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EspañolSERBIAN AIR FORCE AND AIR DEFENSE
(Redirected from Serbian Air Force)
The 'Serbian Air Force and Air Defense' consists of a relatively large array of combat aircraft, cargo aircraft, reconnaissance aircraft, UAV, combat helicopters, cargo/utility helicopters, radars and SAMs.
' see: Serbian Air Force History '
The idea to form air forces in the Serbian Army was first mentioned in the General Army Formation Act from August 2 1893. This act envisioned that within each division of the Army of the Kingdom of Serbia be formed one air force balloon company.
Twenty years later, in 1912, a group of Kingdom of Serbia officers were sent abroad to school- to a Pilot Training Program in France. At the same time aircrafts were purchased and by the Act of the Minister of War Marshal Radomir Putnik, on 24 September 1912 an Air Force Command was established in Nis. This places Serbia as one the first 15 states in the world to have had military air force at those times. A year later, during the siege of the town of Skadar, Serbian Air Force had their baptism of fire.
The pilots soon applied the experience gained in the Balkan wars to the WWI battles, thus becoming a worthy opponent to the stronger enemy forces. On 17 September 1915, according to the Julian calendar, that is 30 September in Gregorian calendar, Serbian Air Defense members shot down the first of many enemy airplanes over Kragujevac. This day was by the Act of king Aleksandar I Kardjordjevic proclaimed the Air Defense Artillery Division’s day. At the Thessalonica front line, with the support of the Allied force, Serbian Air Forces were reorganized. First, Serbian-French joint escadrilles were formed, and by the end of 1916 a Nieuport division, while at the beginning and in mid 1918 the First and Second Serbian Fighter Escadrilles were formed.
The period between two world wars was marked by a significant growth of our Air Forces, accompanied by the production of modern and sophisticated air crafts, with then ongoing organizational-formation changes within the Air Force. As of 1924, 2 August, the Saint Elijah day was observed as the patron saint day of Serbian Air Forces, with the Saint Elijah the Lightning bearer as a patron saint of military and other pilots of then existing Yugoslavian Kingdom.
During the April war in 1941, in 9 war days, 145 pilots died in air combats, while 576 members of the Air Force perished on ground. In that period 1416 combat flights were performed, landing 60 enemy air crafts. Especially, the 5. and 6. Fighter regiment pilots showed exceptional their bravery, and also bombers pilots, causing significant casualties to the enemy at airbases in Austria, Hungary and Bulgaria.
After WWII the Air Force underwent several developmental stages, the first major air force modernization being performed from 1953 to 1959. Aircrafts made in the West are introduced thus broaching the era of jet aviation.
With the forming of first helicopter escadrille in 1954 the chopper units were also incorporated within the Air Forces branch. At the beginning of 60-ies supersonic fighters were introduced, followed by intensive growth of Serbian aviation industry in that period. A number of jet planes prototypes were constructed, which served as basis for the development of training fighters and fighter aircrafts, such as ”Galeb” and “Jastreb”, “G-4” and “Orao” and the most advanced fighter air craft MiG-29 was introduced in mid 80-ies.
Since its establishment, the Air and Air Defense Forces has numbered tens of thousands of pilots, more than 5000 air crafts, and four types of missile launching mid-range systems, a number of small-range missile launching systems and 15 radar types.
Air Force and Air Defense is the youngest and the most advanced branch encompassing branches and services whose organization, structure, armaments and equipment are tailored to perform combat activities in aerial atrgets and on the ground. It's tasks are:
★ control over the air space;
★ deterring armed threats from the air and prevention of sudden attacks;
★ air defense of the territory and SAF;
★ providing aircraft fire support;
★ participation in peace keeping operation and in international military cooperation;
★ addressing natural disasters, catastrophes and accidents.
'
204th Air Base'
★ 101. Fighter-Aviation Squadron
★ 252. Mixed-Aviation Squadron
★ 138. Mixed-Transport-Aviation Squadron
★ 1. Reconnaissance Aviation Section
★ 24. Air Force Technical Battalion
★ 17. Air Base Security Battalion
★ 117. Air Force Air Defense Artillery Battalion
'
98th Air Base'
★ 241. Fighter-Bomber-Aviation Squadron
★ 714. Anti-Armored Helicopter Squadron
★ 119. Combined-Arms Helicopter Squadron
★ 2. Reconnaissance Aviation Section
★ 24. Air Force Technical Battalion
★ 161. Air Base Security Battalion
★ 98. Air Base Security Battalion
★ 98. Air Force Air Defense Artillery Battalion
There are also one G-2 Galeb, two G-4 Super Galeb's, one J-22 Orao, one NJ-22 Orao,one MiG-21 Bis, one Lola Utva 75, two Gazelle helicopters, one G-4M Super Galeb and about 100 old aircrafts which belong to Military Test Center(ex Flight Test Center), and they are used for testing, air shows, and are not used for combat purposes.
This is a list of aircraft currently in the Air Force. The exact number of active aircraft is difficult to tell as a constant rotation of aircraft for check ups and fixes are done on a regular basis. Some aircraft listed maybe in bad condition and as of now are not in full service.
