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// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhy was the Caspian Flotilla's party a splash? It was a fleet-ing success.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Caspian fleet)

Caspian Flotilla
Russian: Каспийская флотилия
Kaspiyskaya flotiliya
Great emblem of the Caspian Flotilla
ActiveNovember 1722 – present
Allegiance
Branch Russian Navy
Role
Size
  • c. 12-16 surface combatants
  • 8 landing craft
  • c. 6 minesweepers
  • 3 anti-saboteur boats
Part of Russian Armed Forces
Garrison/HQ
Engagements
Decorations Order of the Red Banner
Commanders
Current
commander		Rear Admiral Oleg Zverev
Notable
commanders
The Caspian Sea

The Caspian Flotilla (Russian: Каспийская флотилия, romanized: Kaspiyskaya flotiliya) is the flotilla of the Russian Navy in the Caspian Sea.

Established in November 1722 by the order of Tsar Peter the Great as part of the Imperial Russian Navy, the Caspian Flotilla is the oldest flotilla in the Russian Navy not operating in a body of water connected to the open ocean.[citation needed] In 1918, the fleet was inherited by the Russian SFSR then the Soviet Union in 1922, where it formed part of the Soviet Navy and was awarded the Order of the Red Banner in 1945. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Caspian Flotilla and most of its vessels were inherited by the Russian Federation.

The Caspian Flotilla's headquarters are in Astrakhan, but were historically in Baku (now in Azerbaijan) from 1867 until 1991, with additional facilities in Makhachkala (HQ being moved there)[1] and Kaspiysk.[2] The current commander is Rear Admiral Oleg Zverev.

History

[edit]

Russia's presence on the Caspian Sea can be traced to the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich (1645-1676) who sought to expand trade relations between Russia and Persia (now Iran) in the 17th century and protect trade routes along the Volga Route. However, the Caspian Flotilla (CF) itself was formally created in November 1722 in Astrakhan by order of Peter the Great. Led by the admiral Fyodor Apraksin, it participated in Peter's Persian campaign of 1722–1723 though most of the gains made during that conflict were subsequently lost.[3]

During the reign of Catherine the Great a Russian naval presence was reestablished, assisting the Russian army in capturing Derbent and Baku during the Persian Expedition of 1796. As a result of the Treaty of Gulistan of 1813 which ended the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813), the CF remained the only naval flotilla in the Caspian Sea. Baku, an ice free port, became the Flotilla's main base in 1867.[4]

Russian Revolution and Civil War

[edit]

As the situation on the Caspian Sea stabilized the number of ships in the CF began to decrease. By the beginning of the 20th century, it had two gunboats and a few armed steamers. The sailors of the CF were actively engaged in the revolutionary movement in Baku in 1903–1905 and establishment of the Soviet authority in 1917 in that region.[citation needed]

In order to provide assistance to the Red Army, they formed the Military Fleet of the Astrakhan Region (Военный флот Астраханского края, or Voyenniy flot Astrakhanskogo kraya) in April – June 1918, reinforced with torpedo boats and submarines from the Baltic Sea in the fall of 1918. On October 13, the Soviets renamed it to the Astrakhan-Caspian Military Flotilla (Астрахано-Каспийская военная флотилия, or Astrakhano-Kaspiyskaya voennaya flotiliya). The ships of the flotilla were captured by the counterrevolutionary Centrocaspian Dictatorship in August 1918 and later regained by the Soviets after the overthrow of the Musavat government.[citation needed]

The British Royal Navy was active in the Caspian Sea in support of White forces. The British established a flotilla composed of local vessels and vessels that could be transported overland through Persia. By May 1919, with a victory at the Battle of Alexandrovsky Fort, the Royal Navy had succeeded in driving the Bolsheviks from the Sea and up the Volga River. However, once the Civil War ended with victory for the Bolsheviks, Red forces re-established full control in the region.[5]

Soviet era

[edit]

In July 1919, the Astrakhan-Caspian Military Flotilla was combined with the Volga Military Flotilla (Волжская военная флотилия, or Volzhskaya voyennaya flotiliya) and renamed to the Volga-Caspian Military Flotilla (Волжско-Каспийская военная флотилия). On May 1, 1920, the Soviets established the Caspian Fleet, which comprised three auxiliary cruisers, ten torpedo boats, four submarines and other ships.[citation needed]

Together with the Caspian Fleet, there was the Red Fleet of the Soviet Azerbaijan, stationed in Baku, as well. Both fleets completed the conquest of the Caspian Sea from the White Army. In July 1920, Caspian and Azerbaijani fleets were combined into the Naval Forces of the Caspian Sea (Морские Силы Каспийского моря, or Morskiye Sily Kaspiyskogo morya) and would later be renamed to the Caspian Flotilla on June 27, 1931.[citation needed]

