The 242nd Training Centre of the Airborne Forces () is a

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

-sized training formation of the Russian Airborne Troops.

History

Cold War

In March 1959 the 44th Motor Rifle Division was disbanded. To prepare sergeants and junior specialists for airborne units in accordance with a directive of the Commander Soviet Ground Forces, the 44th Training Airborne Division was formed in July–October 1960 in Ostrov and Cheryokha, in Pskov Oblast. The Deputy Commander of the Airborne Troops, Lieutenant-General Vasily Margelov, supervised the division's formation. The formation's birthday is 17 September, when the formation of the division was completed and Major General N.G. Zharenov assumed command. The division was formed from the 17th Airborne Training Centre at Dyatkovo, the 78th Separate Self-Propelled Artillery Training Battalion at

Kaunas Kaunas (; ) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius, the fourth largest List of cities in the Baltic states by population, city in the Baltic States and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaun ...

, and the 11th School for Junior Specialists of the Medical Service at Ostrov. The vast majority of officers had experience in training units of the regimental schools, which had been disbanded at the same time. Among the officers selected to staff the training centre were 131 veterans of the

Great Patriotic War The Eastern Front, also known as the Great Patriotic War (term), Great Patriotic War in the Soviet Union and its successor states, and the German–Soviet War in modern Germany and Ukraine, was a Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II ...

. The division consisted of three training Airborne Regiments; 301st and 304th Training Airborne Regiments – Ostrov, 302 – Cheryokha, a training artillery regiment (1120th, Ostrov) and other units. The division's regiments were the heirs of the regiments with the corresponding World War II numbers: 301st and 304th were part of the 100th Guards Airborne Division/ Rifle Division, and the 302nd had been part of the 98th Guards Airborne Division/Rifle Division. However, for unclear reasons, the division was soon renamed the 44th. Also the regiment numbering changed: instead of, respectively, the 302nd and 304th, the 226th and 285th regiments appeared (no longer associated historically with the VDV). While it was not clear whether the division was formed as a Guards formation, when it became the 44th, it was not just not a Guards formation, but the only non-Guards formation in the Soviet Airborne Forces. The regiments were not Guards units either. In September 1961, available stocks, weapons, military equipment, and the bulk of the division were moved to the Lithuanian SSR. The Divisional Headquarters and the 301st Regiment were established at Gaižiūnai, the 304th Regiment at Rukla (8 km south-east of Jonava), and the 1120th Training Artillery Regiment in the city of Prienai (28 km south of Kaunas). On 15 May 1972, the 332nd School for Praporshchiks was formed in Gaižiūnai from the 226th Training Airborne Regiment. On 1 December 1987 in accordance with the order of the Ministry of Defence of the Soviet Union of 18 August 1987, the 44th Training Airborne Division was renamed the 242nd Airborne Training Centre.

Russian Airborne Troops

In accordance with the directive of the Defense Ministry on 13 November 1992, the Airborne Training Centre was removed from the Republic of Lithuania to Omsk in Russian territory. Shortly after the relocation, the 301st Training Airborne Regiment was disbanded, and the 1120th Training Artillery Regiment was moved to Ishim in

Tyumen Oblast Tyumen Oblast () is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. It is located in Western Siberia, and is administratively part of the Ural Federal District. The oblast has administrative jurisdiction over two autonomous ...

. The training centre headquarters is currently located in the village of Svetloe ('Bright') on the outskirts of

Omsk Omsk (; , ) is the administrative center and largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is situated in southwestern Siberia and has a population of over one million. Omsk is the third List of cities and tow ...

in the Omsk Oblast. In the years since its relocation to Omsk the formerly division-sized formation has shrunk to the size of a brigade. On 12 July 2015 one of the centre's

barracks Barracks are buildings used to accommodate military personnel and quasi-military personnel such as police. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word 'soldier's tent', but today barracks ar ...

building A building or edifice is an enclosed Structure#Load-bearing, structure with a roof, walls and window, windows, usually standing permanently in one place, such as a house or factory. Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and functions, a ...

s in the village of Svetloe collapsed. Twenty-three soldiers died and another 19 were injured after a

roof A roof (: roofs or rooves) is the top covering of a building, including all materials and constructions necessary to support it on the walls of the building or on uprights, providing protection against rain, snow, sunlight, extremes of tempera ...

and walls of the barracks building collapsed. Colonel Oleg Ponomarev, who commanded the centre at the time, was arrested. Colonel Arkady Furdeyev replaced him in command of the centre in late August.

Commanders

The following officers have commanded the unit: * ''General-mayor'' Nikolay Grigoryevich Zharenov (1960–1964) * ''General-mayor'' Salikh Khalilovich Khalilov (1964–1974) * Colonel Yury Aleksandrovich Kuznetsov (1974–1975) * Colonel Vitaly Semyonovich Lebedev (1975–1977) * ''General-mayor'' Iosif Bakratovich Oganyan (1977–1983) * ''General-mayor'' Valentin Alekseyevich Bogdanchikov (1983–1987) * ''General-mayor'' Nikolai Staskov (1987–1991) * ''General-mayor'' Vitaly Raevsky (1991–1992) * ''General-mayor'' Valery Yevtukhovich (1992–1994) * ''General-mayor'' Sergey Nikolayevich Serikov (1994–1998) * ''General-mayor'' Aleksandr Mikhailovich Pavlyushchenko (1998–2000) * ''General-mayor'' Aleksandr Sergeyevich Iskrenko (2000–2003) * ''General-mayor'' Aleksandr Nikolayevich Kolpachenko (2003–2005) ( :ru:Колпаченко, Александр Николаевич) * Colonel Yevgeny Alekseyevich Ustinov (2005–2007) * Colonel Aleksandr Valeryevich Shushukin (2007–2009) * Colonel Sergey Stanislavovich Kuvshinov (2009–2011) * Colonel Igor Grigoryevich Kaply (2011–2013) * Colonel Oleg Yuryevich Ponomaryov (2013–2015) * Colonel Arkady Viktorovich Furdeyev (2015–2017) * Colonel Sergey Aleksandrovich Molochnikov (2017–2019) * Colonel Vitaly Valeryevich Teryokhin (2019–2021) * Colonel Vitaly Valeryevich Repin (2021–present)

Notes

Russian-language source on 242nd Training Centre

References