| Caspian Flotilla | |
|---|---|
| Russian:Каспийская флотилия Kaspiyskaya flotiliya | |
 Great emblem of the Caspian Flotilla | |
| Active | November 1722 – present |
| Allegiance |
|
| Branch |  Russian Navy |
| Role | |
| Size |
|
| Part of | .svg) Russian Armed Forces |
| Garrison/HQ |
|
| Engagements | |
| Decorations |  Order of the Red Banner |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Rear AdmiralOleg Zverev |
| Notable commanders | |
TheCaspian Flotilla (Russian:Каспийская флотилия,romanized: Kaspiyskaya flotiliya) is theflotilla of theRussian Navy in theCaspian Sea.
Established in November 1722 by the order of TsarPeter the Great as part of theImperial Russian Navy, the Caspian Flotilla is the oldest flotilla in the Russian Navy not operating in a body of water connected to the open ocean.[citation needed] In 1918, the fleet was inherited by theRussian SFSR then theSoviet Union in 1922, where it formed part of theSoviet Navy and was awarded theOrder of the Red Banner in 1945. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Caspian Flotilla and most of its vessels were inherited by theRussian Federation.
The Caspian Flotilla's headquarters are inAstrakhan, but were historically inBaku (now inAzerbaijan) from 1867 until 1991, with additional facilities inMakhachkala (HQ being moved there)[1] andKaspiysk.[2] The current commander is Rear AdmiralOleg Zverev.
The Caspian Flotilla (CF) was created in November 1722 inAstrakhan by the order ofPeter the Great. Led by the admiralFyodor Apraksin, it participated in Peter'sPersian campaign of 1722–1723 and theRusso-Persian War (1804–1813), assisting the Russian army in capturingDerbent andBaku during thePersian Expedition of 1796. As a result of theTreaty of Gulistan of 1813, theCF remained the only military flotilla in the Caspian Sea. Baku became its mainbase in 1867.
As the situation on the Caspian Sea stabilized the number of ships in the CF began to decrease. By the beginning of the 20th century, it had twogunboats and a few armedsteamers. Thesailors of the CF were actively engaged in therevolutionary movement in Baku in 1903–1905 and establishment of theSoviet authority in 1917 in that region.
In order to provide assistance to theRed Army, they formed the Military Fleet of the Astrakhan Region (Военный флот Астраханского края, or Voyenniy flot Astrakhanskogo kraya) in April – June 1918, reinforced withtorpedo boats andsubmarines from theBaltic Sea in the fall of 1918. On October 13, the Soviets renamed it to theAstrakhan-Caspian Military Flotilla (Астрахано-Каспийская военная флотилия, or Astrakhano-Kaspiyskaya voennaya flotiliya). The ships of the flotilla were captured by thecounterrevolutionaryCentrocaspian Dictatorship in August 1918 and later regained by the Soviets after the overthrow of theMusavat government.
In July 1919, the Astrakhan-Caspian Military Flotilla was combined with theVolga Military Flotilla (Волжская военная флотилия, or Volzhskaya voyennaya flotiliya) and renamed to theVolga-Caspian Military Flotilla (Волжско-Каспийская военная флотилия). On May 1, 1920, the Soviets established the CaspianFleet, which comprised threeauxiliary cruisers, ten torpedo boats, four submarines and other ships.
Together with the Caspian Fleet, there was the Red Fleet of the SovietAzerbaijan, stationed in Baku, as well. Both fleets completed the conquest of the Caspian Sea from theWhite Army. In July 1920, Caspian and Azerbaijani fleets were combined into the Naval Forces of the Caspian Sea (Морские Силы Каспийского моря, or Morskiye Sily Kaspiyskogo morya) and would later be renamed to the Caspian Flotilla on June 27, 1931.
During theGreat Patriotic War of 1941–1945, the Caspian Flotilla secured vital sea shipping of army units, military equipment and different cargo, especially during theBattle of Stalingrad and the battle for theCaucasus. (During the war, some of theLend Lease were shipped to the USSR via thePersian Corridor and the Caspian Sea).
