8th Coastal Defence Flotilla
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The 8th Coastal Defense Flotilla ( also known as 8th Coastal Defense Flotilla
Vice admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...
Kazimierz Porębski Kazimierz Porębski (November 15, 1872 – January 21, 1933) was a Polish career naval officer who rose to the position of admiral within the Imperial Russian Navy and was subsequently the first commander-in-chief of the inter-war Polish Navy. Bi ...
, a
Polish navy The Polish Navy (; often abbreviated to ) is the Navy, naval military branch , branch of the Polish Armed Forces. The Polish Navy consists of 46 ships and about 12,000 commissioned and enlisted personnel. The traditional ship prefix in the Polish ...
fleet Fleet may refer to: Vehicles * Fishing fleet *Naval fleet * Fleet vehicles, a pool of motor vehicles * Fleet Aircraft, the aircraft manufacturing company Places Canada * Fleet, Alberta, Canada, a hamlet England * The Fleet Lagoon, at Chesil Be ...
of coastal defense ships based in
Świnoujście Świnoujście (; ; ; meaning " Świna ivermouth"; ) is a city in Western Pomerania and seaport on the Baltic Sea and Szczecin Lagoon, in the extreme north-west of Poland, mainly on the islands of Usedom and Wolin, and Karsibór island, once ...
, one of the three naval groups of the Navy. The flotilla was established in 1965 at the main base of the Navy, previously the Szczecin Coastal Area. From January 1, 2014, the Flotilla was subordinated to the Armed Forces General Command.


Overview

Difficulties in maintaining a relatively uniform and compact Flotilla in Świnoujście existed from the very beginning of its creation. In July 1949,
Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...
Włodzimierz Steyer Kontradmirał Włodzimierz Steyer (July 15, 1892 – September 15, 1957) was a Polish naval officer before and during the Second World War. During the Invasion of Poland in 1939 he commanded the Polish land forces defending the Hel Peninsula in wh ...
, already as the commander of the Navy, came up with the concept of concentrating the main forces of the vessels in
Gdynia Gdynia is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With an estimated population of 257,000, it is the List of cities in Poland, 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in the Pomeranian Voivodeship after Gdańsk ...
, because completing, supplying and repairing the flotilla posed serious difficulties. The lack of ships and the development of new types of weapons, as well as changes in the international situation, combined with the reduction of the armed forces, forced the Navy's command to more realistically look for organizational solutions for its ships. Thus, the concept of naval bases and artillery protection of the coastal communication route by fixed and mobile artillery batteries was created. On December 21, 1950, the new unit was given the name of the Naval Base in Świnoujście and No. 2454. Commander
Tadeusz Rutkowski Tadeusz Rutkowski (born 25 April 1951 in Kraków) is a Polish former weightlifter who competed in the 1976 Summer Olympics and in the 1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad ( ...
was the first commander. The establishment of the Navy Base is connected with the period of rapid development of watercrafts. In 1951, the Landing Equipment Division was established, renamed the Landing Craft Division in 1956, and in 1964 into the 2nd Landing Ship Division, initially composed of 21 landing barges, 11 medium
barges A barge is typically a flat-bottomed vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. Original use was on inland waterways, while modern use is on both inland and marine water environments. The first modern barges were pull ...
and 12 landing ships with a total displacement of 3,700 tons. In 1955, the 14th Tramp Cutter Division was transferred from Hel to Świnoujście. These ships took an active part in the sweeping of the Baltic waters of
naval mines A naval mine is a self-contained explosive weapon placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Similar to anti-personnel and other land mines, and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges, they are deposited and le ...
and other weapons remaining after the end of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. In May 1965, after the dissolution of the Navy Base in Świnoujście and its subordinate units, on the order of the commander, the 8th Coastal Defense Flotilla was established. In the same year, the 2nd Landing Ship Division and the 12th Minesweeper Division were created. The Command of the Naval Port was also restored, together with the Squadron of Auxiliary Floating Units and the Military Orchestra transferred from
Ustka Ustka (, , ) is a spa town in the Middle Pomerania region of northern Poland with 17,100 inhabitants (2001). It is part of Słupsk County in Pomeranian Voivodeship. It is located on the Slovincian Coast on the Baltic Sea. It is a port town and po ...
. The duties of the flotilla commander were entrusted to commander Zygmunt Rudomino. Initially, the main task of the Flotilla was to defend the Polish sea coast from the western border with
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
to the town of Jarosławiec, on the border with the second, newly formed 9th Coastal Defense Flotilla in Hel and the adjacent basin. In 1977, the 8th
Kołobrzeg Kołobrzeg (; ; ) is a port and spa city in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in north-western Poland with about 47,000 inhabitants (). Kołobrzeg is located on the Parsęta River on the south coast of the Baltic Sea (in the middle of the section ...
Engineer Battalion was subordinated to the 8th
Kołobrzeg Kołobrzeg (; ; ) is a port and spa city in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in north-western Poland with about 47,000 inhabitants (). Kołobrzeg is located on the Parsęta River on the south coast of the Baltic Sea (in the middle of the section ...
Naval Combat Engineer Battalion and the 1st Marine Engineers Division was formed, which was subordinated to the 2nd Landing Ship Division. At its peak, the Flotilla consisted of about 80 vessels of various classes and coastal units. The dynamic development of the naval forces and coastal units of the Flotilla in this period resulted from the strategy and doctrine of the
Armed Forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...
of the
Polish People's Republic The Polish People's Republic (1952–1989), formerly the Republic of Poland (1947–1952), and also often simply known as Poland, was a country in Central Europe that existed as the predecessor of the modern-day democratic Republic of Poland. ...
, implementing tasks within the then
Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP), formally the Treaty of Friendship, Co-operation and Mutual Assistance (TFCMA), was a Collective security#Collective defense, collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Polish People's Republic, Poland, between the Sovi ...
structures. The most eloquent example of this was the large participation of Flotilla ships in many operational-level exercises planned and organized by our navy, as well as the forces of the then allied
Baltic Fleet The Baltic Fleet () is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Baltic Sea. Established 18 May 1703, under Tsar Peter the Great as part of the Imperial Russian Navy, the Baltic Fleet is the oldest Russian fleet. In 1918, the fleet w ...
and
Volksmarine The (VM, ; ) was the Navy, naval force of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) from 1956 to 1990. The was one of the service branches of the National People's Army and primarily performed a Coastal defence and fortification, coastal defence ...
. At the turn of the 1980s and 1990s, further structural and organizational changes took place. As a result of the ongoing socio-political transformation, changes in the doctrine of the Armed Forces and a new defense concept for the development of naval forces, there was a massive withdrawal of ships and landing ships. The effect of these transformations was the change of the name of the 2nd Landing Ship Division to the 2nd Landing and
Minelaying A minelayer is any warship, submarine, military aircraft or land vehicle deploying explosive mines. Since World War I the term "minelayer" refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines. "Mine planting" was the term for ins ...
Ships Division on July 12, 1992, and then its transformation into the 2nd Transport and Minelaying Ships Squadron on September 1, 1992. In the 1980s, the Project 254K and Project 254M minesweepers were withdrawn and replaced with the new Project 207D and 207P ships. In June 1994, the 8th FOW was named after Vice Admiral Kazimierz Porębski. Also this year, by the decision of the
Minister of National Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divided ...
, April 29 was declared the anniversary of the Flotilla. In 1995, after numerous staff and organizational changes, the 8th Coastal Defense Flotilla consisted of ships stationed in four towns: Świnoujście,
Międzyzdroje Międzyzdroje (; ), historically known as Misdroy in English, is a city and a seaside resort in northwestern Poland on the island of Wolin on the Baltic coast. The city is located in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, and is a seat of the Kamień C ...
,
Dziwnów Dziwnów () is a town in north-western Poland situated on the Baltic Sea at the mouth of the river Dziwna which divides it into the right-bank part containing the center of the town, belonging to historical Farther Pomerania, while the left-bank ...
and
Kołobrzeg Kołobrzeg (; ; ) is a port and spa city in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in north-western Poland with about 47,000 inhabitants (). Kołobrzeg is located on the Parsęta River on the south coast of the Baltic Sea (in the middle of the section ...
.


