General Staff Announces Alarm
On the eve of Defender of the Fatherland Day, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia held a conference call with deputy defense ministers, commanders-in-chief of the armed forces and combat arms, as well as with the heads of central military command bodies and heads of individual defense industry enterprises. The videoconference organized at the Central Command Post of the General Staff was attended by the commanders of the military districts, fleets, armies and commanders of formations and military units. The meeting was dedicated to the results of the readiness check of the troops of the Central and Southern military districts, the Airborne troops, the Air Transport aviation and the 12th Main Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, which was held from February 17 to 21 of this year.The report was made by the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces - First Deputy Minister of Defense, Army General Valery Gerasimov. A feature of this event was the fact of the absolute openness of the military to the public - journalists were allowed to be present when summing up the past exercises from the beginning to the end of the conference call.
The exercises, which took place on the territory of two military districts, where more than 7 thousand troops participated, 70 units of aviation equipment and over a hundred different types of other military equipment, began on Sunday at the initiative of Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu all of a sudden.
The fact that a number of units of the Central, Southern Military Districts, the Airborne Forces and the Military Transport Aviation will be raised in alarm, which was not practiced in fact over the last 20 years, was not known by the Deputy Ministers, or even the commanders of these districts. Almost simultaneously, the operational duty and duty officers of the military units under check were handed packages with the order of the General Staff to bring them to a high degree of combat readiness and to perform combat training tasks. Moreover, in these orders it was prescribed to go to training centers and to training grounds located at a considerable distance from the places of permanent deployment of military units. The transfer of brigades, regiments and battalions was carried out by air, rail and road. Including on their own military equipment.
Today, the NVO publishes a transcript of the report of General of the Army Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces - First Deputy Minister of Defense of Russia, at a conference call at the Central Staff 22 February 2013 of the year.
ARMY GENERAL VALERY GERASIMOV:
“Good morning, dear comrades!
Today at the meeting we will summarize the results of a sudden check of the combat readiness of the troops conducted from February 17 to 21, 2013. The meeting is attended by: deputy defense ministers of the Russian Federation; Commanders-in-chief of the types and commanders of the arms of the armed forces; heads of the central bodies of military administration. The videoconferencing contains the commanders of the military districts, fleets, armies and commanders of proven formations and military units.
MAIN PART
In accordance with the instructions of the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation and the plan of sudden inspections of the combat readiness of troops (forces), the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces planned and carried out surprise checks of a number of military command bodies, formations and military units of the Central and Southern Military Districts, Airborne Forces, Military Transport Aviation and 12-th Main Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
Such a large-scale event in the Armed Forces was held for the first time in the last 20 years.
Practically at the same time, operational duty and duty officers for the military units of the military units being inspected were given packages with orders from the General Staff to bring them to the highest degree of combat readiness and to perform combat training tasks.
Controls were checked against the background of staff training.
The check of the troops was carried out with access to the ranges and training centers located at a considerable distance from the points of permanent deployment. In order to accomplish tasks with access to the designated areas by the troops carried out transportation by air and rail transport and movement under its own power. The Airborne Forces and the BTA units worked out a transfer to another strategic direction.
The formations and military units of the Air Force, moreover, carried out measures to prepare the aircraft for combat use, on the suspension of the first combat kit (aerial bombs and missiles), practical air strikes (bombing) on objects at the test sites.
With the withdrawal of troops in these areas, fire, tactical and special training units were checked. Exercises were carried out, exercises of control firing from combat vehicles and small weapons, test exercises for driving combat vehicles.
About 7 thousands of military personnel, several hundred units of military equipment and 48 aircrafts for various purposes took part in practical actions.
The main feature of this check was its complete surprise for the control bodies and troops being audited. At the same time, the measures taken allowed an objective assessment of the state of combat readiness of the tested compounds, uncover existing problems, and give practice to commanders and all personnel in carrying out tasks for their intended purpose.
Such an approach to organizing troop inspections is the most effective, since it makes it possible to determine the ability of military authorities to make informed decisions on the prevailing combat training situation and really evaluate the practical actions of troops in regular units when performing combat training missions in unfamiliar terrain.
In the course of carrying out activities, the 98 division of the Airborne Forces Airborne Division showed a high degree of training.
After the 20 air transportation was performed by IL-76 aircraft from Ivanovo to the Shagol airfield, the Chebarkul test site marched over 100 km in severe weather conditions (the temperature was 20 degrees of frost) over rough terrain with deep snow.
The coordinated actions of the personnel ensured access to the specified area and further fulfillment of combat training tasks at the firing range.
It should be noted the desire of the paratroopers to perform tasks only "in combat". Constantly reconnaissance was carried out, security was set up on the march and at location on the spot. All the soldiers from soldier to regiment commander were constantly equipped and ready to perform tasks.
There is a good preparation of the flight and technical staff of the 4 command of the Air Force and Air Defense. The measures to bring the aviation units to combat readiness FULL are mainly implemented on time. Practical bombing was performed on “good”, and bombers equipped with modern means of aiming — excellent.
According to the General Staff, this is due to the fact that the intensity of planned training flights has increased, and the involvement of aviation of the Southern Military District to accomplish real tasks according to plan has also increased significantly in recent times.
