Nezavisimaya Gazeta
Air Assault Units to Expand Russian Military Presence Abroad
Russian military bases in Central Asia and the Caucasus are to be considerably strengthened. They might be reinforced by units of the national Airborne Force to increase mobility and combat efficiency, said the force’s commander, Lieutenant General Vladimir Shamanov.
First of all, judging by the experience of the Airborne Force’s peacekeeping operations, forward bases are required in order to successfully accomplish the objectives set by Russia’s leaders, General Shamanov believes. He added that such bases would make it possible to expand operations in specific sectors. Another factor is the international commitments of Russia and the CIS countries within the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).
The CSTO’s Collective Rapid Reaction Force comprises Russia’s 98th Guards Airborne Division and the 31st Detached Guards Air Assault Brigade. Russian paratroopers were deployed at an air base in Kyrgyzstan and at other local Russian military installations during the unrest in the country in 2009. The re-deployment of airborne units to Tajikistan was enacted during a strategic military exercise in 2011. In 2012, the Airborne Force is planning exercises at the 102nd military base in Armenia, which will involve elements of the above-mentioned Collective Rapid Reaction Force. But it is unclear whether airborne units will remain there on a permanent basis.
General Shamanov also proposes subordinating helicopter units to airborne formations. Such units, providing air assault strike capabilities, might also be deployed at Russian military bases abroad.
Shamanov said last February that Russia’s military-political leaders had already decided to deploy a helicopter regiment near Novorossiisk in southern Russia. Shamanov justified this decision by the fact that the situation in Abkhazia and South Ossetia was becoming increasing complex, and that Russian-Georgian relations were continuing to deteriorate. Consequently, airborne units needed to become more mobile.
The regiment, to comprise 60 military transport and attack helicopters, should support the Seventh Air Assault Division, which was successfully deployed during the August 2008 Russian-Georgian war. At that time, it took ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet several days to re-deploy to the conflict zone near the Georgian-Abkhazian border. The helicopter regiment can do the same in the space of a few hours.
The Georgian Foreign Ministry has protested the deployment of a helicopter regiment in Novorossiisk, saying Russia looks like it is preparing for new hostilities. Tbilisi is also worried by the upcoming Caucasus-2012 military exercise, which would reportedly involve Russian personnel from military bases in the Caucasus. The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that there were no plans to involve the personnel of Russian military bases abroad or foreign armed forces.
A Russian military analyst said a possible decision to deploy air assault units and helicopters at Russian military bases in the Caucasus had only positive aspects. He added that a recent Georgian-U.S. exercise had involved counter-insurgency operations which served to remind people of Georgia’s aggression against South Ossetia and Russian peacekeepers in August 2008.
Moskovsky Komsomolets
Thirty Lives for a Bottle of Windshield Washer Fluid
The aircraft deicing fluid allocated for the Utair airline ATR-72 plane could have been stolen and sold as car windshield deicer. The deadly crash may have been caused by icing.
This explanation, however outrageous and cynical, has been indirectly confirmed by high-ranking aviation officials. “The tragedy occurred for a number of reasons,” an air navigation official told MK on condition of anonymity. “The crew wasn’t properly trained. Pilot schools cannot afford flight simulators, and the aircraft they use for training are old and obsolete. New pilots join the airlines if they have the proper papers. No one bothers to test their skills or give them emergency training. So a 27-year-old captain with 2,500 hours flying experience and a 24-year-old first officer with 800 hours are just kids.”
They simply did not know how to deal with the icing emergency. This is the most obvious explanation for the aircraft’s failure to rise higher than 100 meters (330 ft) after takeoff. Also, while its engines were running in takeoff mode, its speed only managed to get up to 210 km/h (131 mph), he said.
Investigators are trying to find out why the aircraft had not been treated with deicer at the airport. According to unofficial sources, the captain sent the deicing crew back telling them that that the aircraft did not need it. Yet he and the deicing crew signed a document certifying the plane had been treated. This could mean that one or more of the parties involved embezzled the thousands of dollars the airline paid the airport services.
The deicer fluid could have been diluted, bottled and sold from a mobile counter on the road. Such counters with blue bottles on highways – bottles possibly paid for with passenger lives – are not an uncommon sight.
Engineer Igor Levin, developer of anti-icing solutions, said icing has always been a problem, but in the Soviet era, many air crashes were not publicized. “Civil aircraft such as the An-124 and Tu-154 had anti-icing systems which were imperfect and gave only partial protection. Now an impulse system has been developed, which is installed on Il-96 and Il-86 aircraft, including the presidential jet. But Russian airlines have been buying a lot of foreign jets lately. Many of them still have the old systems. In fact the company that manufactured the ATR 72 which crashed in Tyumen, only stopped using the old system this year. Who says the other aircraft we fly use better systems?” he said.
“Icing is a real hazard. It can happen in any region, even in Africa, during landing. I have been in such emergencies myself. The aircraft just plummets. The pilot hardly even has time to react before crashing. That is why they failed to report the emergency. The media and experts are blaming the pilots, but it was not their fault. Those who failed to check the systems on an imported plane are to blame,” the navigation source said.
Komsomolskaya Pravda
Putin Urged to Ensure Gender Equality and Fight Ultraliberal Ideas
On Tuesday Vladimir Putin met with the Coordinating Council of the Russian People’s Front. He thanked them for their active campaigning, their stance and for explaining to others “what has been done, and what we are planning.”
“Why am I saying “we”? Because … I assume that the People’s Front will not cease to exist after the election,” Putin said.
He said that Front representatives elected to the State Duma are working with municipal governments and are auditing bills.
When asked if the Front needs a reset, Putin said that its “post-partisan status is its strongest asset. It provides more opportunities to involve different political forces within the orbit of its influence. I think this makes it easier to exercise popular control.” He added that the Front could be given “the status of a public organization or movement because we have not registered it legally in any way.”
He assured the audience that he would remain head of the Front if it is registered because “the law does not prohibit this.”
Mikhail Shmakov, chairman of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions, called for fighting ultraliberal ideas such as raising the retirement age.
“All ultra proposals, distortions or extreme viewpoints very often result in mistakes in practical activities,” Putin replied. “But the good thing about the Front is that it unites Mr. Shmakov and representatives of the business community. This allows us to seek mutually acceptable solutions.” He added that “Russia will remain a social state.”
Yekaterina Lakhova, head of the Women's Union of Russia, complained about gender inequality.
“Regrettably, it is also a problem for our neighbors and even advanced European countries,” the prime minister replied, adding that “women get paid 14% less than men on average.” He called for working “to have equality in everything, primarily the social and political sphere.”
Boris Titov, leader of the Delovaya Rossiya business association, said that an industrial lobby is being established in the State Duma to promote a knowledge-based economy and that the planned tax cuts would stimulate growth.
Putin said he liked the idea of holding a competition to appoint an ombudsman to protect the rights of businessmen.
Alexander Shokhin, chairman of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, proposed establishing a presidential council to protect business rights and instructing the People’s Front to evaluate the efficiency of state procurement orders.
“To prevent having the kind of circular firing squad … we should allow the People’s Front to play a uniting, consolidating role in the elaboration of decisions … on the most topical issues of national development,” Putin said. “We will consistently work to resolve all problems that were raised during our debates and in the course of the election campaigns and that are set forth in our programs and articles.”
Andrei Vorobyov, leader of the United Russia party in parliament, told the media after the meeting that a roadmap comprising 160 priority issues mentioned in Putin’s articles had been drafted.
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