During theCold War the Caspian Flotilla was used to test missile armedekranoplanes.[citation needed]
Following thedissolution of the Soviet Union, the flotilla shrank. WithRussia,Azerbaijan,Turkmenistan andKazakhstan joining to found theCommonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the CIS navy officials proposed to keep the flotilla under joint CIS command. However, the idea did not materialize, and on 16 April 1992, the countries agreed inBaku to divide the flotilla with its 50 small and medium-size vessels, bases, a navy school and buildings, which was in sharp contrast toprotracted dispute between Russia and Ukraine over splitting theBlack Sea Fleet. Azerbaijan initially claimed 75 percent of the flotilla but later settled for less, while Turkmenistan expressed a desire to keep the flotilla united.[3] The Kazakh contingent was removed to serve as a basis forKazakhstan's naval service. For several years, Russia continued to lead a jointTurkmen-Russian force based atAstrakhan.[citation needed]
Among the Flotilla's units, from 2000, has been a newNaval Infantry brigade, the 77th, based atKaspiysk. The headquarters and two battalions of the brigade were scheduled to be established by August 1, 2000.[4] It was reported in June 2000 that the new brigade, which had inherited the lineage of the disbanded77th Guards Motor Rifle Division, formerly with theNorthern Fleet,[5] was to have its troops housed in Kaspiysk and Astrakhan and have as many as 195 combat vehicles and oneGepard class frigate sent to it from Chukotka and the Northern Fleet, respectively.
The brigade was to have helicopters added to it, according to the June 2000 report. The Brigade's full name was the 77th Detached Guards Moscow-Chernigov Order of Lenin, the Red Banner, Order of Suvorov Marine Brigade. It was disbanded in 2009.[6]
The brigade had comprised its headquarters at Kaspiysk; the 414th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion (Kaspiysk); the 725th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion (Kaspiysk); the 727th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion (Astrakhan); the 1200th Detached Reconnaissance Battalion (Kaspiysk); the 1408th Independent Howitzer Artillery Battalion; the 1409th Independent Howitzer Artillery Battalion; the 975th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion (Kaspiysk); the 1387th Detached Air Defence Missile and Artillery Battalion; and the 530th Detached Electronic Countermeasures Company.
In Dagestan, a regiment of the marine infantry (the 177th) was formed on December 1, 2018, as part of the Caspian Flotilla of the Southern Military District (YuVO). It was reported that the new formation was fully staffed with modern weapons and military equipment, includingBTR-82A armored personnel carriers, 120-mm self-propelled mortars2S9 Nona, 122-mmhowitzers D-30, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) "Eleron" and "Orlan".[7]
The regiment has been heavily engaged in the War in Ukraine. In September 2025, elements of the regiment were reported operating in eastern Ukraine and at that time concentrating with other units, fromthe 40th, likelythe 61st,the 155th and the336th naval infantry brigades, in the area southwest ofKostyantynivka.[8]
The flotilla has received 3 newBuyan-class stealth type river gunboats built by the St. Petersburg Almaz shipyard.[9]
On November 13 and 23, 2009, there were two separate sets of explosions at the 31st Arsenal of the Caspian Sea Flotilla, an ammunition depot, inUlyanovsk. Ten servicemen died.[10] The depot was to be closed.
