| • Science | • People | • Locations | • Timeline |
The VVS was founded as the "Workers' and Peasants' Air Fleet" in 1918. After being placed under control of the Red Army, with the official denomination VVS in 1930, its influence on aircraft design became greater.
One of first big tests of the VVS came in 1936 with the Spanish Civil War, where the latest aircraft designs were put to the test by up-to-date German aircraft. Early victories by the I-16 fighter were squandered because of the limited use of that fighter. German Bf-109s arriving later in the war secured air superiority for the Nationalist cause.
In 1939, the VVS used its bombers to attack Finland, but the losses inflicted on them by the relatively small Finnish army showed the shortcommings of these forces, mainly due to the purges by Stalin in the 30's.
The main reason of the great amount of aircraft lost was the lack of modern tactics, but time to improve them was short, because the German offensive of 1941 ( Operation Barbarossa) pushed the airforce into a defensive position, while being confronted with more modern German aircraft.
As with many allied countries in the Second World War the Soviet Union received western aircraft by lend-lease.
During the Cold War the VVS was divided into three segments: Dal'naya Aviatsiya (Strategic Aviation), or DA, focused on long-range bomberA bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground targets, primarily by dropping bombs. For other uses of the word bomber see bomber (disambiguation). Strategic bombers are primarily designed for long-range strike missions against strategic targets; Frontovaya Aviatsiya (Frontal Aviation), or FA, focused on battlefield air defense, close air support, and interdiction; and the Voyska protivovozdushnoy oboronystrany (Air Defense Forces), or Voyska PVOVoyska PVO (Russian: , or PVO Strany until 1981) was the air defense branch of the Soviet military. PVO is short for Protivo-Vozdushnaya Oborona or "Anti-Air Defense. Unlike Western air defense forces, PVO Strany was a branch of the military unto itself,, focused on air defense and interceptor aircraftAn interceptor aircraft (or simply interceptor is a type of fighter aircraft designed specifically to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft, particularly bombers. A number of such aircraft were built in the period starting just prior to World War II and en.
The Russian Navy has its own airforce, the Aviatsiya Voenno Morskogo Flota (Naval Aviation), AV MF.
The VVS Aircraft inventory of 19871987 is a common year starting on Thursday. Events January January 1 Nunavut's capital changes it name to Iqaluit from Frobisher Bay. January 3 Aretha Franklin becomes the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. January 4 An Amtrak train comprised: