Russian Airborne Forces

The Russian Airborne Forces () is the airborne separate combat arm of the Russian Armed Forces. It is a rapid response force and strategic reserve that is under the President of Russia, reporting directly to the Chief of the General Staff, and is organized into airborne and air assault units. It was formed in 1992 from divisions of the Soviet Airborne Forces that came under Russian control following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Troops of the Russian Airborne Forces have traditionally worn a blue beret and blue-striped telnyashka undershirt and are called desant (Russian: Десант), from the French Descente.

The Russian Airborne Forces utilizes a range of specialist airborne warfare vehicles and are fully mechanized. Traditionally they have had a larger complement of heavy weaponry than most contemporary airborne forces.

Mission

According to an order of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation in 1997, the Airborne Forces form the strategic reserve of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, under the direct command of the Chief of the General Staff, and as a rapid response force may be tasked with carrying out operations either independently or within larger army groups alongside units of the Ground Forces. The Airborne Forces can also participate in peacekeeping missions under the mandate of the United Nations (UN) or the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

The Airborne Forces are organized into three types of units, consisting of Airborne, Air Assault, and Mountain Air Assault. The structure of the Airborne Forces uses airborne or air assault divisions for the operational level, airborne or air assault brigades for the operational-tactical level, and regiments for the tactical level. This structure can be augmented with the addition of Ground Forces motorized rifle, artillery, aviation, or other units, depending on the situation.

7th Guards Airborne Division – moved from Lithuania to Novorossiysk.
44th Training Airborne Division – moved from Lithuania to Omsk.
76th Guards Airborne Division (Pskov Oblast)
98th Guards Airborne Division – moved from Ukraine to Ivanovo. Part of it stayed and became the nucleus of the 1st Airmobile Division, Ukrainian Airmobile Forces.
104th Guards Airborne Division – moved from Azerbaijan to Ulyanovsk.
106th Guards Airborne Division (Tula and Ryazan)

The remaining division, the 103rd Guards Airborne Division, became part of the Belarusian Ground Forces.

Russia also received seven

The two main training establishments of the VDV were in Ryazan and Omsk: the Ryazan Guards Higher Airborne Command School and the 242nd Training Center of the Airborne Forces, which was formed in Omsk on the basis of the training division.

The end of the Cold War brought up questions about the continued role and purpose of the Airborne Forces. With the possibility of large airborne operations unlikely (the VDV had not carried out a parachute assault since World War II), there were proposals to disband it or absorb its units into other service branches. As a strategic reserve, the VDV was also outside the control of military district commanders. It did provide a rapid response force that could quickly be deployed to conflict zones by aircraft faster than regular Ground Forces units. Another role of the VDV in the 1990s was also peacekeeping. A new VDV formation was also established in 1994, the 45th Spetsnaz Regiment. One of the groups was commanded by the VDV general Nikolai Staskov, who was nearly killed by a grenade during the fighting in Grozny. The 1st Separate Airborne Brigade was established for this purpose, from units of the 76th and 98th GAD, and arrived in Bosnia in January 1996, to be part of Multi-National Division North. The Russian brigade, led by Colonel Alexander Lentsov, was under the tactical control of William L. Nash, U.S. 1st Armored Division commander, and the operational control of NATO supreme commander George Joulwan through a Russian general, Leonty Shevtsov, his deputy for Russian forces. Russian and American soldiers worked alongside each other in the first joint operation between Russia and the countries of NATO since World War II. The brigade participate in the NATO mission, which became the Stabilization Force (SFOR), until 2003.

Although during Pavel Grachev's tenure as Minister of Defense the Russian armed forces had been reduced by 1.1 million troops, these changes initially had no effect on the VDV. But in December 1995 he ordered two airborne divisions and four air assault brigades to be put under the command of military districts, and when Grachev was replaced by Igor Rodionov in 1996, a Ground Forces officer, he continued to reduce the size of the VDV. In 1998 the 104th Division was reorganized as the 31st Guards Air Assault Brigade. and the 21st and 56th Brigades in 1997. In 2010, the VDV deputy commander, Major General Alexander Lentsov, said that the service would remain a separate combat arm, but there was a possibility that it would become part of the Special Operations Forces after 2016.