Organization

* Flotilla Command * 8th Kołobrzeg Naval Combat Engineer Battalion (Dziwnów) * Military Port Command Swinoujscie (Kołobrzeg)


8th Anti-Aircraft Division (Dziwnów)

* Grom MANPADS *
ZU-23-2 The ZU-23-2, also known as ZU-23, is a Soviet towed 23×152mm anti-aircraft twin-barreled autocannon. ZU stands for ''Zenitnaya Ustanovka'' (Russian: Зенитная Установка) – anti-aircraft mount. The GRAU index is 2A13. Develo ...
* S-60 AAA guns


2nd Landing and Minelaying Ships Division (Swinoujscie)

* ''Lublin''-class minelayer-landing ship (5) * ''Bereza''-class degaussing ship (1) * ''Project 716'' transport ship (3)


12th Wolin Minesweeper Division (Swinoujscie)

* ''Gardno''-class minesweeper (12) * ''Project B410-IV/S'' minesweeper (2) * EOD Diver Group


13th Minesweeper Division Fleet Admiral Andrzej Karweta (Gdynia)

* ''Kormoran II''-class minehunter (1) * ''Mamry''-class minesweeper (5) * EOD Diver Group


Citations


Biography

* Lieutenant Commander Piotr Andrzejewski, MA, Lieutenant Comdr. MSc. Zygmunt Białogłowski, Capt. Mar. MSc. Tomasz Dolny, Comdr. Lt. Dr. Henryk Karwan, Capt. Mar. Eng. Janusz Królikowski, cadmium. Michał Michalski, Comdr. Lt. Dipl. Andrzej Walor. "Przegląd Morski" ed. April 2005 No. 4/2005 * Jarosław Ciślak Polish Navy 1995 - ships, planes and helicopters, weapons, organization.
Website of the 8th Coastal Defense Flotilla
{{Authority control Naval units and formations of Poland Military units and formations established in 1965