Step (also Olovyannaya) is an air base in Chita,

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-eigh ...

located 14 km northwest of

Yasnogorsk Yasnogorsk (russian: Ясногорск) is the name of several urban localities in Russia: * Yasnogorsk, Tula Oblast, a town in Yasnogorsky District of Tula Oblast; administratively incorporated as a town under district jurisdiction *Yasnogorsk, ...

. It is a large air base with two revetment areas and numerous military fortifications. It is near an SS-11 missile field that was dismantled in the mid-1990s. The 849th Assault Aviation Regiment, part of the 253rd Assault Aviation Division, was stationed at Step up until 1956. Units stationed at Step/Olovyannaya include: * 6th Aviation Regiment of Fighter-Bombers (6 APIB) flying

Sukhoi Su-17 The Sukhoi Su-17 (''izdeliye'' S-32) is a variable-sweep wing fighter-bomber developed for the Soviet military. Its NATO reporting name is "Fitter". Developed from the Sukhoi Su-7, the Su-17 was the first variable-sweep wing aircraft to ente ...

in the late 1980s; under 23rd Air Army,

Transbaikal Military District The Transbaikal Military District (russian: Забайкальский военный округ) was a military district of first the Soviet Armed Forces and then the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formed on May 17, 1935 and included the ...

. * 58th Fighter-Bomber Aviation Regiment (58 APIB) flying Su-17M3 and L-29 aircraft in the late 1980s, and receiving

MiG-27 The Mikoyan MiG-27 (russian: Микоян МиГ-27; NATO reporting name: Flogger-D/J) is a variable-sweep ground-attack aircraft, originally built by the Mikoyan-Gurevich design bureau in the Soviet Union and later licence-produced in Indi ...

in the early 1990s. It was under 23rd Air Army (Trans-Baikal). * 266th Independent Shturmovik Aviation Regiment ( 266th Assault Aviation Regiment, 266 OShAP) flying Sukhoi Su-25 aircraft. Disbanded circa 2009. The base appears to have been closed after a boiler room fire in December 2009. Thereafter, the base was reopened and the 266th Independent Shturmovik Aviation Regiment was reformed with at least two squadrons of Sukhoi-25s in 2019. The regiment by this time had been shifted into the

Eastern Military District The Eastern Military District (Russian: Восточный военный округ) is a military district of Russia. It is one of the five military districts of the Russian Armed Forces, with its jurisdiction within the Far Eastern Federal ...

11th Air and Air Defence Forces Army The 11th Red Banner Air and Air Defence Forces Army () is a formation of the Russian Air Force, located in the Russian Far East, whose zone of responsibility covers the Eastern Military District. The 11th Army Air Force and Air Defense Army was r ...

References

External links

*http://www.ww2.dk/new/air%20force/regiment/bap/6bap.htm *http://www.ww2.dk/new/air%20force/regiment/shap/58apib.htm Soviet Air Force bases Soviet Frontal Aviation Russian Air Force bases {{Russia-mil-stub