In October 2013 it was reported that the three airborne brigades under military district control (apparently the 11th and 83rd (Ulan-Ude and Ussuriysk) in the Eastern Military District and the 56th at Kamyshin in the Southern Military District) would be returned to VDV command. The process was completed by July 2015. In October 2013, Commander of the VDV Vladimir Shamanov announced that a new air assault brigade would be formed in Voronezh in 2016 with the number of the 345th Guards Airborne Regiment. The establishment of the brigade was postponed to 2017–18, according to a June 2015 announcement. It was announced in July 2015 that plans called for the 31st Airborne Brigade to be expanded into the 104th Guards Airborne Division by 2023, and for an additional airborne regiment to be attached to each division.

In the mid-2010s, the Russian Airborne Forces consisted of four divisions and six brigades, including:

7th Guards Mountain Air Assault Division
76th Guards Air Assault Division
98th Guards Airborne Division
106th Guards Airborne Division
11th Guards Air Assault Brigade
31st Guards Air Assault Brigade
56th Guards Air Assault Brigade
83rd Guards Air Assault Brigade
45th Guards Spetsnaz Brigade
38th Guards Communications Brigade

By 2021 the total personnel of the VDV was 45,000. These units allegedly were used as spearhead forces during the August 2014 DPR and LPR counteroffensive. During the August 2014 counteroffensive, battalion tactical groups of the 7th Guards Airborne Division's 247th Guards Air Assault Regiment, the 98th Guards Airborne Division's 331st Guards Airborne Regiment, the 106th Guards Airborne Division's 137th Guards Airborne Regiment, and the 31st Guards Air Assault Brigade allegedly were sent into Ukraine. Reconnaissance teams from the 45th Guards Spetznaz Brigade and the 106th's 173rd Guards Separate Reconnaissance Company were previously deployed to Ukraine alongside Ground Forces units.

In February 2016, it was reported that an airborne battalion would be permanently deployed to Dzhankoy, Crimea, in 2017–18, and upgraded to a regiment in 2020. In May 2017, Shamanov announced that the battalion would be formed at Feodosiya by 1 December 2017 as part of the 7th Guards Mountain Air Assault Division, and would be expanded into the 97th Air Assault Regiment with three battalions by late 2019. Since the 2014 annexation, the status of Crimea is under dispute between Russia and Ukraine; Ukraine and the majority of the international community considers Crimea an integral part of Ukraine, while Russia considers Crimea to be an integral part of Russia.

In August 2016, Russian paratroopers placed 1st place in the Airborne Platoon competition during the International Army Games in Russia, defeating teams from China, Iran, Belarus, and Kazakhstan.

On 4 October 2016, Colonel General Andrey Serdyukov was appointed commander of the Russian Airborne Forces, replacing Shamanov, who became chief of the Duma Committee on Defense.

State tests of a new Bakhcha-U-PDS parachute platform for the BMD-4M and BTR-MDM vehicles were completed in May 2018. Deliveries of new 'heavy drop' systems PBS-950U and PBS-955 began in 2020. In 2019, two battalion sets of BMD-4M airborne combat vehicles and BTR-MDM Rakushka armored personnel carriers, more than 200 units of various automotive equipment, including special armored vehicles, army snowmobiles, four-wheelers and buggies and more than 9,000 parachute systems D-10 and "Arbalet-2" were delivered to the troops.

thumb|Paratroopers of the [[45th Guards Spetsnaz Brigade during the Zapad 2021 exercise]]

In April 2020, military personnel from the Russian Airborne Forces, performed the world's first HALO paradrop from the lower border of the Arctic stratosphere. The Russian commando group used "next-generation special-purpose parachute system", military-tested oxygen equipment, navigation devices, special equipment, and uniforms. This was the first high-altitude landing in the Arctic latitudes over 10 km in the history of Russian aviation.

As part of its mission in the Arctic region, the aircrew provided landing of airborne units from altitudes of between 10 and 1.8 kilometres, as well as landing of cargo with a total weight of about 18 tons. After conducting practical combat training, the Il-76 aircrews landed at the Nagurskoe airfield in the northern part of the island of Franz Josef Land. The high-altitude landing was dedicated to the 75th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic war of 1941–1945, and the 90th anniversary of the formation of the Airborne troops.

