relatives about these events.
It happened with a recent publication about the operation "Anadyr". One of the readers, Viktor Nikolaevich, wrote in the comments that he had the opportunity to participate in a similar operation in the 1970 year. In fact, it was this comment that became the starting point for today's story. True, the author of the commentary served in a slightly different incarnation. He was a military adviser. But in contact with the rocket engineers tightly. Therefore, I considered it important to remind this feat of the Soviet soldier.
The end of the 60s was characterized by a violent confrontation between Israel and Egypt. Both countries sought to occupy a dominant position in the region. The Israelis, by that time, completely refused to cooperate with the USSR and went "under the wing" of the United States. The Arabs, in particular, and Egypt, on the contrary, began to develop relations with the Soviet Union.
In 1967, during the Six Day War, Israel inflicted a crushing defeat on Egypt. To estimate the scale of Egyptian losses, we give some figures. The coalition of the Arab countries lost in 6 days up to 40 people killed, wounded and captured. Over 000 were destroyed or captured. tanks1 artillery barrels. Arab aviation lost over 400 aircraft!
The offensive of the Israelis was so rapid that during this short war Israeli units and formations captured the Sinai Peninsula, the Gaza Strip, the Golan Heights and the West Bank.
In principle, the resistance of the Arabs was suppressed. The region became not just a time bomb, but a blazing bonfire. The flames of this campfire could spread anywhere. What we have repeatedly seen in subsequent years. The USSR was forced to respond.
10 June The Soviet Union broke off diplomatic relations with Israel and sent a warning to Tel Aviv about the need to end hostilities and resolve the conflict by peace negotiations. And to better understand the situation, the ships of the Northern and Black Sea fleets were sent to the shores of Egypt, which, as part of the operational squadron, practically blocked the region.
A Soviet Marine Corps was landed in Port Said. And on top of that, a squadron of Tu-16 strategic bombers with nuclear weapons on board. The fighting stopped the same day. The opposing sides stopped on the line of the Suez Canal. Front stabilized.
It was necessary to restore the Egyptian army. The Soviet Union began a massive supply of military equipment and weapons to Egypt. It was then that many Soviet officers went on missions in the region. It was necessary not only to supply equipment, but also to train the Egyptian army to use these weapons.
The task was solved by the end of 1968. The new army of Egypt has become modern. And this somewhat turned the heads of the country. Cairo decided to start low-intensity hostilities. The calculation was, from the point of view of the Egyptians, correct. Resources of the Arab countries and Israel were not comparable. A war of attrition would ultimately lead to the defeat of Tel Aviv. In fact, the war began in March 1969. But officially, Egypt announced a cease-fire commitment only in April.
What was behind the term "war of attrition"? In reality, these were constant shelling of the east bank of the Suez Canal with long-range artillery. Egyptian aviation raids on Israeli positions. "Air Hunt", when Arab pilots attacked enemy planes and destroyed them during short skirmishes. In addition, the Egyptian "commandos" were activated. Groups of saboteurs constantly destroyed objects in the rear of the Israeli troops.
Naturally, the Israelis could not tolerate such a situation. Despite the fact that superiority in artillery in particular and military equipment in general, Egypt was overwhelming.
The response to the insolent actions of Cairo became air raids on the Arab positions of Israeli aviation. The effectiveness of the raids was so great that at the end of July 1969, the Egyptians sharply reduced the intensity of the shelling. The fact is that in the Israeli army, the principle of the obligatory response has operated and is still in effect. Simply put, any artillery attack, any sabotage, any shelling should be punished. And as fast as possible.
For example, let's take the work of the Israeli aviation 20-24 July 1969. On the Suez Canal, 7 divisions CA-75M were deployed to cover the artillery batteries from the airstrikes. They were located in Suez, Port Said and Ismailia. After several launches, 6 from the 7 divisions were completely destroyed in four days. That is how effective the work of the Israeli aviation.
In addition, the Israelis moved their blows to the rear of the enemy. Now strikes were inflicted not only on military targets, but also on civilians vital for Egypt. The Israeli Air Force constantly "hung" over the Egyptian cities conducting reconnaissance and identifying targets for subsequent attacks. The first aircraft of the Phantom F-1969 (according to the Israeli Kurnass classification) were put into service (September 4 of the year). In addition, the Israeli Air Force was equipped with Skyhawk and Mirage 4С aircraft.
The population of Egypt was demoralized. Realizing that an air strike could be made at any time, the Egyptians began to talk more and more about the need not only to stop the war, but to change the country's political course. So, to shift the president Gamal Abdel Nasser. Egypt could "explode from the inside."
