Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces Sergei Surikin. Behind the scenes war: quiet opposition to Commander-in-Chief Surovikin has matured in the Russian Aerospace Forces

For several days now, news has been spreading in the media that the Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces has been appointed and that General S.V. Surovikin will become him. He will take this post instead of General Viktor Bondarev. The Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces has received a new assignment and will work in the Federation Council. The former commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces will work with the committee in the field of defense and security and is currently preparing to take up a new position. The new appointment of the commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces and the reshuffle in the leadership were not accepted by everyone unequivocally.

How did the military personnel in the Aerospace Forces react to the appointment?

The military personnel of the Aerospace Forces reacted especially negatively to this appointment. Although the dismissal of Bondarev, the commander of the Aerospace Forces, is also due to the fact that his leadership was distinguished by an increased number of air accidents. But unlike his predecessor, Sergei Surovikin never had anything to do with the air force; for most of his military career he commanded motorized rifle formations, and in recent years he led the work of a detachment in Syria. According to the pilots, entrusting the command of the Aerospace Forces to a person who has no experience at the controls of an aircraft is an extremely reckless decision.

Air Force Major General Aleksandr Tsialko also took this news without much enthusiasm. In his opinion, the commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces must be a professional in his field. With such assignments, it often happens that the commander first has to be taught basic knowledge. It will be difficult for him to delve into the documents, the organization of work and simply understand the life of the pilots. The command of such troops is trained in specialized military educational institutions.

It is precisely because of the incompetence of the leadership that there are cases of pilots dying while on duty. The commander of the Aerospace Forces must listen to his deputies in order to avoid mistakes in leadership. Tsialko believes that Surovikin will not always do this. Therefore, problems cannot be avoided.

It's no secret that pilots don't like infantry. This happens not because of great pride, but because you need to understand the flying business. Pilots have their own special language for orders. Thanks to this, generals assign all the necessary tasks to their subordinates. For this reason alone, the new VKS Group may have problems with interaction and management.

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What is known about the new boss

Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces S.V. Surovikin went through a difficult military path. His biography has difficult moments. The new head of the Aerospace Forces is 50 years old, he is a career professional military man who graduated from the military combined arms command school located in Omsk. Sergei Vladimirovich began his service during the Soviet army. Immediately after graduating from college, he was sent to serve in Afghanistan. He served during the war on the territory of Tajikistan, as well as in the North Caucasus. In 2002 he graduated from the military academy under the General Staff.

In the period 2002-2004, he headed the 34th motorized rifle division stationed in Yekaterinburg. Then he served as part of the 42nd division during the military operations during the military conflict in the Republic of Chechnya. There he held mainly command positions and took part in the work of the headquarters. Since October 2013, he has led military formations within the Eastern Military District. Since 2017, he has led the work of Russian troops in Syria. He has military awards and was awarded orders such as “for courage” and “for courage.”

In the 90s in Tajikistan, at the risk of his life, he delivered military equipment and personnel to ensure the elimination of the serious consequences of a natural disaster in the affected regions of this country. Many of the general's colleagues speak of him as an experienced and professional military man.

But not everything is so smooth in the biography of the future commander-in-chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces. There was a moment in his life when he was taken into custody after the death of civilians. This happened in 1991, when he was still captain of the Toman division. By order of the State Emergency Committee, he was to participate in restoring order in troubled Moscow. On the night of August 21, he was given the order to break through the barricades of civilians posted at the Garden Ring. He led a convoy of infantry fighting vehicles. As a result of the clash, three picketers were killed.

After this tragedy, he was forced to spend seven months in “Matrosskaya Tishina”, but, subsequently, the charges were dropped, and the rank was promoted to major, with the light hand of Boris Yeltsin.

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Another incident occurred with Sergei Surovikin in 2004. His subordinate wrote a report to the prosecutor's office about his commander beating him because of an incorrect vote in the elections, and a month later his subordinate shot himself. But in both cases the guilt of the division commander was not proven.

