15th Air Army

The 15th Air Army was a military formation of the Soviet Air Forces, active from July 1942 until December 1993.

History
It was formed between 11 July and 15 August 1942, in accordance with the directive of the commander of the Soviet Air Force of 10 July 1942, on the basis of the Air Force of the Bryansk Front. The formation of the army began in the village of Pavlovka (18 km southeast of the city of Yelets) in the Lipetsk Oblast.

The 15th Air Army received its baptism of fire in the autumn of 1942, participating in the defensive battles near Voronezh and in the elimination of the enemy's foothold on the left bank of the Don. In the winter of 1943, it supported the front troops in the Voronezh–Kastornoye operation. In May 1943 it participated in an air operation to destroy German aircraft at airfields. In July-August 1943, as part of the Battle of Kursk, she participated in the Orlov Strategic Offensive, and in September 1943, it supported the front troops in the Bryansk Offensive.

In October 1943, the Army was transferred to the 2nd Baltic Front, where it fought in the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive and Riga Offensive (1944). In 1945, the Army participated in the elimination of Army Group Courland and German forces in the Klaipeda area (January-February 1945).

During World War II, in total, 15th Air Army pilots made some 160,000 sorties.

In the post-war period, the army was part of the Baltic Military District. The 15th Air Army was renamed the 30th Air Army between 20 February 1949 and 4 April 1968. The 15th Air Army was renamed the Baltic Military District Air Force between December 1977 and May 1988. The 15th Air Army was disbanded in December 1993 when the Soviet Union came to an end.

Army Commanders

 * 10.07.1942 - 21.07.1942 : Lieutenant-General of Aviation Grigory Vorozheykin
 * 21.07.1942 - 01.05.1943 : Major General of Aviation Ivan Pyatykhin;
 * 05.1943 - 05.1950 : Colonel-General of Aviation Nikolai Naumenko;
 * 05.1950 - 10.1953 : Colonel-General of Aviation F. P. Polynin,
 * 10.1953 - 01.1957 : Lieutenant General of Aviation S. I. Mironov,.
 * 01.1957 - 04.1958 : Lieutenant General of Aviation V. A. Vinogradov,;
 * 04.1958 - 05.1973 : Colonel-General of Aviation F. I. Shinkarenko;
 * 03.1979 - 10.1985 : Lieutenant General of Aviation Masalitin Piotr;
 * 10.1985 - 02.1988 : Lieutenant General of Aviation Dmitri Bobrov ;
 * 02.1988 - 07.1991 : Lieutenant General of Aviation Timchenko Vladimir Pavlovic;
 * 07.1991 - 12.1993 : Major General of Aviation Mikhail Lipatov.