The first Russian warship equipped with the Caliber missile system entered service with Caspian Flotilla in 2012.[11] On October 7, 2015, Russia's Defense MinisterSergey Shoigu announced that four Russian Navy warships in the Caspian Sea had fired a total of 26Kalibr-class cruise missiles at the positions of the terrorist groupISIL in Syria.[citation needed]
Up to 2020, further enhancements in the capabilities of the Caspian Flotilla were announced. In 2019, it was announced that an aviation component would be added to its capabilities involving the deployment ofBe-200 aircraft andMi-14PB helicopters with the Flotilla.[12] Further air support is drawn from4th Air and Air Defence Forces Army (HQ: Rostov-on-Don) in theSouthern Military District.[13] In 2020, the deployment of theBal coastal defence missile system with the Flotilla was also announced.[14]
As of 2016, 85 percent of the Caspian Flotilla consists of modern ships and vessels. In 2014–2015, Flotilla received 3 Buyan-M missile corvettes, one modernized frigate and auxiliary vessels.[15] On September 20, 2016, Rear AdmiralIgor Osipov was replaced by Rear AdmiralSergey Pinchuk.[16]
On March 20, 2022, theRussian Defense Ministry claimed that ships of the CFL had fired Kalibr-class cruise missiles at a Ukrainian fuel and lubricant depot inKostiantynivka, Mykolaiv Oblast, supported by air-launchedKh-47M2 Kinzhal hypersonic missiles.[17]
On 17 June 2022, a photo emerged of the shipVeliky Ustyug being towed on theVolga River in a damaged state. TheBuyan-M-class corvette had participated in the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[18][19]
On November 6, 2024,Ukraine launched adrone attack on the Caspian Flotilla with anA-22 reportedly damaging theGepard-class frigatesTatarstan andDagestan and oneBuyan-class corvette in the Kaspiysk naval base.[20][21][22]
Additional smallerRussian Coast Guard patrol boats, including up to 11 vessels of theMangust-class, are tasked to the Caspian Sea region, though some may have been transferred to the Black Sea. In total, as of 2025, the Russian Coast Guard was reported to deploy about 27 patrol vessels of various types in the Caspian Sea.[47]
For a broader list of Russian navy patrol vessels see:List of active Russian Navy ships#Patrol boats. For a list of Russian coast guard patrol vessels see:Russian Coast Guard#Vessels in service
For a list of Russian navy auxiliaries, including those of the Caspian Flotilla, see:List of active Russian Navy ships#Auxiliaries
| Rank | Name | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Fyodor Averichkin [ru] | 1931-1932 | |
| Gordey Levchenko | 1932-1933 | |
| Grigory Kireyev | 1933-1934 | |
| Flagman 2nd Rank | Dmitry Isakov [ru] | 1934-1938 |
| Captain 2nd Rank | Vladmir Sumin | 1938 |
| Arseny Golovko | 1938-1939 | |
| Rear-Admiral | Fyodor Sedelnikov [ru] | 1940-1944 |
| Vice-Admiral | Fyodor Zozulya | 1944-1946 |
| Rear-Admiral | Nikolai Abramov [ru] | 1946 |
| Admiral | Stepan Kucherov | 1946-1948 |
| Rear-Admiral | Grigory Oleynik [ru] | 1948-1951 |
| Vice-Admiral | Georgy Kholostyakov [ru] | 1951 |
| Vice-Admiral | Aleksandr Kuzmin [ru] | 1951-1954 |
| Rear-Admiral | Serafim Chursin [ru] | 1954-1955 |
| Vice-Admiral | Grigory Oleynik [ru] | 1955-1956 |
| Vice-Admiral | Aleksandr Kuzmin [ru] | 1956-1960 |
| Vice-Admiral | Grigory Oleynik [ru] | 1960-1967 |
| Rear-Admiral | Georgy Chernobay | 1967-1971 |
| Rear-Admiral | Yaroslav Kudelkin | 1971-1973 |
| Rear-Admiral | Leonid Ryabtsev | 1973-1977 |
| Vice-Admiral | Hamid Gasimbayov | 1977-1984 |
| Rear-Admiral | Vasily Tolkachev | 1984-1987 |
| Vice-Admiral | Vladimir Lyashenko | 1987-1991 |
| Rank | Name | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Vice-Admiral | Boris Zinin [ru] | 1991-1996 |
| Vice-Admiral | Vladimir Masorin | 1996-2002 |
| Vice-Admiral | Yuri Startsev | 2002-2005 |
| Vice-Admiral | Viktor Kravchuk | 2005-2009 |
| Vice-Admiral | Sergei Alyokminsky | 2010-2014 |
| Captain 1st Rank | Ildar Akhmerov | 2014-2015 |
| Rear-Admiral | Igor Osipov | 2015-2016 |
| Vice-Admiral | Sergei Pinchuk | 2016-2021 |
| Vice-Admiral | Aleksandr Peshkov | 2021-2024 |
| Rear-Admiral | Oleg Zverev | 2024-present |