Two air assault regiments were set up in Pskov and Crimea as part of air assault divisions in 2021. The Russian Defense Ministry also accepted the Zavet-D artillery fire control vehicle for the Airborne Forces. In 2021–2022, the Airborne Forces received about 30,000 sets of landing equipment and parachute systems. Sergey Shoigu claimed in September 2023 that VDV have received more than 2,000 hardware units and 5,500 landing means and also a new airborne regiment formed since the beginning of the year. The Russian Ministry of Defense said on 1 January 2024 that the VDV received during the past year over 2,500 units of weapons, military and special equipment, including more than 780 samples of "newest and contemporary ones". Among the newest samples were T-90M tanks and BMD-4M IFVs as well as BTR-MDM "Rakushka" and BTR-82A APCs. It was also reported on 3 January that 20 military units were created in 2023, including the Ulyanovsk air assault division. About 16,000 landing means were also reportedly delivered and 1,000 more in the first quarter of 2024.

Russian invasion of Ukraine

thumb|VDV Airborne troops at [[Hostomel Airport during the Battle of Antonov Airport]]

thumb|VDV Airborne troops attacking a Ukrainian drone during the [[Battle of the Svatove–Kreminna line]]

The VDV participated heavily in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In the opening hours of the invasion the VDV attempted to secure key airports and support assaults around Ukraine. These paratroopers were recognizable by the orange-and-black Saint George ribbons decorating their helmets and arms. Three air assault operations were carried out: in the northern direction, the Hostomel Airport northwest of Kyiv, and in the southern direction, Antonov Bridge over the Dneiper river east of Kherson, and the Kakhovka Dam and Bridge. Of the three, the latter two operations were successful in capturing their objective.

The VDV attempted to paradrop and transport troops with Mi-8 and Mi-17 helicopters and take the Hostomel Airport in northern Kyiv, in order to use the airport to airlift more troops and heavy equipment to take Kyiv as a form of forward "air bridge" that would enable rapid deployment of Russian forces far in advance of the Russian land front, in an action that became known as the Battle of Antonov Airport. The VDV troops had initial success on the first day against the Ukrainian National Guard, The next day battle resumed, and the VDV again attempted to land troops at the airport. Deploying around 200 helicopters and with support from the Ground Forces arriving from the north (Belarus and Chernobyl), they finally broke through the Ukrainian defenses and established Russian control over the airport. In the end, however, the Ukrainians claimed that the airport became too damaged from the battle to be used as an airstrip.

Forty kilometers south of Kyiv in Vasylkiv, VDV paratroopers also dropped in an attempt to secure the Vasylkiv Air Base. Without any support from air or ground forces, the VDV troops in Vasylkiv were eventually encircled and were unsuccessful in achieving their objectives, giving victory in the Battle of Vasylkiv to the Ukrainians. On February 27, VDV troops with BMD-2s and BTR-Ds were seen advancing south of Hostomel in Bucha. The VDV and Ground Forces' units were hit on the same day by Bayraktar air strikes. The Ukrainian government claimed that "more than 100 units of enemy equipment were destroyed”. On the following weeks the VDV served as mechanized infantry and light infantry during the Kyiv offensive, They attempted a raid on a local military hospital but were repelled by local Ukrainian forces. In the fall of 2022, units of the 76th Guards Division were transferred from fighting in the battle of Donbass to fight the Kherson counteroffensive, where they stopped the advance of Ukrainian marines from the 35th Marine Brigade. According to the UK Ministry of Defence in June 2023, Russia was redeploying regular military units to the Bakhmut sector following withdrawal of Wagner forces. These included elements of the 76th and 106th VDV divisions and two additional brigades. The MoD added that the VDV was much degraded from its pre-invasion "elite" status.

As of August 2022, according to Colonel General Mikhail Teplinsky, over 5,000 VDV paratroopers have been decorated for distinguished service during operations in Ukraine, and 17 of them became Heroes of the Russian Federation. In August 2025, he said that over 100,000 decorations have been awarded to VDV servicemen, and 99 have become Heroes of the Russian Federation. Two divisions, two brigades and one regiment participated in restoring control over Kursk Oblast, and later entered Ukraine's Sumy Oblast, while the 98th Guards Division took part in finishing the battle of Chasiv Yar, and the 7th Guards Division was fighting in the Zaporozhye Oblast.

Analysis of losses

On 3 March 2022, it was reported that Major General Andrei Sukhovetsky of the VDV's 7th Guards Mountain Air Assault Division, who was the appointed deputy commander of the 41st Combined Arms Army, was killed in action in Ukraine. His death is attributed to sniper fire either near Mariupol (which was besieged by Russian forces) or Hostomel during the Kyiv offensive. Ukrainian sources said he was killed on 2 March and his death was first confirmed on VKontakte by "Combat Brotherhood", a Russian veterans group, The VDV also joined the assault on the city of Mykolaiv during the Battle of Mykolaiv, but were pushed back by a Ukrainian counter-offensive.

