Soviet Ground Forces
From Worldatplay
The Soviet Ground Forces is the land-based component of the Soviet military. It is the largest and most politically influential Soviet service. Senior Ground Forces officers hold all important posts within the Ministry of Defense as well as the General Staff. The Ground Forces has 2 million men, organized into four combat arms and three supporting services.
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[edit] Rocket Troops and Artillery
The Rocket Troops and Artillery have been an important combat arm of the Ground Forces because of the Soviet belief that firepower has tremendous destructive and psychological effect on the enemy. The Ground Forces has eighteen artillery divisions, in addition to the artillery and missile units organic to armies and divisions. Artillery and surface-to-surface missile brigades are attached to each combined arms or tank army. An artillery regiment and a surface-to-surface missile battalion are parts of each Soviet motorized rifle and tank division. The Rocket Troops and Artillery man 1,400 "operational-tactical" surface-to-surface missile launchers.
The Rocket Troops and Artillery have approximately 30,000 artillery pieces; of these, 10,000 are capable of firing conventional high-explosive, nuclear, or chemical rounds. Since the 1970s, this powerful combat arm has fielded more than 5,000 self-propelled 122mm and 152mm howitzers, 152mm and 203mm guns, and 240mm mortars. These artillery pieces, which are mounted on tank chassis, have replaced some towed artillery pieces. The Rocket Troops and Artillery also have truck-mounted multiple rocket launchers, each with forty tubes, to provide massive fire support for the Ground Forces.
[edit] Air Defense of Ground Forces
The Ground Forces relinquished control of air defense for their field formations in 1948 when the National Air Defense Forces - later renamed the Air Defense Forces - became an independent armed service. In 1958, however, Soviet air defense was decentralized again, and the Ground Forces acquired antiaircraft guns and formed tactical air defense units. In the 1960s, air defense became an integral combat arm of the Ground Forces. Since then, Air Defense of Ground Forces has been independent from the Air Defense Forces, although coordination of their respective operations remains necessary.
Air Defense of Ground Forces is equipped with a potent mix of antiaircraft artillery as well as surface-to-air missiles to defend Ground Forces units against attacking enemy aircraft. During the 1970s, the Soviet military introduced five new self-propelled air defense and radar systems into its force structure. Air Defense of Ground Forces operate 5,000 surface-to-air missiles and 12,000 antiaircraft guns organized into brigades, regiments, and batteries. Combined arms and tank armies have air defense brigades equipped with high-altitude SA-4 surface-to-air missiles. Motorized rifle and tank divisions have air defense regiments with the mobile SA-6 or SA-8 for medium- to low-level protection. Ground Forces regiments have SA-9, SA-13, and ZSU-23-4 antiaircraft gun batteries. Motorized rifle and tank battalions have surface-to-air missile platoons equipped with new low-altitude, shoulder-fired SA-16 and older SA-7 missiles.
[edit] Chemical Troops, Engineer Troops, and Signal Troops
The Chemical Troops, Engineer Troops, and Signal Troops are independent branches that provide support to all the military services, but principally to the Ground Forces. The chiefs of these services report directly to the minister of defense. Units of the Chemical Troops, Engineer Troops, and Signal Troops respond to the in-branch chief regarding administrative and technical matters but are operationally subordinate to the commander of the formation to which they are attached. Chemical Troops, Engineer Troops, and Signal Troops are organized into battalions and companies within armies and divisions.
The general mission of the supporting troops is to facilitate the advance of the Ground Forces and to eliminate obstacles blocking their path. The Signal Troops operate tactical radio and wire communications networks and intercept enemy signals for combat intelligence purposes. They also operate strategic underground cable, microwave, and satellite communications systems. The Engineer Troops are principally combat engineers. They operate the self-propelled bridging vehicles and amphibious ferries that tanks and armored vehicles depend on to cross deep rivers. In wartime the Engineer Troops would also clear mines, anti-vehicle obstacles, and battlefield debris for the Ground Forces.
The mission of the Chemical Troops is to defend the armed forces against the effects of "weapons of mass destruction" - nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) weapons. With 50,000 soldiers, the Chemical Troops constitute the world's largest NBC defense force. The Chemical Troops would perform NBC reconnaissance; mark contaminated areas; and decontaminate personnel, weapons, and terrain during wartime. They operate 30,000 armored combat vehicles equipped for NBC reconnaissance and truck-mounted systems equipped to spray decontaminating solutions on the surface areas of tanks, combat vehicles, and aircraft. The Chemical Troops demonstrated the use of helicopters for NBC defense during the large-scale radiation cleanup operation after the Chernobyl nuclear reactor accident in April 1986. The Chemical Troops do not operate offensive delivery systems, tet the strength of Soviet chemical defense provides an offensive potential by enhancing the ability of Soviet forces to fight on contaminated battlefields. Thus, supported by the Chemical Troops, Soviet forces are better prepared than any other in the world for NBC operations.