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Versions
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Number
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes
|-----
! style="background: #aacccc;" colspan="6"|Combat Aircrafts
|-----
|MiG-21||||Fighter
Trainer
Reconnaissance||MiG-21 Bis
MiG-21 UM
MiG-21 M||21
6
1|| One MiG-21 Bis is at ''TOC''. Many MiG-21's are in bad condition, and perhaps only 10 are operational.
|-----
| J-22 Orao||||Ground Attack
Trainer
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance||J-22
NJ-22
IJ-22
INJ-22||17
7
8
2|| One J-22 and one NJ-22 are at ''TOC''.
|-----
| G-4 Super Galeb||||Fighter Bomber & Trainer
Unarmed Trainer
Target Puller
Prototype||G-4
G-4š
G-4t
G-4M||25
8
2
1|| Only G-4M and two G-4 are at ''TOC''. THe G-4š is unarmed version, and G-4t is target puller.
|-----
! style="background: #aacccc;" colspan="6"|Unarmed Aircrafts
|-----
| Lola Utva 75||||Trainer||V-53||12||To be replaced with new Lasta 95
|-----
| An-2||||Cargo Aircraft||An-2||1|| An-2 is used for paratroop training.
|-----
| An-26||||Cargo Aircraft||An-26||2 (6)||4 An-26 in bad condition are used for parts.
|-----
| YAK-40||||VIP Aircraft||YAK-40||2 || There are 2 more Yak-40's currently not in use.
|-----
| Falcon 50||||VIP Aircraft||Falcon 50||2 || Government VIP transport.
|-----
! style="background: #aacccc;" colspan="6"|Helicopters
|-----
| Mi-8||||Transport Helicopter||Mi-8 T Hip C||36|| Most of them are in bad condition and possibly 10-12 are currently operational.
|-----
| SA.341/342 Gazelle||/||Light Utility Helicopter
Reconnaissance
Anti-Tank Helicopter
Anti-Tank Helicopter||HO-42/45
HI-42 Hera
HN-42M Gama
HN-45M Gama2||29
2
19
11|| Many of them are in bad condition and possibly 30 are currently operational.
|}
'Upcoming Aircraft'
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Versions
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Delivery[2]
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes
|-----
| MiG-29||||Fighter
Trainer||MiG-29 A
MiG-29 UB||3
1|| 1 other MiG-29A is pending an overhaul due to cash shortages[3]
The aircraft will come back with the designation as MiG-29S
|-----
| An-26||||Cargo Aircraft||An-26||1|| Additional 4 to be modernized as well
|-----
| Mi-24||||Attack Helicopter||Mi-24D Hind||2|| The aircraft will come back with the designation as Mi-35 (export version of Mi-24V)
|-----
| Mi-8||||Transport
Multi Role Helicopter||Mi-8T Hip H
Mi-17 V Hip H||3
2||
|-----
| G-4M Super Galeb||||Fighter Bomber & Trainer||G-4M||Unknown|| About one squadron (16 aircraft) will be modernized to G-4M.
|-----
| Lasta 95||||Trainer||Lasta||Unknown|| About one squadron (16 aircraft) or less Lola Utva 95 Lastas will be put in service.
|}
'Withdrawn Aircraft'
★ G-2 Galeb
★ J-21 Jastreb
★ Dornier Do-28
★ Mi-14
★ Ka-25
★ Ka-27
Once one of the largest air forces in Europe, with over 400 combat aircraft and 200 armed helicopters, the air force has been severely degraded due to ten years of war and sanctions.
The Air Force fleet today consists of many Russian and indigenous combat aircraft. Today, the Air Force has 29 Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21s and 5 MiG-29s. The 4 of 5 MiG-29s are to return to service in late 2008, only about three to four MiG-21s are in operation flying regularly at the moment due to the fuel problems. Most of the MiG-21s were purchased in 1977 and additional recon and improved MiG-21 Bis versions were received at around the same time. The MiG-29s were purchased in 1987. All of these MiGs are located at the Batajnica Air Base. The Air Force is looking to replace the MiGs with a new multi-role fighter. The MiG-21s were due to be replaced in the 1990s but were not due to the wars. Recently, Major Vladan Marjanovic, commander of the Serbian Air Force, stated that the MiG-21s in service of Serbia could continue flying all the way until 2010. The Air Force also has many former-Yugoslav aircraft. These combat aircraft included the G-4 Super Galeb and the J-22 Orao. Reliable figures about the number of these aircraft still in service are hard to find but data indicates that there are 16 attack J-22s, 7 trainer NJ-22s, 8 IJ-22s and 2 INJ-22s spy aircraft and about 25 G-4s. This count does not include about 100 aircraft consisting of J-22s, J-21s, G-4s, and G-2s which were withdrawn from service during the 1990s in order for Yugoslavia to conform to the CFE Treaty. The Oraos are located in Lađevci Airbase and nearly all of the Air Force's G-4 Super Galebs were located at Podgorica, and they are now at Batajnica.
The Air Force consists of many cargo aircraft such as the Russian Antonov An-26, the Do-28, and the Yakovlev Yak-40. Only 4 Yak-40s are in the fleet, and it is currently being overhauled for VIP use. Only 1 Do-28 was left in service, and now is in front of Museum of Aviation in Belgrade. 1 or 2 An-26s are in operation today, the rest (4) are stored in hangers, used as spears for spear parts to keep the two operational AN-26 in good condition. The air force is planing to modernized 4 An-26, and they will stay in service until 2014.