Creation of the Military Police

Sergei Vladimirovich Surovikin was at the origins of the creation of the military police structure, it was he who opened this structure. The powers of this unit include the activities of the FSB and military counterintelligence. Military police not only carry out patrol tasks, but also carry out operational activities. The military personnel of these units are also required to monitor the maintenance of the guardhouse.

By creating this structure S.V. Surovikin was supposed to become its head, but due to the fact that a long-standing criminal record came to light, for which he received a 1-year suspended sentence, his candidacy was withdrawn from consideration.

His criminal record stems from a case in which he was found guilty of firearms trafficking. Later it turned out that he had been framed, his criminal record was expunged, but the prosecutor’s office did not forget such an incident. The chief military prosecutor of the Russian Federation opposed his candidacy and in 2011, in his letter to the Minister of Defense, he expressed his position. The Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Federation, in order to avoid conflict, sent Surovikin to the post of Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Eastern Military District.

Last appointment

Information that Surovikin will be appointed commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces has been discussed among military personnel for a long time. It is believed that he received this appointment after his excellent work carried out during the Syrian conflict. Despite the fact that he is a typical ground commander, he managed to organize the work of aviation, air defense systems, space forces and motorized rifle formations.

Two other candidates were considered for this position:

1. Lieutenant General Igor Mokushev;
2. representative of the space forces Alexander Golovko.

S.V. Surovikin was not considered with particular seriousness among possible candidates. Both candidates went through their military career and were associated with activities in the field of missile and air forces, but on this issue the choice was made for other reasons.

The pilots did not want to see the candidacy of Alexander Golovko. Since at the time of the creation of the Aerospace Forces, the Rocket and Space Forces very actively began to develop the budget allocated to the entire structure. For this reason, Golovko, as a representative of the rocket and space forces, was not the best option. Therefore, the choice not in his favor only made Air Force representatives happy.

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General Sergei Surovikin was chosen due to the fact that he has extensive combined arms experience. In such a position, a representative of one type of military will experience difficulties. The example of his predecessor Viktor Bondarev is indicative. There is an opinion that the commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces, Lieutenant General Viktor Bondarev, is leaving precisely because of the plane crash that happened in 2016 in Sochi. This tragedy influenced the decision not in his favor.

For Surovikin, the news of the appointment also came as a surprise, but he has good experience in commanding various types of troops and acts as a good manager. Therefore, despite all the complexity, there is hope that he will understand this issue perfectly, as he has always done. Due to the fact that the Aerospace Forces is becoming a real inter-military structure, it includes not only Air Force troops, but also air defense and space-missile forces. This is a structure that acts in the interests of all troops of the Russian Armed Forces.

Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces
Colonel General

Biography

Since 1983 - in active military service in the Armed Forces of the USSR.

In 1987 he graduated from the Omsk Higher Combined Arms Command School named after M.V. Frunze with a gold medal.

Since 1987 - commander of a motorized rifle platoon, commander of a motorized rifle company, chief of staff - deputy commander of a motorized rifle battalion.

In 1995 he graduated from the Military Academy named after M.V. Frunze with honors. Then he served as commander of a motorized rifle battalion, chief of staff - deputy commander of a motorized rifle regiment.

Since 1998 - commander of the 149th Guards Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 201st Motorized Rifle Division.

Since 1999 - chief of staff - deputy commander of the 201st motorized rifle division.

Participant in the armed conflict on the territory of the Republic of Tajikistan, participant in the Second Chechen War, participant in the military operation in the Syrian Arab Republic.

In 2002 he graduated from the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation with honors.

Since June 2002 - commander of the 34th motorized rifle division.

Since June 2004 - commander of the 42nd Guards Motorized Rifle Division.

Since 2005 - Deputy Commander, Chief of Staff, since April 2008 - Commander of the 20th Guards Combined Arms Army.

From October 2008 to January 2010 - Head of the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.

From January to July 2010 - Chief of Staff - First Deputy Commander of the Volga-Ural Military District.

From July to December 2010 - Chief of Staff - First Deputy Commander of the Central Military District.

