Russian Airborne Troops

The strength of Russia’s airborne troops stands at about 45,000 men

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First formed before World War II, the force undertook two significant airborne operations and a number of smaller jumps during the war. Photo: Russian airborne troops landing, 1944

Defense of Moscow during World War II. A group of airborne troopers mining a railroad, 1941

From 1944 the airborne divisions were reconstituted as Guards Rifle Divisions. Photo: paratroopers of the Transcaucasian military district, 1974

Airborne forces in the USSR were the first in the world with their own armoured vehicles and self-propelled artillery. Photo: combat training of paratroopers in the Sverdlovsk region, 1975

The most large-scale combat airborne operation in the USSR Armed Forces after the Great Patriotic War was the 5th Panjshir offensives 1982 (Afghanistan)

Russian Airborne Troops were the part of the UN peacekeeping forces on the territory of the former Yugoslavia. Photo: the first group of the Russian blue berets battalion at Klisa airport (Croatia), April 22, 1992

Troopers actively participated in the first and second Chechen campaigns. Photo: Russian airborne troopers after the operation in the Vedeno district of Chechnya, July 31, 1996

Airborne combat vehicles in Grozny, November 8, 1996

In 1996, the number of Russian peacekeepers in the UN force in the former Yugoslavia reached 1600 people

Russian paratroopers patrol, April 29, 1995

Russian paratroopers have extensive experience of training in the Arctic

Preparation of Russian airborne units for landing on the island of Novaya Zemlya and Franz Josef Land

Parachute landing during a military drill in the Primorsky territory, 2015

A landing operation conducted near the naval base of Baltiysk as the final stage of the Russian Baltic Sea Fleet naval exercises, 1996

Russian Army commandos during a military exercise at Dubrovichi military range. The drill is being held in preparation for the 2015 International Army Games

Paratroopers performing during the Open Sky festival to mark the 101st anniversary of the Russian Air Force

The Airborne Troops Day is traditionally marked in Russia on August 2. On that day in 1930, a team of 12 paratroopers were for the first time parachuted during military exercises near the city of Voronezh in southern Russia. Now, the strength of Russia’s airborne troops stands at about 45,000 men. The history of Russian airborne troops - in photo gallery by TASS.