Like all elements in Soviet society, the navy was decimated by the Stalin purges of the 1930s. At least 30 percent of the Soviet Army and Navy officer corps, including three of the four fleet commanders, were arrested and shot or sent to the gulags. These encompaassed officers in the Caspian Flotilla, including at least one former commander, Grigory Kireyev.[6][7][8][9]

During the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945, the Caspian Flotilla secured vital sea shipping of army units, military equipment and different cargo, especially during the Battle of Stalingrad and the battle for the Caucasus. (During the war, some of the military resources provided through Lend Lease were shipped to the USSR via the Persian Corridor and the Caspian Sea).[citation needed]

During the Cold War the Caspian Flotilla was used to test missile armed ekranoplanes.[citation needed]

Under the Russian Federation

[edit]

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the flotilla shrank. With Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan joining to found the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the CIS navy officials proposed to keep the flotilla under joint CIS command. However, the idea did not materialize, and on 16 April 1992, the countries agreed in Baku to divide the flotilla with its 50 small and medium-size vessels, bases, a navy school and buildings, which was in sharp contrast to protracted dispute between Russia and Ukraine over splitting the Black Sea Fleet. Azerbaijan initially claimed 75 percent of the flotilla but later settled for less, while Turkmenistan expressed a desire to keep the flotilla united.[10] The Kazakh contingent was removed to serve as a basis for Kazakhstan's naval service. For several years, Russia continued to lead a joint Turkmen-Russian force based at Astrakhan.[citation needed]

[edit]

Among the Flotilla's units, from 2000, has been a new Naval Infantry brigade, the 77th, based at Kaspiysk. The headquarters and two battalions of the brigade were scheduled to be established by August 1, 2000.[11] It was reported in June 2000 that the new brigade, which had inherited the lineage of the disbanded 77th Guards Motor Rifle Division, formerly with the Northern Fleet,[12] was to have its troops housed in Kaspiysk and Astrakhan and have as many as 195 combat vehicles and one Gepard class frigate sent to it from Chukotka and the Northern Fleet, respectively.

The brigade was to have helicopters added to it, according to the June 2000 report. The Brigade's full name was the 77th Detached Guards Moscow-Chernigov Order of Lenin, the Red Banner, Order of Suvorov Marine Brigade. It was disbanded in 2009.[13]

The brigade had comprised its headquarters at Kaspiysk; the 414th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion (Kaspiysk); the 725th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion (Kaspiysk); the 727th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion (Astrakhan); the 1200th Detached Reconnaissance Battalion (Kaspiysk); the 1408th Independent Howitzer Artillery Battalion; the 1409th Independent Howitzer Artillery Battalion; the 975th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion (Kaspiysk); the 1387th Detached Air Defence Missile and Artillery Battalion; and the 530th Detached Electronic Countermeasures Company.

In Dagestan, a regiment of the marine infantry (the 177th) was formed on December 1, 2018, as part of the Caspian Flotilla of the Southern Military District (YuVO). It was reported that the new formation was fully staffed with modern weapons and military equipment, including BTR-82A armored personnel carriers, 120-mm self-propelled mortars 2S9 Nona, 122-mm howitzers D-30, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) "Eleron" and "Orlan".[14]

The regiment has been heavily engaged in the War in Ukraine. In September 2025, elements of the regiment were reported operating in eastern Ukraine and at that time concentrating with other units, from the 40th, likely the 61st, the 155th and the 336th naval infantry brigades, in the area southwest of Kostyantynivka.[15]

Modernization of the Flotilla & operations in Syria, Ukraine and support of Iran

[edit]

The flotilla has received 3 new Buyan-class stealth type river gunboats built by the St. Petersburg Almaz shipyard.[16]

On November 13 and 23, 2009, there were two separate sets of explosions at the 31st Arsenal of the Caspian Sea Flotilla, an ammunition depot, in Ulyanovsk. Ten servicemen died.[17] The depot was to be closed.