On 18 March it was reported that Colonel Sergei Sukharev along with deputy Major Sergei Krylov of the 331st Guards Airborne Regiment had been killed during fighting in Mariupol.

In late April, Bellingcat journalist Christo Grozev claimed that he "personally checked" and that Russia had lost "almost 90% of its best paratroopers" in the first echelon of the invasion. Many helicopters were shot down by Ukrainian defenses, and the paratroopers were stranded without armored vehicles or air support. In early May, the UK MoD stated that the VDV units and other elite forces had suffered high losses and that it would "probably take years for Russia to reconstitute these forces."

On 19 June 2022, it was reported by Odesa military-civilian spokesperson Serhiy Bratchuk This was confirmed by Russian media reports. He was replaced by Colonel General Mikhail Teplinsky.

According to BBC News Russian and the Mediazona news website, 1,937 VDV deaths had been documented by the end of August 2023, which included 340 officers, accounting for 6% of the 31,665 Russian fatalities who had been identified by name, and 8% of those who could identified by both name and service branch.

UK intelligence estimate that around 30,000 paratroop forces were deployed to Ukraine in 2022 and that 50% of those have been killed or wounded by summer 2023. A Russian General in August 2023 stated that 3,500 wounded paratroopers had refused to leave the front for treatment and 5,000 had returned to the front after treatment.

As of 8 May 2025, at least 401 BMD-2, 171 BMD-4M, 105 BTR-D, and 12 unknown BTR-D/BMD-2 have been lost in the invasion.

Wartime expansion

Despite claims of 'devastating' and 'crippling' losses, the VDV expanded during the war. After the invasion it was announced that the Airborne Forces would create two new divisions. Teplinsky announced on August 2, 2023 that the VDV is expanding the 31st Air Assault Brigade into the 104th Guards Air Assault Division. The 299th and 119th Parachute Regiments were also reestablished, expanding two other divisions from two to three regiments.

Also reported was the creation of a new 52nd Artillery Brigade, the first unit of its type in the VDV, and the 44th Air Assault Division, created on the basis of the 111th and 387th Motor Rifle Regiments of the 1st Army Corps of the Donetsk People's Republic. The 44th Air Assault Division recalls the number of the Soviet-era 44th Training Airborne Division, but being from newly-formed motor rifle regiments, it was described as being an air assault unit "in name only" by military analysts.

Structure

thumb|Banner of the Airborne Forces Commander.

The Airborne Forces Command answers to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and is responsible for the organization, development, training of the VDV, as well as the planning and implementation of operations involving VDV units. The Command includes the following senior officials, and the titles and the number of the deputy commanders have changed over the years, but as of June 2023 they include:

Commander Airborne Forces – Colonel-General Mikhail Teplinsky
Chief of Staff and First Deputy Commander Airborne Forces – Major-General Aleksandr Kornev
Deputy Commander Airborne Forces for Peacekeeping Operations and Collective Rapid Reaction Forces – Lieutenant-General Andrei Kholzakov
Deputy Commander Airborne Forces – Major-General Nikolai Choban
Deputy Commander Airborne Forces for Airborne Training – Major-General Alexander Vyaznikov
Deputy Commander Airborne Forces for Armaments – Major-General Alexei Ragozin
Deputy Commander Airborne Forces for Combat Training – Major-General Sergei Volyk
Deputy Commander Airborne Forces for Military-Political Work – Major-General Viktor Kupshichin
Deputy Commander Airborne Forces for Material-Technical Support - Major-General Nariman Timergazin
Deputy Commander Airborne Forces for Construction and Quartering – Major-General Leonid Shevchenko

Organization

thumb|center|640px|The structure of the Russian Airborne Forces (pre-2022)

The Air Landing Forces combine Parachute Landing (парашютно-десантные) and Landing Assault (десантно-штурмовые) units. The difference between the two is that while both were airborne qualified and mechanised with BMD, BTR-D, 2S9 Nona, the parachute landing units are lighter (only quarter mechanised) and play the role of entry element, while landing assault units were fully mechanised and were intended to develop the breach opened by the parachute landing forces.