Combat helicopters include the SA-341/342 Gazelle, a French-designed helicopter built under license in Yugoslavia at SOKO, which is armed with 2 air-to-air missiles and 4 tank-hunter missiles. Serbia has about 61 examples of these combat helicopters only half are operational. The Serbian Air Force also consists of a very small amount of Mi-8 transport helicopters,2 Mi-17 and 2 Mi-24 attack helicopters. The Mi-24s and Mi-17 are ex-JSO helicopters given to air force from police at 2006. The 2 Mi-24, 2 Mi-17 and 3 Mi-8 helicopters are waiting for modernization. They will be back in service during 2008.
In the past several years, there has been a fuel shortage problem in the Serbian Air Force. According to an Air Forces Monthly, in 2006, the Serbian Air Force is only getting about 20% of the required 1,000 tons of jet fuel per month. Because of this, aircraft don't fly often and pilots don't get enough hours in flying to have an acceptable training environment. Among those who get the worst of the problems are the J-22 Orao pilots. According to Air Forces Monthly, pilots in the "Tigers" squadron (Lead by Dejan Joksimović) of Oraos would be considered lucky to get 10-15 hours of flying in 2006. Pilots manning the QRA (Quick Reaction Alert), which consists of two MiG-21s, quoted to Air Force Monthly that they got "A few hours of flight time in 2005 and 2006." The luckier people of the Serbian Air Force of the problem are the An-26 pilots, the Gazelle helicopter pilots, and the Soko G-4 pilots. G-4 Super Galebs in the Golubovci Airbase in Montenegro were said to be the most active combat aircraft in the whole Air Force, before Montenegro seceded from Serbia on May 22. Pilots of the SA 341/342 Gazelle have been reported to get an average of 20 hours of flight per year according to Air Forces Monthly. AFM says that the An-26 by far the most active aircraft in the whole Air Force. Although most of the An-26s are stored, the aircraft that still fly are kept in flyable condition thanks to spare parts from retired aircraft.
In January 2007, Air Force Monthly reported that the fuel problems have not gotten any better. AFM reported that Serbia is now getting a little more jet fuel than they got in early 2006 but still not the needed amount, the figure for the last 3 months has remained at barely over 20% of the 1,000 tons per month required and the J-22 Orao pilots still are the worst suffering.
In April 2007, Air Forces Monthly reported the fuel problem is still the same and is expected to be stabilized if not totally fixed by the end of 2008 or early 2009 where the air force is expected by then to acquire over 50% of the required 1000 tons a month.
In July, the nation of Montenegro became independent from the state union of Serbia & Montenegro. Because of this referendum, all military machinery, including military aircraft, will stay in their own states rather than all being transported to Serbia. The Podgorica Military Airbase contains 9 G-4 Super Galebs and some Lola Utva 75s in the former Serbia & Montenegro Air Force, however a recent debate has started between Serbia and Montenegro to transport all 9 G-4's to Serbia as Montenegro does not plan to operate an air force due to lack of funds and interest. Serbia operates majority of G-4's, including a G-4M experimental aircraft at Batajnica Flight Test Center.
Shortly after the secession of Montenegro in 2006, Serbia quickly changed the Yugoslav tricolor roundel to a Serbian tricolor by a simple repaint of the existing emblems. Later in 2006, the Serbian government portrayed a new roundel for their air force that will replace the repainted Yugoslav tricolor roundels originally adopted in 1992. The new roundel is composed of a blue trim on the outside rim followed inward by the Serbian national colors red, blue, and white, with a white cross in the center with blue trim. The roundel is based on the Royal Yugoslav Air Force's emblem from the late 1920s to 1940s.
In January 2006, the media briefly reported that 5 MiG-29s under the possession of Serbia were to be repaired and returned to operational service since Serbian MiG-29 operations ceased since April 2004. Previous news states that the work would be carried out by Serbia's Moma Stanojlović overhaul facility along with the company of Mikoyan Gurevich. The plan previously was to repair 2 or 3 of them by fall 2006, and the rest by 2007. As of July, it is now uncertain if Moma Stanojlović will even get apart of the job, facilities in Russia are supposedly more likely to carry out the work. Either way, all MiG-29s will be returned to service latest by end 2008. 1 Antonov An-26, 2 Mi-24s, and 5 Mi-8/Mi-17s will be overhauled as well in a 30+ million Euro project to overhaul the Serbian Air Force, lead mostly by Mlađan Dinkić.
In January 2007, Air Forces Monthly reported that the MiG-29s are still in debate over their overhaul, some military officials argue that they are too old and not worth modernizing because of the high investment, and think that waiting until at least 2010 and probably purchasing some second hand western multi-role aircraft is a better idea. The fate of the 5 MiG-29s looks unstable for now, and some believe it is most likely they will end up being retired. The same goes for the 2 Mi-24 helicopters, but the 3 Mi-8s, 2 Mi-17s, and the 1 An-26 are still scheduled for overhauls.
After two years of uncertainty over the fate of Serbia’s MiG-29s, it has been decided that the overhaul will go ahead as planned. 4 of the 5 MiG-29s have been taken apart and are being loaded to be shipped to Russia; the fifth one is not going to be overhauled because of money shortages, so the last MiG-29 has been put on hold for now. The other MiGs are due to re-enter service in summer 2008 but they are not expected to handle any real combat, just to patrol Serbian air space and to help retire few older MiG-21s.