The first Russian warship equipped with the Caliber missile system entered service with Caspian Flotilla in 2012.[18] On October 7, 2015, Russia's Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu announced that four Russian Navy warships in the Caspian Sea had fired a total of 26 Kalibr-class cruise missiles at the positions of the terrorist group ISIL in Syria.[citation needed]

Up to 2020, further enhancements in the capabilities of the Caspian Flotilla were announced. In 2019, it was announced that an aviation component would be added to its capabilities involving the deployment of Be-200 aircraft and Mi-14PB helicopters with the Flotilla.[19] Further air support is drawn from 4th Air and Air Defence Forces Army (HQ: Rostov-on-Don) in the Southern Military District.[20] In 2020, the deployment of the Bal coastal defence missile system with the Flotilla was also announced.[21]

The ships of the Caspian flotilla parade in Astrakhan in 2012

As of 2016, 85 percent of the Caspian Flotilla consists of modern ships and vessels. In 2014–2015, Flotilla received 3 Buyan-M missile corvettes, one modernized frigate and auxiliary vessels.[22] On September 20, 2016, Rear Admiral Igor Osipov was replaced by Rear Admiral Sergey Pinchuk.[23]

On March 20, 2022, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed that ships of the CFL had fired Kalibr-class cruise missiles at a Ukrainian fuel and lubricant depot in Kostiantynivka, Mykolaiv Oblast, supported by air-launched Kh-47M2 Kinzhal hypersonic missiles.[24]

On 17 June 2022, a photo emerged of the ship Veliky Ustyug being towed on the Volga River in a damaged state. The Buyan-M-class corvette had participated in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[25][26]

On November 6, 2024, Ukraine launched a drone attack on the Caspian Flotilla with an A-22 reportedly damaging the Gepard-class frigates Tatarstan and Dagestan and one Buyan-class corvette in the Kaspiysk naval base.[27][28][29]

On May 7, 2026, Ukraine carried out strikes on a number of key Russian military assets, including a Russian Karakurt-class corvette at its Caspian Sea base. [30]

During the 2026 Iran war, Russia's links with Iran through the Caspian assumed strategic importance with Moscow using the route to both resupply Iran and develop alternative routes for Iran to circumvent the American blockade of Iran's Persian Gulf/Indian Ocean coastline.[31] Israel's destruction of Iranian naval assets on the Caspian in March 2026 indirectly enhanced the position of the Russian Flotilla as the major naval force on the Sea.[32] In July 2026, and based on Iran's support for Russia, Ukraine began attacking Iranian merchant vessels on the Sea with drone strikes.[33]

Ships in service

[edit]

Additional smaller Russian Coast Guard patrol boats, including up to 11 vessels of the Mangust-class, are tasked to the Caspian Sea region, though some may have been transferred to the Black Sea. In total, as of 2025, the Russian Coast Guard was reported to deploy about 27 patrol vessels of various types in the Caspian Sea.[59]

For a broader list of Russian navy patrol vessels see: List of active Russian Navy ships#Patrol boats. For a list of Russian coast guard patrol vessels see: Russian Coast Guard#Vessels in service

  • Auxiliaries

For a list of Russian navy auxiliaries, including those of the Caspian Flotilla, see: List of active Russian Navy ships#Auxiliaries

Commanders

[edit]

Soviet Union

[edit]
Rank Name Year
Fyodor Averichkin [ru] 1931-1932
Gordey Levchenko 1932-1933
Grigory Kireyev 1933-1934
Flagman 2nd Rank Dmitry Isakov [ru] 1934-1938
Captain 2nd Rank Vladmir Sumin 1938
Arseny Golovko 1938-1939
Rear-Admiral Fyodor Sedelnikov [ru] 1940-1944
Vice-Admiral Fyodor Zozulya 1944-1946
Rear-Admiral Nikolai Abramov [ru] 1946
Admiral Stepan Kucherov 1946-1948
Rear-Admiral Grigory Oleynik [ru] 1948-1951
Vice-Admiral Georgy Kholostyakov [ru] 1951
Vice-Admiral Aleksandr Kuzmin [ru] 1951-1954
Rear-Admiral Serafim Chursin [ru] 1954-1955
Vice-Admiral Grigory Oleynik [ru] 1955-1956
Vice-Admiral Aleksandr Kuzmin [ru] 1956-1960
Vice-Admiral Grigory Oleynik [ru] 1960-1967
Rear-Admiral Georgy Chernobay 1967-1971
Rear-Admiral Yaroslav Kudelkin 1971-1973
Rear-Admiral Leonid Ryabtsev 1973-1977
Vice-Admiral Hamid Gasimbayov 1977-1984
Rear-Admiral Vasily Tolkachev 1984-1987
Vice-Admiral Vladimir Lyashenko 1987-1991

Russia

[edit]
Rank Name Year
Vice-Admiral Boris Zinin [ru] 1991-1996
Vice-Admiral Vladimir Masorin 1996-2002
Vice-Admiral Yuri Startsev 2002-2005
Vice-Admiral Viktor Kravchuk 2005-2009
Vice-Admiral Sergei Alyokminsky 2010-2014
Captain 1st Rank Ildar Akhmerov 2014-2015
Rear-Admiral Igor Osipov 2015-2016
Vice-Admiral Sergei Pinchuk 2016-2021
Vice-Admiral Aleksandr Peshkov 2021-2024
Rear-Admiral Oleg Zverev 2024-present

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ "ЦАМТО / Новости / Завершился первый этап перебазирования Каспийской флотилии в Махачкалу".
  2. ↑ "ЦАМТО / Новости / На Каспийской флотилии завершено обустройство нового причального фронта".
  3. ↑ "Caspian Military Flotilla". vpk.name. November 16, 2022. Retrieved July 8, 2026.
  4. ↑ "Caspian Military Flotilla". vpk.name. November 16, 2022. Retrieved July 8, 2026.
  5. ↑ Stokes, Simon (August 2010). "Naval Actions of the Russian Civil War Part 1 pp. 14-17" (PDF). ptdockyard.com. Retrieved July 8, 2026.
  6. ↑ Hill, Alexander (2017). "The Red Army and the Second World War p. 60" (PDF). Armies of the Second World War. Retrieved June 15, 2026.
  7. ↑ Bedard, Stephen (April 23, 2025). "The Bloody Culling: Stalin's Purges of the Soviet Military". Stephen J Bedard.com. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
  8. ↑ Carlson, Mark (December 2023). "The Explosion that Built the Soviet Navy". US Naval Institute Naval History. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
  9. ↑ Zakharov, Alexei; Sonin, Konstantin (December 2024). "The Anatomy of the Great Terror: A Quantitative Analysis of the 1937-38 Purges in the Red Army" (PDF). bfi.uchicago.edu. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
  10. ↑ Jeff Berliner (April 16, 1992). "CIS republics divide Caspian Sea fleet". United Press International.
  11. ↑ AVN Military News Agency, 'Chief of Staff Supervising Marine Brigade formation', June 5, 2000
  12. ↑ Feskov et al. 2004
  13. ↑ Бригаду морской пехоты заменят два батальона[link removed] (in Russian)
  14. ↑ "На Каспийской флотилии сформирован полк морской пехоты : Министерство обороны Российской Федерации".
  15. ↑ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, September 10, 2025". Institute for the Study of War. September 10, 2025. Retrieved September 25, 2025.
  16. ↑ "21630 Buyan Small Artillery Ship | Russian Military Analysis". Warfare.be. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
  17. ↑ "Major fire at Russia arms depot". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
  18. ↑ "Caspian Flotilla Commissions New Corvette".
  19. ↑ "Russia's Caspian Flotilla Gains an Air Arm". RealClearDefense. May 29, 2019.
  20. ↑ "Russia's Military Capabilities in the Caspian".
  21. ↑ "Russian Caspian Flotilla Receiving Bal Missile System". January 30, 2020.
  22. ↑ "ЦАМТО / Новости / Каспийская флотилия на 85% оснащена новыми кораблями и судами".
  23. ↑ Контр-адмирал Пинчук назначен на должность командующего Каспийской флотилией [Rear Admiral Pinchuk appointed Caspian Flotilla commander]. TASS (in Russian). September 20, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2016.
  24. ↑ "«Калибры», выпущенные с Каспия, уничтожили топливный склад на Украине". AiF (in Russian). March 20, 2022. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
  25. ↑ "Russian Buyan-M Corvette Sustained Significant Damage by Ukrainian Drone Strikes". Global Defense Corp. June 26, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
  26. ↑ "Російський ракетний корабель, що був пошкоджений ЗСУ, помітили при буксируванні Волгою". Militarnyi (in Ukrainian). December 17, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
  27. ↑ "Updated: Ukraine hits Russian naval base in Dagestan for first time, source says". The Kyiv Independent. November 6, 2024. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  28. ↑ Axe, David (November 13, 2024). "A Ukrainian Drone Motored 700 Miles And Blasted Three Russian Warships In One Blow". forbes.com. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
  29. ↑ @Gerashchenko_en (November 6, 2024). "Reports appeard that two warships were hit in Russian Kaspiysk. The "Tatarstan" and "Dagestan" missile ships were reportedly damaged in a drone strike on the Caspian Fleet in Dagestan. Small missile ships of Project 21631 Buyan-M were also damaged" (Tweet) – via X (formerly Twitter).
  30. ↑ https://euromaidanpress.com/2026/05/07/russian-karakurt-missile-corvette-just-got-hit-at-its-caspian-sea-base-days-after-another-one-was-struck-in-baltic/#google_vignette