thumb|Paratroopers at the [[2008 Moscow Victory Day Parade]]

thumb|Airborne Forces commander [[Andrey Serdyukov in front of Spasskaya Bashnya on Paratroopers' Day in 2020]]

thumb|The VDV has a close working relationship with the Belarusian [[38th Guards Air Assault Brigade]]

thumb|The combined band

{|class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;

|- align="center"

! colspan=10 style="width: 350px;"| Composition of the Russian Airborne Forces 2024

|25px

|Airborne Forces Command

|Moscow

|Commander Col. Gen. Mikhail Teplinsky

|25px

|38th Guards Command and Control Brigade

|54164

|Shchyolkovo, Moscow Oblast

|150th Repair and Overhaul Battalion

|Orekhovo-Zuyevo, Moscow Oblast

|25px

|Ryazan Guards Higher Airborne Command School

|Ryazan, Ryazan Oblast

|25px

|Ulyanovsk Guards Suvorov Military School

|Ulyanovsk, Ulyanovsk Oblast

|25px

|242nd Training Centre

|Omsk, Omsk Oblast

|25px

|Omsk Cadet Corps

|Omsk, Omsk Oblast

|309th Center for Specialized Parachute Training

|Ryazan, Ryazan Oblast

|25px<br>31x31px<br>25px<br>25px<br>25px

|7th Guards Mountain Air Assault Division

56th Guards Air Assault Regiment
108th Guards Kuban Cossack Air Assault Regiment
247th Guards Air Assault Regiment
1141st Guards Artillery Regiment
3rd Guards Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment

|61756

unknown
42091
54801
40515
94021

| Novorossiysk, Krasnodar Krai

Feodosia, Crimea
Novorossiysk, Krasnodar Krai
Stavropol, Krasnodar Krai
Anapa, Krasnodar Krai
Novorossiysk, Krasnodar Krai

|44th Air Assault Division

|25px

|83rd Guards Airborne Brigade

|71289

|Ussuriysk, Primorsky Krai

|91st Mobile Material-Technical Support Brigade

|Tula Oblast

Armament and equipment

Personal firearms and crew served weapons include:

AK-74M (including upgraded variants with the KM-AK Obves modernization kit) and AKS-74 assault rifles, and AKS-74U special purpose and self-defence carbine (5.45×39mm)
AK-12 assault rifles (5.45×39mm)
RPK-74, light weight machinegun (5.45×39mm), now largely withdrawn from service and replaced by the PKM/PKP
PKM, general purpose machinegun (7.62×54mmR)
6P41 "Pecheneg" (PKP) general purpose machine gun (7.62×54mmR), currently replacing the PKM as the general purpose machine gun throughout the Russian Armed Forces
Dragunov SVDS, sniper rifle (7.62×54mmR)
Dragunov SVU, modified SVD in bullpup configuration and its variants are in limited use
SV-98, main sniper rifle (7.62×54mmR)
ASVK-M Kord-M anti-materiel sniper rifle (12.7×108mm)
MP-443 Grach, semi-automatic pistol (9×19mm Parabellum)
Makarov, semi-automatic pistol (9×18mm Makarov)
Glock 17, semi-automatic pistol (9x19 Parabellum)
GP-25, GP-30 and GP-34, under-barrel 40 mm grenade launchers for fragmentation and gas grenades
AGS-17 Plamya (Flame), 30 mm automatic grenade launcher
RPO-A Shmel (Bumblebee), infantry rocket flamethrower, currently replacing the older RPO Rys (Lynx)
RPG-7D anti-tank rocket launcher, or more modern systems such as the RPG-22 and RPG-26
2B14 Podnos 82 mm mortar or the 120 mm 2S12 Sani on UAZ vehicles
9K38 Igla man-portable SAM system, or the more modern 9K338 Igla-S
9K333 Verba man-portable SAM system, currently entering service
9K111 Fagot, 9K115 Metis and 9M133 Kornet man-portable anti-tank systems
MTS-566 sniper rifle

The VDV are fully equipped with Barmitsa and Ratnik infantry combat suits as of 2018. Andromeda-D, Barnaul-T and Dozor automated control systems, AS-1 snowmobiles, four wheelers, a specially-created uniform for hot climates and Nanuk Arctic gear, reconnaissance-control and planning modules and the REX-1 counter-unmanned aerial vehicle rifle-like, man-portable jammer developed by Kalashnikov Group subsidiary ZALA Aero Group are also being introduced into service. The Russian Airborne Forces have also received new special-purpose controlled wing-type parachutes. VDV servicemen performing tasks in Ukraine received VKPO 3.0 all-season field uniform kits in 2023. The automatic cargo parachute system Junker-DG-250 passed acceptance trials and began to be supplied in November 2023. VDV also reportedly use the Lesochek EW system.