Some future goals are to reorganize and retrain the air force to operate to NATO standards by 2010. The ministry of defense has planned more funds to be provided to help modernize the air force completely. Organization has already been completed and plans for new aircraft are well under way.
'Modernization'
There are plans to obtain around 20 or more new fighter aircraft to replace the aging MiG-21 fleet that is due to retire around 2010 to the latest, although Serbia does plan to retain its MiG-29s for some time. Plans are also being made to obtain new transport helicopters and aircraft as well. The Air Force will also modernized all G-4 Super Galebs in to G-4M, and it will begin the use to new Lasta 95s Lasta trainer airplanes to replace old Lola Utva 75s as soon as analysis is completed. Currently Serbia is modernizing 4 MiG-29's, 1 An-26, 3 Mi-8's, 2 Mi-17's, 2 Mi-24's, and next year it will modernized 4 An-26's, the last MiG-29 is also planned to be modernized.
These are some possible options for replacement. No formal decision has been made yet on when or what purchases will be made, The ministry of defense is expected to increase its budget in the following years providing assistance in the modernization of the air force. The Air Force will get 20 new multi-role fighters to replace MiG-21's, 15 new helicopters to replace Mi-8's, and five new cargo aircrafts to replace An-26's and An-2.
★ New fighters:
★
★ 20x F-16C/D or JAS 39 Gripen or MiG-35
★ New transport helicopters:
★
★ 15x Super Puma or Euromil Mi-38
★ New cargo aircraft:
★
★ 5x Alenia C-27J
The Serbian Air Force and Air Defense system contains a wide variety of Soviet and Czech models. Most are long range but some short range weapons are employed in infantry units. During the 1999 NATO bombing in Yugoslavia, the Yugoslav Air Defense units brought down several NATO aircrafts. Confirmed are two F-16 Fighting Falcon's, an F/A-18 Super Hornet, and many UAVs, as well as a large number of cruise missiles. The greatest achievement of these units was when the 3rd Battalion of the 250th Missile Brigade under the command of Colonel Zoltán Dani shot down a F-117 Nighthawk Stealth fighter jet using an SA-3. One F-117 Nighthawk is also seriously damaged by Serbian Air Defense and it was withdrawn after landing. Most of the Yugoslav fighter aircraft did not take part in the fighting due to overwhelming superiority in numbers of NATO.
'
250. Air Defense Missile Brigade'
★ Command Battery
★ 1. Air Force Air Defense Missile Battalion - using S-125 Neva (SA-3)s
★ 2. Air Force Air Defense Missile Battalion - using S-125 Neva (SA-3)s
★ 3. Air Force Air Defense Self-Propelled Missile Battalion - using 2K12 Kub (SA-6)
★ 4. Air Force Air Defense Self-Propelled Missile Battalion - using 2K12 Kub (SA-6)
★ 5. Air Force Air Defense Self-Propelled Missile Battalion - using 2K12 Kub (SA-6)
'
126.Center for Air Reconnaissance/Intelligence and Guidance (VOJIN)'
★ Command Company
★ 20. VOJIN Battalion
★ 31. VOJIN Battalion
★ Company for air force-technical and technical maintenance and procurement
The Serbian Air Force and Air Defense is using next systems:
★ SAMs
★
★ 60x S-125 Neva (SA-3)
★
★ 80x 2K12 Kub (SA-6 Gainful)
★ Radars
★
★ P-12 i P-14 Observation radars
★
★ Altitude measurement radar PRV-11
★
★ S-605/654 Observation radars
★
★ S-613 Altitude measurement radar
★
★ TPS-63 Observation radar
★
★ AN/TPS-70 3D radar
★
★ AS-74 i AS-84 automatized systems
★ 'Military of Serbia'
★ ' Air Force of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia / Serbia and Montenegro'
★ 'SFR Yugoslav Air Force'
★ 'Yugoslav Royal Air Force'
1. Serbian AF restructures, , , News, Aircraft Illustrated, 2007
2. "World Military Aircraft Inventory", Aerospace Source Book 2007, ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', January 15 2007.
3. http://www.postchronicle.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?archive=9&num=66222
★ Air Forces Monthly Magazine, Aeroflight
★ Vazduhoplovstvo Srbije na Solunskom frontu 1916-1918, Vladeta D. Vojinovic, 2000
★ Srpska Avijatika 1912-1918; MJV, Sky, EUROSINI; 1992
★ Inventory of Air Force http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/waf/yugo/serbaf_current_inventory.htm
★ http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/waf/yugo/jkrv/yugo-af1-home.htm
★ Serbian Ministry of Defense
★ Official Website
The 'Serbian Air Force and Air Defense' consists of a relatively large array of combat aircraft, cargo aircraft, reconnaissance aircraft, UAV, combat helicopters, cargo/utility helicopters, radars and SAMs.
History
' see: Serbian Air Force History '
The idea to form air forces in the Serbian Army was first mentioned in the General Army Formation Act from August 2 1893. This act envisioned that within each division of the Army of the Kingdom of Serbia be formed one air force balloon company.