  31. ↑ "Russia and Iran use Caspian Sea trade route to aid Tehran's drone program - NYT". Jerusalem Post. May 9, 2026. Retrieved July 10, 2026.
  32. ↑ Shumlianskyi, Dmytro (March 24, 2026). "Israeli Strike Destroys Half of Iran's Warships in the Caspian Sea". militarnyi.com. Retrieved July 10, 2026.
  33. ↑ Sukri, Azhar (July 26, 2026). "Ukraine strikes Iranian vessels in Caspian Sea, Tehran accuses Kyiv of 'hostile and criminal act'". CNBC. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
  34. ↑ Борисов, Максим (April 2, 2025). "Ракетные «Буяны» и «Гепард» Каспийской флотилии открыли огонь из артиллерии АК-177 и зениток «Оса-МА-2»". «Первый технический» - www1.ru (in Russian). Retrieved December 6, 2025.
  35. ↑ "На Каспийской флотилии стартовали зачетно-тактические учения". РИА Новости (in Russian). August 19, 2025. Archived from the original on September 24, 2025. Retrieved December 6, 2025.
  36. ↑ "On the Caspian Sea, tensions between Russia and Azerbaijan are rising". aze.media. August 11, 2025. Retrieved October 14, 2025.
  37. ↑ Cook, Ellie (November 6, 2024). "Ukrainian Drones Strike Russian Fleet's Caspian Hideout". Newsweek. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  38. 1 2 "Russian Navy warships hold drills in Caspian Sea".
  39. ↑ "Russian Caspian Flotilla Begins Ocean-2024 Naval Exercises". Caucasus Watch. September 12, 2024. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  40. ↑ "Russian Caspian Flotilla Begins Ocean-2024 Naval Exercises". Caucasus Watch. September 12, 2024. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  41. ↑ Van Lokeren, Frederik (February 3, 2026). "Russian Naval Operations - Weekly Situation Report - Week 06/2026". Russian Fleet Analysis. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
  42. ↑ "On the Caspian Sea, tensions between Russia and Azerbaijan are rising". aze.media. August 11, 2025. Retrieved October 14, 2025.
  43. ↑ Malyasov, Dylan (June 17, 2022). "New photos show damaged Russian corvette after Ukrainian forces attack". Defence Blog. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  44. ↑ "On the Caspian Sea, tensions between Russia and Azerbaijan are rising". aze.media. August 11, 2025. Retrieved October 14, 2025.
  45. ↑ Litnarovych, Vlad (October 1, 2025). "Russia Turns Back to 1990 Hulls: Strelok Corvette Relaunched With Missile Upgrade". United 24 Media. Retrieved October 14, 2025.
  46. ↑ Grotnik, Tomasz (July 31, 2024). "Russia launches new variant of Tarantul-class corvette". Naval News. Retrieved September 9, 2025.
  47. ↑ Xavier, Will (July 28, 2026). "Ukraine reports successful retaliatory drone strike on Russian warship in Caspian Sea". Baird Maritime. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
  48. ↑ "Russian Caspian Flotilla Begins Ocean-2024 Naval Exercises". Caucasus Watch. September 12, 2024. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  49. ↑ "Замглавы ОСК Королев: новейшие достижения науки в первую очередь реализуются на флоте".
  50. ↑ "Russian Caspian Flotilla Begins Ocean-2024 Naval Exercises". Caucasus Watch. September 12, 2024. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  51. ↑ "Coastal minesweeper - Project 1265".
  52. 1 2 "The crews of the Russian Navy and the Kazakh Navy successfully completed tasks during a joint exercise in the Caspian Sea : Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation".
  53. ↑ Abbasova, Vusala (May 19, 2021). "Russia, Kazakhstan Hold Joint Naval Drills in Caspian Sea". Caspian News. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  54. ↑ "Inshore minesweeper - Project 10750".
  55. ↑ "Yevgenya Class Minesweepers". russianships.info. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  56. ↑ "697TB Class Minesweepers". russianships.info. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  57. ↑ "Anti-saboteur boats - Project 21980".
  58. ↑ "Patrol boats - Project 03160".
  59. ↑ "Russian Federation Coast Guard 2025". Russian Ships Info. March 31, 2025. Retrieved November 12, 2025.
  60. ↑ "Landing craft Project 21820 Dyugon". Russian Ships Info. Retrieved November 7, 2025.
  61. ↑ "Landing craft Project 1176 Akula". Russian Ships Info. Retrieved November 7, 2025.
  62. ↑ "Air-Cavity Landing Craft Project 11770 Serna". Russian Ships Info. Retrieved November 7, 2025.
[edit]
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