Armoured vehicles

There are over 1,800 armored fighting vehicles, mostly BMD-1 (since 1969), of which all but around 100 are in storage, and at least several hundred BMD-2 (since 1985). There are over 100 BMD-3 (1990) that were partially upgraded to BMD-4 level. All of them are amphibious, moving at around 10 km/h in water. The BMD-4 is capable of full, continuous fire while in deep water, unlike any other vehicle with such heavy weaponry (100 mm gun and 30 mm auto cannon). However, some units (such as those who served on peacekeeping duties in the Balkans) are known to have used BTR armored personnel carriers rather than BMD's. T-72B3 tanks supplied to the Russian Airborne Forces in 2018 have been upgraded and are equipped with Andromeda automatic control system and some of them with top-attack defence screens. As of 2021, the Russian Airborne Forces have 150 T-72B3 and 10 T-72B3 mod. 2016. T-90M tanks are also attached to VDV units as of August 2023.

There is a turret-less variant of the BMD-1, the BTR-D, which is used as troop carrier and serves as the basis for specialised versions such as anti-tank, command and signals. The BTR-D will be partially replaced by the new multi-purpose APC BTR-MD "Rakushka" that will also come in several different versions. Approximately 280 vehicles in all BTR-D configurations are in service. As part of the 2011 state defence order (GOZ), 10 BMD-4M and 10 "Rakushka's" have been ordered, but according to the VDV's CinC General Colonel Shamanov, Kurganmashzavod did not give a guarantee it would produce them.

The Russian Defense Ministry adopted the BMD-4M in April 2016. The first production batch of the new armored vehicles BMD-4M and BTR-MDM "Shell" in the amount of 24 units (12 each) transferred to the Russian Airborne Forces in 2015. The VDV equipped the first regiment with BMD-4Ms and BTR-MDMs in 2016. In 2017, they received two battalion sets of BMD-4M combat airborne vehicles and BTR-MDM APCs, over 80 Rys’ and UAZ Pickup armored automobiles.

alt=|thumb|The [[BMD-4M]]

alt=|thumb|The [[BTR-MDM "Shell"]]

Russian airborne brigade-level units have received SPM-2 GAZ-233036 Tigr armored cars. They have ordered Kamaz Typhoon armored infantry transports, following modifications to meet the demands of the airborne troops and accepted them for supply in August 2021. The Russian Airborne Forces have received about 100 Tigr and Rys special armored vehicles, 200 Snegohod A-1 snow-going and AM-1 all-terrain vehicles, UAZ Patriot light motor vehicles, Toros 4x4 armored vehicles and Kamaz trucks that can be air-dropped.

The VDV currently receives Berkyt protected snowmobiles for personnel transportation and fire support in arctic conditions. Infauna and Leer-2 EW systems alongside Aileron-3SV UAVs and P-230T command vehicles are also received. The RKhM-6 chemical reconnaissance vehicle based on the BTR-80 armored personnel carrier, the BTR-D airborne assault armored personnel carrier with a ZU-23 anti-aircraft gun and the R-149MA1 and the R-142DA command and staff vehicles were demonstrated in August 2021. The Sarmat-2 light tactical buggy participated in the Zapad-2021 drill.

Artillery

thumb|"Sprut-SD" tank/howitzer for [[airborne forces (equipped with parachutes)]]

The airborne self-propelled artillery guns ASU-57 and ASU-85 have been withdrawn. They had light armour and limited anti-tank capability, but provided invaluable fire support for paratroopers behind enemy lines (the caliber of the gun in mm is the number next to the ASU designation).

Also withdrawn were the multiple rocket launch systems RPU-14 (8U38) of 140 mm and the BM-21V "Grad-V" (9P125) of 122 mm on GAZ-66, as well as the 85 mm gun SD-44.