From December 2010 to April 2012 - Chief of Staff - First Deputy Commander of the Central Military District.

From April to October 2012 - head of the working group on the formation of the Military Police of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.

Since October 2012 - Chief of Staff - First Deputy Commander of the Eastern Military District.

From October 2013 to October 2017 - Commander of the Eastern Military District.

On December 8, 2017, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation for courage and heroism shown while performing military duty in the Syrian Arab Republic.

Awarded the Order of St. George IV degree, Courage, “For Military Merit” and a number of medals.

The Ministry of Defense has selected the main contenders for the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces (VKS). The candidacies of two military leaders are being considered: Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Chairman of the Scientific and Technical Council of the Ministry of Defense, Lieutenant General Igor Makushev and Commander of the Space Forces, Colonel General Alexander Golovko. It is noteworthy that Colonel General Sergei Surovikin was initially nominated for this post. His appointment could become a sensation, since Surovikin is a combined arms commander.

As the Ministry of Defense told Izvestia, the final choice between Alexander Golovko and Igor Makushev will be made in the very near future, since the current commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces, Colonel General Viktor Bondarev, will leave to work in the Federation Council by the end of September. Both candidates are honored military leaders and have extensive leadership experience.

Lieutenant General Igor Makushev was born on August 6, 1964 in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. In 1985, he graduated from the Chernigov Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots, and in 2006, from the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.

He has a reputation as an accomplished fighter pilot and combat commander. Makushev went through all the steps of the career ladder - from pilot to deputy commander of the air army. He is qualified as a sniper pilot and has over 3 thousand flight hours. As deputy commander of the 16th Air Army, he took part in the operation to force Georgia to peace in August 2008. Igor Makushev became known to the general public when in the summer of 2014 he presented at briefings the position of the Russian military department in connection with the death of the Malaysian Boeing 777.

In his current position, General Makushev solves the problems of scientific substantiation of promising areas for the construction, development, training, use and support of the Armed Forces.

Unlike Makushev, the second candidate did not come from the flight personnel, but from the space forces. Colonel General Alexander Golovko was born on January 29, 1964 in Dnepropetrovsk. Graduated from the Kharkov Higher Military Command and Engineering School of Missile Forces (1986), the Military Academy named after. F.E. Dzerzhinsky (1996), Military Academy of the General Staff (2003).

From 1986 to 2001, he served in various command and engineering positions in military units of the Main Test Center for Testing and Control of Space Facilities named after. G.S. Titova (GITSIU KS). In 2007, he headed the GITSIU KS, and in 2011 he became the head of the Plesetsk cosmodrome. In December 2012, Golovko was appointed commander of the Aerospace Defense Forces.

According to Izvestia, until recently the main contender was considered the commander of the Eastern Military District (EMD), Colonel General Sergei Surovikin. True, according to some reports, he himself refused this position. After all, even the very fact of considering the candidacy of a “land” general became a kind of sensation in military circles.

Sergei Surovikin graduated from the Omsk Higher Combined Arms Command School in 1987, and later from the Academy. M.V. Frunze and the Military Academy of the General Staff. He went through all stages of his officer's career. In the 1990s he served in Tajikistan in the 201st Motorized Rifle Division, and in the 2000s he commanded the 42nd Guards Division in Chechnya. In 2012, he led the working group of the Russian Ministry of Defense on the creation of military police. In October 2013, Surovikin was appointed commander of the Troops of the Eastern Military District.

The reason for nominating Surovikin for the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces was that he commanded a group of troops in Syria, where he managed to effectively integrate ground forces, aviation, air defense systems and a space group into a single system.

The fact that the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force, Colonel General Viktor Bondarev, will be delegated to the Federation Council from the Kirov Region became known in July of this year. Bondarev has held the position of Air Force Commander-in-Chief since May 6, 2012. Colonel General was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces on August 1, 2015. It was under him that the Air Force turned into the Aerospace Forces due to the integration of the Aerospace Defense Forces into them.