The Arctic Ocean Flotilla (AOF) (russian: Флотилия Северного Ледовитого океана , translit = Flotiliya Severnogo Ledovitogo okeana), was a Russian military

flotilla A flotilla (from Spanish, meaning a small ''flota'' ( fleet) of ships), or naval flotilla, is a formation of small warships that may be part of a larger fleet. Composition A flotilla is usually composed of a homogeneous group of the same clas ...

stationed in Aleksandrovsk (present-day Polyarny) near the mouth of the Kola Gulf,

Iokanga The Iokanga (russian: Иоканьга) is a river in the north of the Kola Peninsula in Murmansk Oblast, Russia. It is 203 km in length. The area of its basin is 6,020 km². The Iokanga originates in Lake Alozero and flows into the B ...

, and

Arkhangelsk Arkhangelsk (, ; rus, Арха́нгельск, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲsk), also known in English as Archangel and Archangelsk, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina near ...

History

On the official formation of the AOF began and by September was largely complete. By the end of 1917 the AOF comprised the battleship ''Chesme'', the cruisers ''Askold'' and ''Varyag'', 6 destroyers, 3 submarines and other ships. The AOF's operational zone included the

Barents Sea The Barents Sea ( , also ; no, Barentshavet, ; russian: Баренцево море, Barentsevo More) is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located off the northern coasts of Norway and Russia and divided between Norwegian and Russian territo ...

- from the Norwegian border to the Kara Gates - including the

White Sea The White Sea (russian: Белое море, ''Béloye móre''; Karelian and fi, Vienanmeri, lit. Dvina Sea; yrk, Сэрако ямʼ, ''Serako yam'') is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is s ...

. Its mission was to secure uninterrupted the sea lines of communications connecting

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

with its Entente allies. After Bolshevik

's withdrawal from

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in March 1918, the flotilla comprised approximately 90 combatant and

auxiliary ship An auxiliary ship is a naval ship designed to support combatant ships and other naval operations. Auxiliary ships are not primary combatant vessels, though they may have some limited combat capacity, usually for purposes of self-defense. Auxil ...

s. In August 1918 Allied interventionist forces and the

White Army The White Army (russian: Белая армия, Belaya armiya) or White Guard (russian: Бѣлая гвардія/Белая гвардия, Belaya gvardiya, label=none), also referred to as the Whites or White Guardsmen (russian: Бѣлогв� ...

captured the best ships of the AOF. The rest of the ships were intentionally put out of commission or destroyed.

References

Russian fleets Military in the Arctic {{arctic-stub

History

See also

References