Today the VDV operates the following systems:

2S9 Nona and modernized 2S9M 120 mm self-propelled gun-mortar. Currently being replaced by the 2B23 Nona-M1 120 mm towed mortar and 2S31 Vena 120 mm self-propelled gun-mortar/2S12A modernized 120 mm self-propelled mortar
2S25 Sprut-SD 125 mm self-propelled artillery/anti-tank gun based on BMD-3 hull
D-30 (2A18) 122 mm howitzer and anti-tank weapon, towed by truck, not amphibious, able to make 360 degree turns as it is deployed on a tripod
ZU-23-2 23 mm air-defence gun, is either mounted on the BTR-D, or can be towed by a jeep or truck as it has wheels. Since 2011, some ZU-23s are being replaced by the Strela-10M3/MN and since 2016 by the newest versions of the Buk missile system.
TOS-1A 220 mm self-propelled 24-barrel thermobaric/incendiary unguided rocket launcher since 2022.
2S36 Zauralets-D – future 120 mm self-propelled gun-howitzer based on the BMD-4
2S37 – future 152 mm self-propelled gun-howitzer based on the BMD-4

UAVs

thumb|A Granat-4 UAV of the 56th Guards Air Assault Brigade

Compact recon complex "Iskatel" (The Seeker) with 2 UAVs
UAV complex Orlan-10
UAV complex Granat
UAV complex Takhion
Kamikaze FPV drone Boomerang
ZALA Lancet kamikaze drone
Albatross M5 reconnaissance drone

UGVs

Hortenzia, Shanghai and Lyagushka UGVs

Ranks and rank insignia

;Officer ranks

{| style="border:1px solid #8888aa; background:#f7f8ff; padding:5px; font-size:95%; margin:0 12px 12px 0;"

;Other ranks

{| style="border:1px solid #8888aa; background-color:#f7f8ff; padding:5px; font-size:95%; margin: 0px 12px 12px 0px; text-align:center;"

|- bgcolor="#CCCCCC"

! Rank group !! colspan=6| Under-officers !! colspan=16| NCOs !! colspan=14| Enlisted

Commanders of the Russian Airborne Forces

thumb|The flag of the Commander of the Airborne Forces

{| class="wikitable"

! Name

! Rank

! Period of command

| Yevgeny Podkolzin

| Colonel general

| 7 May 1992 – 4 December 1996

| Georgy Shpak

| Colonel general

| 4 December 1996 – 8 September 2003

| Alexander Kolmakov

| Colonel general

| 8 September 2003 – 19 November 2007

| Valery Yevtukhovich

| Colonel general

| 19 November 2007 – 6 May 2009

| Nikolai Ignatov

| Lieutenant general

| 6 – 24 May 2009

| Vladimir Shamanov

| Colonel general

| 26 May 2009 – 4 October 2016

| Andrey Serdyukov

| Colonel general

| 4 October 2016 – 16 June 2022

| Mikhail Teplinsky

| Colonel general

| 16 June 2022 – present

Traditions

Symbols

Nickname(s): Blue Berets, Winged Infantry
Patron: Saint Elijah the Prophet
Motto(s): Никто, кроме нас! (Nobody, but us!)
Beret Color: Sky Blue

As late as 1999 many members of the Airborne Forces still wore the old patch of the Soviet VDV on their uniform, either by itself or along with the Russian Armed Forces patch, which had been issued in 1994. Their most emblematic mark of distinction is a blue beret. VDV soldiers are often called "blue berets". Each year, current and former paratroopers, often in an inebriated state, celebrate by meeting up and wandering city streets and parks. The day is notorious for two common sights: paratroopers frolicking in fountains and picking fights with hapless passers-by. On Airborne Forces Day in many Russian cities, it is customary to turn off the fountains and hold veteran reunions near those fountains.

Bands

The Combined Military Band of the Airborne Forces is an integral part of all the solemn events of the Airborne Forces. Every year, the band's personnel take part in the Victory Parade on Red Square, as well as the opening ceremony of the International Army Games. In the ranks of the combined band were musicians of the military bands of the airborne and assault formations of the Airborne Forces. There were six other military bands in the airborne forces.

The Song and Dance Ensemble of the Airborne Forces is the theatrical troupe of the VDV. It began its creative activity in 1937, as the Red Army Song and Dance Ensemble of the Kiev Military District, numbering only 18 people. On 3 May 1945, three days after the signing of the German armistice, the ensemble gave a concert on the steps of the destroyed Reichstag.

During the Cold War, the unit was known as the Song and Dance Ensemble of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany. During this time, it had participated in concerts in the cities of East Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Poland. It gained its current status in 1994. The Song and Dance Ensemble also contains the Blue Berets musical group.