Twenty years later, in 1912, a group of Kingdom of Serbia officers were sent abroad to school- to a Pilot Training Program in France. At the same time aircrafts were purchased and by the Act of the Minister of War Marshal Radomir Putnik, on 24 September 1912 an Air Force Command was established in Nis. This places Serbia as one the first 15 states in the world to have had military air force at those times. A year later, during the siege of the town of Skadar, Serbian Air Force had their baptism of fire.
Serbian airplane "Oluj" Balkan Wars
The pilots soon applied the experience gained in the Balkan wars to the WWI battles, thus becoming a worthy opponent to the stronger enemy forces. On 17 September 1915, according to the Julian calendar, that is 30 September in Gregorian calendar, Serbian Air Defense members shot down the first of many enemy airplanes over Kragujevac. This day was by the Act of king Aleksandar I Kardjordjevic proclaimed the Air Defense Artillery Division’s day. At the Thessalonica front line, with the support of the Allied force, Serbian Air Forces were reorganized. First, Serbian-French joint escadrilles were formed, and by the end of 1916 a Nieuport division, while at the beginning and in mid 1918 the First and Second Serbian Fighter Escadrilles were formed.
The period between two world wars was marked by a significant growth of our Air Forces, accompanied by the production of modern and sophisticated air crafts, with then ongoing organizational-formation changes within the Air Force. As of 1924, 2 August, the Saint Elijah day was observed as the patron saint day of Serbian Air Forces, with the Saint Elijah the Lightning bearer as a patron saint of military and other pilots of then existing Yugoslavian Kingdom.
During the April war in 1941, in 9 war days, 145 pilots died in air combats, while 576 members of the Air Force perished on ground. In that period 1416 combat flights were performed, landing 60 enemy air crafts. Especially, the 5. and 6. Fighter regiment pilots showed exceptional their bravery, and also bombers pilots, causing significant casualties to the enemy at airbases in Austria, Hungary and Bulgaria.
After WWII the Air Force underwent several developmental stages, the first major air force modernization being performed from 1953 to 1959. Aircrafts made in the West are introduced thus broaching the era of jet aviation.
With the forming of first helicopter escadrille in 1954 the chopper units were also incorporated within the Air Forces branch. At the beginning of 60-ies supersonic fighters were introduced, followed by intensive growth of Serbian aviation industry in that period. A number of jet planes prototypes were constructed, which served as basis for the development of training fighters and fighter aircrafts, such as ”Galeb” and “Jastreb”, “G-4” and “Orao” and the most advanced fighter air craft MiG-29 was introduced in mid 80-ies.
Since its establishment, the Air and Air Defense Forces has numbered tens of thousands of pilots, more than 5000 air crafts, and four types of missile launching mid-range systems, a number of small-range missile launching systems and 15 radar types.
Tasks
Serbian Air Force officers
Utva 75 is primary trainer aircraft is Serbian AF.
Air Force and Air Defense is the youngest and the most advanced branch encompassing branches and services whose organization, structure, armaments and equipment are tailored to perform combat activities in aerial atrgets and on the ground. It's tasks are:
★ control over the air space;
★ deterring armed threats from the air and prevention of sudden attacks;
★ air defense of the territory and SAF;
★ providing aircraft fire support;
★ participation in peace keeping operation and in international military cooperation;
★ addressing natural disasters, catastrophes and accidents.
Serbian Air Force
Organization of the Serbian Air Froce and Air Defense (click to enlarge)
Organization
'
★ 101. Fighter-Aviation Squadron
★ 252. Mixed-Aviation Squadron
★ 138. Mixed-Transport-Aviation Squadron
★ 1. Reconnaissance Aviation Section
★ 24. Air Force Technical Battalion
★ 17. Air Base Security Battalion
★ 117. Air Force Air Defense Artillery Battalion
'
★ 241. Fighter-Bomber-Aviation Squadron
★ 714. Anti-Armored Helicopter Squadron
★ 119. Combined-Arms Helicopter Squadron
★ 2. Reconnaissance Aviation Section
★ 24. Air Force Technical Battalion
★ 161. Air Base Security Battalion
★ 98. Air Base Security Battalion
★ 98. Air Force Air Defense Artillery Battalion
There are also one G-2 Galeb, two G-4 Super Galeb's, one J-22 Orao, one NJ-22 Orao,one MiG-21 Bis, one Lola Utva 75, two Gazelle helicopters, one G-4M Super Galeb and about 100 old aircrafts which belong to Military Test Center(ex Flight Test Center), and they are used for testing, air shows, and are not used for combat purposes.
Serbian Air Force fleet
This is a list of aircraft currently in the Air Force. The exact number of active aircraft is difficult to tell as a constant rotation of aircraft for check ups and fixes are done on a regular basis. Some aircraft listed maybe in bad condition and as of now are not in full service.