In early December 1969, Nasser secretly arrived in Moscow. The goal is to persuade Brezhnev to send troops to Egypt and create a missile shield from enemy aircraft. Moreover, Nasser offered any concessions, any actions on the part of Egypt. Up to entry into the ATS. In the end, the Egyptian president convinced the Soviet leadership. It was decided to help the "brotherly Egyptian people." But, given our relationship with the United States, the action was supposed to take place without a pump.
In such a situation, the operation of the Soviet Army began, which entered its history codenamed "Caucasus". That is how it was named in the order of the USSR Minister of Defense Marshal A. A. Grechko. The essence of the operation was to create an air defense system in Egypt based on regular units and subunits of the Soviet Army. The initial actions of the USSR consisted in the formation of a special air defense division from the active units and the subsequent dispatch to Egypt. Marshal of the Soviet Union PF Batitsky, commander-in-chief of air defense, personally set tasks for an operational meeting at the headquarters of air defense forces.
The basis of the future Egyptian air defenses should have been made up of various 18-th special anti-aircraft missile division brigades. 13 January 1970 of the year issued an order for its formation and combat coordination. The assigned division commanders received personnel and equipment and were sent to the landfills in Ashuluk and Yangalzh for combat shooting at low-flying targets.
The 18 division included:
—1-I ZRBr (559 ZRP), commander Col. B. I. Zhayvoronok;
—2-I ZRBr (582 SFR), commander Lieutenant Colonel N. A. Rudenko;
—3-I ZRBr (564 SFR) commander Major V. A. Belousov;
—4-I ZRBr, commander Colonel Shumilov (already in Egypt, the brigade was reduced to one division, which made it possible to increase the number of divisions in the other brigades to 8).
Under the command of the division commander, Major-General A. G. Smirnov, there were 24 anti-aircraft missile division, 4 technical division, 2 technical batteries, 24 air defense platoon, 3 full and 1 reduced maintenance, tuning and repair work Shilok.
March 2, 1970 the division began to be sent to Alexandria. The brigades were delivered to the port of Nikolaev and distributed to civilian vessels. For the delivery of the division, 16 merchant ships were involved. fleet. Each ship took on board 2 S-125 divisions along with equipment and personnel, as well as a certain amount of equipment and personnel of other units. On the upper deck there were only tractors, cars, generators and Shilka (covered with tarpaulin). The personnel and missile launchers were loaded into holds.
According to the established scheme, the soldiers and officers of the Soviet Army became "civilian" people. The captains of the ships did not know the route. With the passage of certain points, the next packet was opened. Moreover, even the pilots were not allowed on the bridges of ships. And on the upper deck officers were on duty with weapons. In order to prevent desertion or attempts to contact someone. There was a closed order to shoot to kill anyone who made at least an attempt to jump overboard.
It should be noted here that, despite all the precautions, the secrecy of the operation was not respected. Enemy reconnaissance knew perfectly well about all the actions of our units, about their composition and missions. Moreover, the Americans and Israelis openly mocked our efforts to maintain secrecy. So, immediately after entering the Mediterranean Sea, an American carrier-based fighter appeared over the very first transport. "Agricultural machinery" was not particularly interested in him. It was a "demonstration of knowledge". Israeli radio in Russian in the news constantly reported on the advancement of Soviet transports with the latest secret missiles to Alexandria. It’s a paradox, but our soldiers and officers were the least enlightened in this matter.
5 March. The first Rosa Luxemburg transport entered the port of Alexandria, which unloaded on the night of March 6. Brigade Zhayvoronka already in the evening 6 March began the march. In the evening, 7 March began its deployment at Cairo West. 18-I special division began to carry combat duty in the Egyptian sky. What Israeli radio leaders laughed at, the new 125-e complexes, will soon become a worthy opponent for Israeli aviation. A small, but formidable rocket will be a terrible dream for the Phantom pilots.
Immediately after arriving in Alexandria, the soldiers and officers changed into Egyptian military uniforms without insignia. It was assumed that subordinates should know all the commanders and superiors in person. However, in reality it turned out that the divisions and units lost control in many respects. The soldiers simply did not know how to react to the next "commander".
This led to some confusion at the port of discharge. The speed of unloading, the rapid redeployment of equipment and weapons in the hangars, the presence of many unfamiliar officers, led to confusion of personnel. And this, in turn, was the cause of the "loss" by units of its weapons and technical equipment. The columns left, and the cars "were" later. Some “lost girls” spent weeks wandering in foreign divisions.
The issue with the commanders was resolved brilliantly in Russian. Unlike private and non-commissioned officers, officers began to wear jackets. Now anyone could see if the jacket was tucked into a soldier's trousers. And vice versa.
