98th Guards Airborne Division

The 98th Guards Airborne Division (98-я гвардейская воздушно-десантная Свирская Краснознаменная ордена Кутузова дивизия) is an airborne division of the Russian Airborne Troops, stationed in Ivanovo. It took part in the 2008 South Ossetian War.

During the Second World War, the formation began its existence as the 98th Guards Rifle Division (ru:98-я гвардейская стрелковая дивизия). It incorporated 296th Guards Rifle Regiment (formerly the 18th Independent Guards Airborne Brigade), 299th GRR (fmr 19 IGAB), 302nd GRR (fmr 20 IGAB). Formed in December 1943-January 1944 at Demitrov in the Moscow Military District. It was part of the 37th Guards Airborne Corps, 9th Guards Army on the Karelian front (May 1944), on the Svir river (June 1944) and near Budapest in February 1945. The division ended the war near Prague.

The division was relocated from Bolgrad in the Ukraine to Ivanovo after the fall of the Soviet Union. In doing so several of its constituent units stayed behind and became Ukrainian units, such as the 217th Guards Airborne Regiment.

Today, its two regiments, the 217th and 299th, are stationed near the Ivanovo Severny military-transport airfield. However another source lists the two constituent regiments as the 217th and 331st, the later having transferred from 106th 'Tula' Guards Airborne Division in 1998.

Units 2009

 * 98th Guards Airborne Division in Ivanovo
 * 217th Guards Airborne Regiment in Ivanovo
 * 331st Guards Airborne Regiment in Kostroma
 * 1065th Guards Artillery Regiment in Kostroma
 * 318th Air Defence Battalion in Ivanovo
 * 661st Engineer Battalion in Ivanovo
 * 674th Signal Battalion in Ivanovo
 * 15th Maintenance Battalion in Ivanovo
 * 243rd Military Transport Aviation Squadron in Ivanovo

At some point, it was planned that the 137th Guards Airborne Regiment in Ryazan would join from the 106th Guards Airborne Division, which was to disband. However the disbandment of the 106th Guards has now been rescinded.