Using the example of the 4 command of the Air Force and Air Defense, the following conclusion can be made: the more a pilot is in the air and more often performs combat training tasks with a standard combat kit - the more competent and more effective it acts when performing tasks in unfamiliar terrain.
The Su-24M bomber aircraft, equipped with modern specialized computing navigation and aiming systems, showed high efficiency.
The general results of the audit allow us to conclude that the level of training of the military administration bodies and troops, their ability to perform suddenly arising tasks, as well as build up troops (forces) groups in crisis areas.
At the same time, the personnel of the formations and military units showed good training, confident skills in possession of weapons and military equipment, and military control authorities showed high readiness for command and control of troops.
At the same time, a number of systemic deficiencies in the state of alert and the level of training of personnel were revealed.
Thus, in almost all tested organisms, operational duty and duty officers for military units showed weak skills in communicating signals using automated command and control systems. They did not know enough confidently the algorithm of work when receiving an order to bring into high degrees of combat readiness the operational duty officer at the command of the Airborne Forces, duty officer at the 201 military base, which led to exceeding the planned deadlines for bringing combat control signals to subordinate troops. And only thanks to the appropriate training of personnel, the units under check were able to timely remove the equipment from the fleets of combat vehicles and prepare it for combat use.
There is a low level of training of graduates of training centers, especially drivers and driver-mechanics, which led to the exit of equipment when leaving the parks, during the march and when performing combat training tasks. This refers to the 28 th Omsbr Central HE. When executing the test control firing of the BMP-2 armament, permanent delays were allowed due to the state of the equipment, and of the three combat vehicles, the exercise was never completed.
It is necessary to note the low level of the results of the exercises in firing from standard weapons, especially tankers and infantry fighting vehicles. Most units received only satisfactory ratings. At the same time, the weak personal training of graduates of military schools of the 2012 of the year is alarming, and after all these officers need to train subordinate personnel using their example of masterful possession of weapons and military equipment.
Separate consideration requires the state of weapons and military equipment. On the whole, the standard equipment of the tested subunits, which has been in service, has once again confirmed its reliability and adaptability to actions in conditions of low temperatures and deep snow cover.
However, its strength margin is coming to an end, most of the samples have been in use for more than 20 years, the wear of the main units leads to frequent breakdowns, and it takes time to carry out repairs in the field. The check once again confirmed the expediency of the decision taken by the Minister of Defense to restore military repair agencies. At the same time, the level of training of the personnel of the repair units, their organizational structure and the availability of spare parts require further improvement.
These shortcomings were most clearly manifested in the inspection of the BTGr Airborne Forces. The BMD-2 of this unit is outdated morally and physically. The age of cars is 20 – 25 years, and sometimes more. Wear of the main components and assemblies does not allow to use the combat capabilities of this type of equipment for this reason. During the march, two BMD-2 units were out of commission.
A serious problem for the troops is the lack of effective work of repair plants and industrial enterprises. Often, equipment that has undergone major or medium repairs and is under warranty service fails in the first months of operation in combatant units.
The analysis of the identified deficiencies is currently underway. Some of them are presented on the slide and relate to the Mi-8, Mi-24 helicopters, Su-25 airplanes, Msta self-propelled artillery installations, and the P-168-5 radio stations. This list can be continued.
Of serious concern is the presence of a relatively large number of faulty aircraft. The overall percentage of aviation health is 66%.
Prompt resolution of this issue in the restoration and repair of an aviation fleet is the most important joint task of the relevant military authorities and industry. There are relevant instructions of the Minister of Defense in this area of activity to the responsible officials, and our task is to implement all this as soon as possible.
In addition, often the equipment developed by industrial enterprises does not fully meet our requirements. For example, the BMD-4 is, by its mass, at the limit of the capabilities of military transport aviation (14,2 t).
The IL-76 three BMD-4m aircraft are very tight in size, while landing can only be placed inside combat vehicles.
Fighting vehicle "Wolf", developed in the framework of the development work "Punisher-1", does not meet the tactical and technical tasks for 12 indicators, and first of all by weight. The completion time for OCD - 2010 is a year, but so far the shortcomings have not been eliminated, the car has not been submitted for repeated state tests.
In general, I expressed the preliminary opinion of the General Staff on the results of the audit.
More detailed analysis will be carried out after a comprehensive study of the results.
REQUIRED:
1. To the commanders of the Central and Southern military districts, the commanders of the unions, the commanders of the formations and military units that were checked:
analyze the test results, the causes of deficiencies;
draw up plans for rectification of deficiencies and ensure their strict implementation.
2. The Commander-in-Chief of the branches of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the commanders of the military districts, the commanders of the branches of the armed forces of the Russian Federation, and the heads of the central military authorities:
prepare troops (forces) for similar checks of combat readiness;
sudden checks of combat readiness to plan and carry out according to a similar methodology;
prepare proposals for improving the organizational and staff structures of repair units in the troops and increasing their capabilities.
3. Commander of military districts, the Main Directorate of Combat Training of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation:
organize effective control over the training of junior specialists in district training centers;
prepare proposals for the improvement of programs and methods of training junior specialists in subjects of study, make the most of modern training complexes and other ways to intensify the training of personnel.
Information