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Versions
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Number
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes
|-----
! style="background: #aacccc;" colspan="6"|Combat Aircrafts
|-----
|MiG-21||||Fighter
Trainer
Reconnaissance||MiG-21 Bis
MiG-21 UM
MiG-21 M||21
6
1|| One MiG-21 Bis is at ''TOC''. Many MiG-21's are in bad condition, and perhaps only 10 are operational.
|-----
| J-22 Orao||||Ground Attack
Trainer
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance||J-22
NJ-22
IJ-22
INJ-22||17
7
8
2|| One J-22 and one NJ-22 are at ''TOC''.
|-----
| G-4 Super Galeb||||Fighter Bomber & Trainer
Unarmed Trainer
Target Puller
Prototype||G-4
G-4š
G-4t
G-4M||25
8
2
1|| Only G-4M and two G-4 are at ''TOC''. THe G-4š is unarmed version, and G-4t is target puller.
|-----
! style="background: #aacccc;" colspan="6"|Unarmed Aircrafts
|-----
| Lola Utva 75||||Trainer||V-53||12||To be replaced with new Lasta 95
|-----
| An-2||||Cargo Aircraft||An-2||1|| An-2 is used for paratroop training.
|-----
| An-26||||Cargo Aircraft||An-26||2 (6)||4 An-26 in bad condition are used for parts.
|-----
| YAK-40||||VIP Aircraft||YAK-40||2 || There are 2 more Yak-40's currently not in use.
|-----
| Falcon 50||||VIP Aircraft||Falcon 50||2 || Government VIP transport.
|-----
! style="background: #aacccc;" colspan="6"|Helicopters
|-----
| Mi-8||||Transport Helicopter||Mi-8 T Hip C||36|| Most of them are in bad condition and possibly 10-12 are currently operational.
|-----
| SA.341/342 Gazelle||/||Light Utility Helicopter
Reconnaissance
Anti-Tank Helicopter
Anti-Tank Helicopter||HO-42/45
HI-42 Hera
HN-42M Gama
HN-45M Gama2||29
2
19
11|| Many of them are in bad condition and possibly 30 are currently operational.
|}
'Upcoming Aircraft'
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Versions
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Delivery[2]
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes
|-----
| MiG-29||||Fighter
Trainer||MiG-29 A
MiG-29 UB||3
1|| 1 other MiG-29A is pending an overhaul due to cash shortages[3]
The aircraft will come back with the designation as MiG-29S
|-----
| An-26||||Cargo Aircraft||An-26||1|| Additional 4 to be modernized as well
|-----
| Mi-24||||Attack Helicopter||Mi-24D Hind||2|| The aircraft will come back with the designation as Mi-35 (export version of Mi-24V)
|-----
| Mi-8||||Transport
Multi Role Helicopter||Mi-8T Hip H
Mi-17 V Hip H||3
2||
|-----
| G-4M Super Galeb||||Fighter Bomber & Trainer||G-4M||Unknown|| About one squadron (16 aircraft) will be modernized to G-4M.
|-----
| Lasta 95||||Trainer||Lasta||Unknown|| About one squadron (16 aircraft) or less Lola Utva 95 Lastas will be put in service.
|}
MiG-21 '101.' Fighter-Aviation Squadron
Serbian J-22 Orao from '241' Squadron.
Serbian Mi-8T cargo helicopter
G-4 Super Galeb's from '252' Squadron.
Serbian Soko Gazelle.
An-2TD of Serbian Air Force
Mi-8T of Serbian Air Force on firefighting mission.
G-4 Super Galeb (unarmed version) of Serbian Air Force painted for Airshows.
Serbian YAK-40
Serbian Soko Gazelle helicopter.
MiG-29 18108 is one of five MiG's that survive the war.
Mi-24 attack helicopter of Serbian Army.
SA-6 Gainful of 250. Air Defense Missile Brigade. The all Kubs and Nevas will be modernized.
'Withdrawn Aircraft'
★ G-2 Galeb
★ J-21 Jastreb
★ Dornier Do-28
★ Mi-14
★ Ka-25
★ Ka-27
Current status
Once one of the largest air forces in Europe, with over 400 combat aircraft and 200 armed helicopters, the air force has been severely degraded due to ten years of war and sanctions.
The Air Force fleet today consists of many Russian and indigenous combat aircraft. Today, the Air Force has 29 Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21s and 5 MiG-29s. The 4 of 5 MiG-29s are to return to service in late 2008, only about three to four MiG-21s are in operation flying regularly at the moment due to the fuel problems. Most of the MiG-21s were purchased in 1977 and additional recon and improved MiG-21 Bis versions were received at around the same time. The MiG-29s were purchased in 1987. All of these MiGs are located at the Batajnica Air Base. The Air Force is looking to replace the MiGs with a new multi-role fighter. The MiG-21s were due to be replaced in the 1990s but were not due to the wars. Recently, Major Vladan Marjanovic, commander of the Serbian Air Force, stated that the MiG-21s in service of Serbia could continue flying all the way until 2010. The Air Force also has many former-Yugoslav aircraft. These combat aircraft included the G-4 Super Galeb and the J-22 Orao. Reliable figures about the number of these aircraft still in service are hard to find but data indicates that there are 16 attack J-22s, 7 trainer NJ-22s, 8 IJ-22s and 2 INJ-22s spy aircraft and about 25 G-4s. This count does not include about 100 aircraft consisting of J-22s, J-21s, G-4s, and G-2s which were withdrawn from service during the 1990s in order for Yugoslavia to conform to the CFE Treaty. The Oraos are located in Lađevci Airbase and nearly all of the Air Force's G-4 Super Galebs were located at Podgorica, and they are now at Batajnica.
