50th Rocket Army
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The 50th Red Banner Rocket Army (Military Unit Number 55135) was an army of the Soviet Strategic Rocket Forces. It was created in 1960. Its first commander was General Lieutenant Feodor Dobish (ru:Добыш, Фёдор Иванович). Its headquarters was located in Smolensk.
It was formed in September 1960, in accordance with the directive of the General Staff of the Soviet Armed Forces based on the 50th Air Army Long Range Aviation.[1]
Successive titles
- Air Forces of the Kalinin Front[2] (from October 17, 1941), Military unit 49707;
- 3rd Air Army (May 5, 1942);
- 1st Army Long Range Aviation (April 9, 1946), Military unit 55135 (after 04.1946);
- 50th Air Army (Long Range Aviation) (February 20, 1949);
- 50th Rocket Army (August 1, 1960);
From November 1951 to July 1957 the army included the 144th Fighter Aviation Division with its headquarters at Mogilev, Mogilev Region, Byelorussian SSR. The division's 439th Fighter Aviation Regiment was flying MiG-15s and MiG-17s during that period from Zyabrovka, Gomel Oblast.[3]
In the mid-1950s the Army included two Guards Heavy Bomber Aviation Corps, the 51st, including Tupolev Tu-4s, and the 79th, each with two divisions, and the 144th Fighter Aviation Division.[4]
By September 1, 1960, the 50th Rocket Army had 46 medium-range rocket launchers on combat duty, and a year later their number had reached 144. By January 1, 1963, there were 296 launchers, by January 1, 1964, 330 (26 of them were mines), and by February 3, 1965, the program for the deployment of the north-western missile grouping was completed, which began to make up 351 launchers.[5]
Operation Anadyr
In 1962, elements of the 50th RA were sent to Cuba to participate in Operation Anadyr, among them:
- 79th Guards Rocket Regiment with R-12 missiles (regiment commander Lieutenant Colonel I. S. Sidorov, deputy commander Lieutenant Colonel F. Z. Khachaturov);
- 1018th RTB (Chief of RTB, Lieutenant Colonel I. V. Shishchenko, Chief Engineer Major E. M. Orlov);
- The 1st Rocket Divizion of the 428th Rocket Regiment with R-14 missiles (division commander Lieutenant Colonel V. T. Polishchuk);
- 1st Assembly Brigade (chief lieutenant colonel Bazanov from rtb colonel Balin).
The first missile regiment to arrive, in record time, on October 20, 1962, took up combat duty 79th Guards Rocket Regiment under Lieutenant Colonel I.S. Sidorov. And on October 28, all 36 launchers were prepared for launch.