Equipment position for launchers process is quite long. That is why a special team dealt with this issue long before the appearance of the division in the Egyptian sands. But it is more interesting for us to learn about what soldiers face in such conditions.
The fact is that the feature of this theater is sandy ground. That is, the equipment of traditional shelters and communications in Egypt is simply impossible. The sand is crumbling, and all the work goes down the drain. But even when visually there are shelters, after the first burst of ammunition everything turns into useless dunes.
It was then that our fighters met with the local kind of dugout - Malga. Malga was equipped simply. In any recess was established skeleton of reinforcement. Then the walls of the frame were lined with sandbags. Then it was necessary only to sprinkle the resulting structure again with sand from the nearest sand dune. Masking perfect. But, protection in the event of serious shelling, useless. A close-blasted ammunition "pierced" the malga, like butter knife.
However, many of those who were in Egypt remember the malga as a home. Especially those who were seconded to the Egyptian units. They lived in dugouts for months. The only inconvenience, except for shelling, is a deserted living creature. Geckos and other lizards lived quite comfortably in the Malgo. And did not cause inconvenience. Unless, of course, falls from the ceiling on the face in a dream. But scorpions, phalanxes, tarantulas and other insects ... It is necessary to shake up the bed, clothes and everything that needed to be worn over. Even half an hour after you take off your pants or jacket, there will already be a scorpion tired of the sun and will perceive your invasion as aggression.
In the channel area there is another attack. These are flies and huge red mosquitoes. And in the reservoirs of many parasites. The usual bathing of two fighters in the channel turned for them sending home and disability. About dysentery and other delights of this kind and do not write. Everyone understands that the body of a Soviet person is not well adapted to local diseases. According to the recollections of the participants in the events, he rescued the old soldier’s method - alcohol.
The story of a special division would not be complete without combat episodes. Just because for the "fright" of very competent Israeli pilots, grounds were needed. And the beginning of the work of the Soviet air defense was quite dramatic. And in no way connected with the Israelis.
The fact is that the Egyptian aircraft were equipped with the Soviet system of their own-alien "Silicon-1". 26 December 1969 of the year in Ras Gariba Israeli DRG captured right at the airfield and took the Egyptian reconnaissance and target designation station P-12PM by helicopter. Silicon-1 system requester was in the hands of Americans. And then the Israelis. Arabs continued to use "Silicon-1". On the Soviet air defense system, there were new systems "Silicon-2".
14 March 1970 of the year to the position of the battalion N. M. Kutintseva received a signal about the detection of a low-flying goal on the airfield. Chief of Staff 86 ZRBr Rzheussky asked for the presence in the air of their aircraft. The Egyptians reported that they were not in the air. After that, at the command of Rzeussky, the division worked with two missiles on the target. The plane was shot down. The pilots died.
As it turned out, Russian Egyptian reconnaissance aircraft IL-28BM was shot down by Russian missiles. The plane was returning from a mission over the Mediterranean Sea. Guilty made, of course, Soviet officers. Lieutenant Colonel Rzheussky received a warning about incomplete office compliance from the Minister of Defense.
This case is not the only one. The agility of the pilots and aviation services of Egypt simply amazed our missilemen. So, March 18 were shot at by arrows covering two aircraft. The Strela-2 MANPADS anti-aircraft gunner from the platoon of the C-125 battalion in Alexandria launched a An-24 civil aircraft at an altitude of about 1000 meters. The shooter did so by executing the order, which was brought to him just a day before. "Airplanes flying below 6 km and closer to 25 km should be considered enemy planes and destroyed."
In another division, the Su-7B UAR fighter-bomber fired. The pilot violated all orders and entered the division's area of responsibility. And the plane went straight to the position. The anti-aircraft gunner performed the launch and hit the target. The pilot was also able to land the car, as in the case of the An-24 with a damaged engine. But the Arab pilots "began to respect" the Russian air defense.
Now about the episodes of combat work, which discouraged the Israeli pilots from testing the strength of Soviet air defenses.
5 July 1970 of the year 10 ZRDN CA-75M and 3 ZRDn C-125 first met in real combat with 24 enemy planes. At three o'clock in the afternoon, a group of 14 aircraft attacked the positions of the rocket men. The Israeli "Phantoms" of 69 squadron divided into two groups. The shock group of three pairs was at a low altitude on the Soviet position.
The division of Lieutenant Colonel S. K. Zavenitsky performed two starts. As a result, one of the Kurnass was shot down. The rest left the battlefield and left the shelling zone.
Egyptian CA-75M opened fire on aircraft of other groups. They became the authors of another victory over "Kurnass." Thus, the result of the first raid was the loss of two "Phantoms" by the Israelis. But, as mentioned above, Israeli pilots always paid off debts. Therefore, in the 16 watch began the second raid by a group of 10 aircraft. This time, the Phantoms decided to attack the CA-75M who were standing in ambush. Two divisions met the group with fire in the forehead. Worked not only rocket launchers, but also anti-aircraft artillery. 69 squadron lost another Phantom.
After this raid, the Israelis for a short time died down their ardor. The command began to look for ways to counter the new missiles.
Probably the hardest fight in this confrontation took place on July 18 1970. Unlike previous "arrogant" attacks, this patina was beautifully designed. Only the most experienced and reputable pilots are selected to participate in it. Almost legends of Israeli aviation: Major Shmuel Hetz (commander of the 201 th air squadron) and Lieutenant Colonel Avihu Ben-Nun (commander of the 69 air squadron).
During the raid, the enemy used an aircraft equipped with means of suppressing the radar of early detection of air defense of the UAR. In principle, the brunt of the attack was on the Egyptian CA-75M. However, a pair of Major Hez went on the attack on the division Tolokonnikova. Moreover, the calculation of the CHP of the division was forced to transfer tracking and control on the 2-th operating frequency. The 1 frequency was jammed with interference.
Tolokonnikov launched two missiles. The plane of Hets, in spite of the anti-missile maneuver, was shot down. The aircraft operator jumped with a parachute, and the Hetz himself died trying to reach the airfield.
The position from which the plane was shot down Hez, spotted Ben-Nun. He decided to strike retaliation. However, the anti-aircraft gunners managed to detect the attack and launched the 3-second launch with two missiles. The enemy attempted to conduct an anti-missile maneuver, but a rocket exploded next to the 69 squadron commander's plane. The downed plane was able to reach the base, but was not subject to recovery.
However, Ben-Nun’s slave, Captain Aviam Sela, decided to attack Tolokonnikov’s position at an extremely low altitude. The goal was discovered, but there was not enough time to work out a new capture and firing cycle. NURy and bombs hit right on target. I will continue to refer to the findings of the investigation. Probably, the fragments of exploded ammunition hit the rocket engine. There was a fire burning solid fuel, which turned into a fire. Further, from the standpoint of other divisions, they saw a column of black smoke and heard an explosion. With a characteristic white cloud. Detonated warhead rocket.
The entire launch crew was killed, the driver of the TZM, a soldier from a different settlement, who helped his twin brother. You can and should list these soldiers by name:
- Lieutenant Sumin Sergey Petrovich, senior technician-head of the antenna post;
- Private Mamedov Alshat Heydan-ogly, senior number of the starting calculation;
- Private Didenko Evgeny Fedorovich, driver;
- Private Dobizh Nikolay Vladimirovich, the number of the starting calculation;
- Corporal Zabuga Alexander Anatolyevich, senior battery operator;
- Private Naku Ivan Ivanovich, the number of the starting calculation;
- Private Dovganyuk Nikolay Andreevich, senior number of starting calculation;
Private Dovganyuk Ivan Andreevich, senior number of starting calculation.
The combat history of the special division continued. Rocket-fighters conducted active hostilities from June 30 to August 3 1970. During the battles 8 aircraft destroyed, shot down 3 (figures recognized by Israel). The division’s total losses were 12 men. Of these, combat 8 (this particular battle is described above), 3 people died in accidents and 1 people from the disease.
166 division soldiers were awarded orders and medals. Two, division commanders Nikolai Mikhailovich Kutintsev (on the account of the division according to the Decree on awarding the title of Hero of 11 goals and not a single loss of personnel) and Popov Konstantin Ilyich (in the battle of 3 on August 1970 of the year his division shot down 2 and knocked out one aircraft), were awarded the title of Hero Soviet Union.
This article only covers one side of Operation Caucasus. The story is told only one heroic connection. But during this period in Egypt there were pilots and technicians of the 35 th separate fighter squadron on the Mig-21MP, the 135 th aircraft fighter regiment on the same aircraft, the 63-th separate aviation detachment on the Mig-25P and Mig-25RB. There were military sailors from the 5 of the Mediterranean Operations Squadron. There were sea pilots from the 90-th separate special-purpose reconnaissance air squadron. There were warriors of electronic warfare from the EW Center. There were signalmen from the 513-th separate short-wave communications battalion and VHF communications company. There were military advisers in the Egyptian parts.
It is impossible to forget the fighters who participated in the wars "which were not". Forget victories can not be doubly forgotten. Russia has stood and will stand on this. Our memory is the basis of our strength.
Today we can talk a lot about the expediency of the tasks performed by our soldiers and officers. However, our goal is to pay tribute to the memory and respect to those who executed the order of the Motherland.
The authors strongly recommend all readers to refrain from the modern political component when commenting on this material.
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