The Air Force consists of many cargo aircraft such as the Russian Antonov An-26, the Do-28, and the Yakovlev Yak-40. Only 4 Yak-40s are in the fleet, and it is currently being overhauled for VIP use. Only 1 Do-28 was left in service, and now is in front of Museum of Aviation in Belgrade. 1 or 2 An-26s are in operation today, the rest (4) are stored in hangers, used as spears for spear parts to keep the two operational AN-26 in good condition. The air force is planing to modernized 4 An-26, and they will stay in service until 2014.
Combat helicopters include the SA-341/342 Gazelle, a French-designed helicopter built under license in Yugoslavia at SOKO, which is armed with 2 air-to-air missiles and 4 tank-hunter missiles. Serbia has about 61 examples of these combat helicopters only half are operational. The Serbian Air Force also consists of a very small amount of Mi-8 transport helicopters,2 Mi-17 and 2 Mi-24 attack helicopters. The Mi-24s and Mi-17 are ex-JSO helicopters given to air force from police at 2006. The 2 Mi-24, 2 Mi-17 and 3 Mi-8 helicopters are waiting for modernization. They will be back in service during 2008.
Fuel problems in the Air Force
In the past several years, there has been a fuel shortage problem in the Serbian Air Force. According to an Air Forces Monthly, in 2006, the Serbian Air Force is only getting about 20% of the required 1,000 tons of jet fuel per month. Because of this, aircraft don't fly often and pilots don't get enough hours in flying to have an acceptable training environment. Among those who get the worst of the problems are the J-22 Orao pilots. According to Air Forces Monthly, pilots in the "Tigers" squadron (Lead by Dejan Joksimović) of Oraos would be considered lucky to get 10-15 hours of flying in 2006. Pilots manning the QRA (Quick Reaction Alert), which consists of two MiG-21s, quoted to Air Force Monthly that they got "A few hours of flight time in 2005 and 2006." The luckier people of the Serbian Air Force of the problem are the An-26 pilots, the Gazelle helicopter pilots, and the Soko G-4 pilots. G-4 Super Galebs in the Golubovci Airbase in Montenegro were said to be the most active combat aircraft in the whole Air Force, before Montenegro seceded from Serbia on May 22. Pilots of the SA 341/342 Gazelle have been reported to get an average of 20 hours of flight per year according to Air Forces Monthly. AFM says that the An-26 by far the most active aircraft in the whole Air Force. Although most of the An-26s are stored, the aircraft that still fly are kept in flyable condition thanks to spare parts from retired aircraft.
In January 2007, Air Force Monthly reported that the fuel problems have not gotten any better. AFM reported that Serbia is now getting a little more jet fuel than they got in early 2006 but still not the needed amount, the figure for the last 3 months has remained at barely over 20% of the 1,000 tons per month required and the J-22 Orao pilots still are the worst suffering.
In April 2007, Air Forces Monthly reported the fuel problem is still the same and is expected to be stabilized if not totally fixed by the end of 2008 or early 2009 where the air force is expected by then to acquire over 50% of the required 1000 tons a month.
Montenegrin referendum
In July, the nation of Montenegro became independent from the state union of Serbia & Montenegro. Because of this referendum, all military machinery, including military aircraft, will stay in their own states rather than all being transported to Serbia. The Podgorica Military Airbase contains 9 G-4 Super Galebs and some Lola Utva 75s in the former Serbia & Montenegro Air Force, however a recent debate has started between Serbia and Montenegro to transport all 9 G-4's to Serbia as Montenegro does not plan to operate an air force due to lack of funds and interest. Serbia operates majority of G-4's, including a G-4M experimental aircraft at Batajnica Flight Test Center.
Shortly after the secession of Montenegro in 2006, Serbia quickly changed the Yugoslav tricolor roundel to a Serbian tricolor by a simple repaint of the existing emblems. Later in 2006, the Serbian government portrayed a new roundel for their air force that will replace the repainted Yugoslav tricolor roundels originally adopted in 1992. The new roundel is composed of a blue trim on the outside rim followed inward by the Serbian national colors red, blue, and white, with a white cross in the center with blue trim. The roundel is based on the Royal Yugoslav Air Force's emblem from the late 1920s to 1940s.
Fate of Serbian MiG-29s
In January 2006, the media briefly reported that 5 MiG-29s under the possession of Serbia were to be repaired and returned to operational service since Serbian MiG-29 operations ceased since April 2004. Previous news states that the work would be carried out by Serbia's Moma Stanojlović overhaul facility along with the company of Mikoyan Gurevich. The plan previously was to repair 2 or 3 of them by fall 2006, and the rest by 2007. As of July, it is now uncertain if Moma Stanojlović will even get apart of the job, facilities in Russia are supposedly more likely to carry out the work. Either way, all MiG-29s will be returned to service latest by end 2008. 1 Antonov An-26, 2 Mi-24s, and 5 Mi-8/Mi-17s will be overhauled as well in a 30+ million Euro project to overhaul the Serbian Air Force, lead mostly by Mlađan Dinkić.
In January 2007, Air Forces Monthly reported that the MiG-29s are still in debate over their overhaul, some military officials argue that they are too old and not worth modernizing because of the high investment, and think that waiting until at least 2010 and probably purchasing some second hand western multi-role aircraft is a better idea. The fate of the 5 MiG-29s looks unstable for now, and some believe it is most likely they will end up being retired. The same goes for the 2 Mi-24 helicopters, but the 3 Mi-8s, 2 Mi-17s, and the 1 An-26 are still scheduled for overhauls.
After two years of uncertainty over the fate of Serbia’s MiG-29s, it has been decided that the overhaul will go ahead as planned. 4 of the 5 MiG-29s have been taken apart and are being loaded to be shipped to Russia; the fifth one is not going to be overhauled because of money shortages, so the last MiG-29 has been put on hold for now. The other MiGs are due to re-enter service in summer 2008 but they are not expected to handle any real combat, just to patrol Serbian air space and to help retire few older MiG-21s.
Future of the Serbian Air Force
Some future goals are to reorganize and retrain the air force to operate to NATO standards by 2010. The ministry of defense has planned more funds to be provided to help modernize the air force completely. Organization has already been completed and plans for new aircraft are well under way.
'Modernization'
There are plans to obtain around 20 or more new fighter aircraft to replace the aging MiG-21 fleet that is due to retire around 2010 to the latest, although Serbia does plan to retain its MiG-29s for some time. Plans are also being made to obtain new transport helicopters and aircraft as well. The Air Force will also modernized all G-4 Super Galebs in to G-4M, and it will begin the use to new Lasta 95s Lasta trainer airplanes to replace old Lola Utva 75s as soon as analysis is completed. Currently Serbia is modernizing 4 MiG-29's, 1 An-26, 3 Mi-8's, 2 Mi-17's, 2 Mi-24's, and next year it will modernized 4 An-26's, the last MiG-29 is also planned to be modernized.
These are some possible options for replacement. No formal decision has been made yet on when or what purchases will be made, The ministry of defense is expected to increase its budget in the following years providing assistance in the modernization of the air force. The Air Force will get 20 new multi-role fighters to replace MiG-21's, 15 new helicopters to replace Mi-8's, and five new cargo aircrafts to replace An-26's and An-2.
★ New fighters:
★
★ 20x F-16C/D or JAS 39 Gripen or MiG-35
★ New transport helicopters:
★
★ 15x Super Puma or Euromil Mi-38
★ New cargo aircraft:
★
★ 5x Alenia C-27J
Serbian Air Defense
2K12 Kub (SA-6 Gainful) radar of Serbian Air Foce and Air Defense.
S-125 NEVA
VOJIN
The Serbian Air Force and Air Defense system contains a wide variety of Soviet and Czech models. Most are long range but some short range weapons are employed in infantry units. During the 1999 NATO bombing in Yugoslavia, the Yugoslav Air Defense units brought down several NATO aircrafts. Confirmed are two F-16 Fighting Falcon's, an F/A-18 Super Hornet, and many UAVs, as well as a large number of cruise missiles. The greatest achievement of these units was when the 3rd Battalion of the 250th Missile Brigade under the command of Colonel Zoltán Dani shot down a F-117 Nighthawk Stealth fighter jet using an SA-3. One F-117 Nighthawk is also seriously damaged by Serbian Air Defense and it was withdrawn after landing. Most of the Yugoslav fighter aircraft did not take part in the fighting due to overwhelming superiority in numbers of NATO.
Organization
'
★ Command Battery
★ 1. Air Force Air Defense Missile Battalion - using S-125 Neva (SA-3)s
★ 2. Air Force Air Defense Missile Battalion - using S-125 Neva (SA-3)s
★ 3. Air Force Air Defense Self-Propelled Missile Battalion - using 2K12 Kub (SA-6)
★ 4. Air Force Air Defense Self-Propelled Missile Battalion - using 2K12 Kub (SA-6)
★ 5. Air Force Air Defense Self-Propelled Missile Battalion - using 2K12 Kub (SA-6)
'
★ Command Company
★ 20. VOJIN Battalion
★ 31. VOJIN Battalion
★ Company for air force-technical and technical maintenance and procurement
Equipment
The Serbian Air Force and Air Defense is using next systems:
★ SAMs
★
★ 60x S-125 Neva (SA-3)
★
★ 80x 2K12 Kub (SA-6 Gainful)
★ Radars
★
★ P-12 i P-14 Observation radars
★
★ Altitude measurement radar PRV-11
★
★ S-605/654 Observation radars
★
★ S-613 Altitude measurement radar
★
★ TPS-63 Observation radar
★
★ AN/TPS-70 3D radar
★
★ AS-74 i AS-84 automatized systems
See also
★ 'Military of Serbia'
★ ' Air Force of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia / Serbia and Montenegro'
★ 'SFR Yugoslav Air Force'
★ 'Yugoslav Royal Air Force'
References
1. Serbian AF restructures, , , News, Aircraft Illustrated, 2007
2. "World Military Aircraft Inventory", Aerospace Source Book 2007, ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', January 15 2007.
3. http://www.postchronicle.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?archive=9&num=66222
★ Air Forces Monthly Magazine, Aeroflight
★ Vazduhoplovstvo Srbije na Solunskom frontu 1916-1918, Vladeta D. Vojinovic, 2000
★ Srpska Avijatika 1912-1918; MJV, Sky, EUROSINI; 1992
★ Inventory of Air Force http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/waf/yugo/serbaf_current_inventory.htm
★ http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/waf/yugo/jkrv/yugo-af1-home.htm
External links
★ Serbian Ministry of Defense
★ Official Website
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