Air Defense Force
The Air Defense of Ukraine fulfils responsible tasks of protection of the Ukraine’s sovereignty and the inviolability of its borders and air space, has well specified functions in peacetime and in case of war and is intended to prevent the beginning of air and missile strikes, to intercept enemy aircraft, to defend the most important administrative, political and industrial centers, concentration of Army and Navy units, other state and military objects against enemy air and cruise missile strikes.

A brand-new training ground, test launches of missiles made in 1979, a plane in the right place at the wrong time, and an under-funded military performing its first missile test-launches in 18 months were among the many elements that set the stage for the apparent downing of a Russian Sibir Airlines Tu-154 passenger jet by a Ukrainian missile on 04 October 2001. All 78 people aboard the plane, en route from Tel Aviv to Novisibirsk, perished. Tthe S-200 missiles involved in the exercises were made in 1979. The rockets have an operational life of 25 years. Oct. 4 was the first of two days slated for missile tests during a planned, two-week military training exercise on Ukraine's Crimean peninsula. The exercises were scheduled to run from Sept. 28 to Oct. 12. The training ground, known as Opuc Cape, is actually operated by Russia. Russia leases the grounds from Ukraine. The autumn exercises marked the first time that Ukraine's military had used the Opuc Cape site. Ukraine had previously held similar exercises annually on Crimea's Chauda Cape, some 40 kilometers away from the new site. But last year's exercises were canceled after Ukraine's military accidentally sent a surface-to-surface Tochka-U rocket through the roof of an apartment building in Brovary, outside Kyiv, killing three people.

The Air Defense Force of Ukraine was developed at the basis of formations, large units ad units, deployed in Ukraine at the moment of its independence's proclamation. The Air Defense Force is designed for notification about air strike and missile attack, enemy aviation counter-warfare, defense of most important administrative, political and economic centers and regions of the state, troops concentrations, naval units, other state and military facilities against enemy aviation and cruise missiles.

Air Defense Missile Troops are designed to support jointly with other Services Air Defense of Ukraine. They are equipped with various types of antiaircraft missile (antiaircraft artillery) complexes featuring high possibilities to injure sophisticated assets of air strike in the wide range of altitudes and its flight speeds in different weathers and times of a day.

Radio-technical Troops are designed to directly execute airspace radio-location reconnaissance and support warfare of missile troops and fighter aviation. They are equipped with sophisticated radars, which allow any time of a year and a day, independently from weather conditions and counter-radar warfare, to detect assets of air attack at long ranges and at all altitudes, to locate their exact coordinates, as well as support targeting for missile troops and operate aviation's guidance.

Special troops, units, establishments and units of technical and logistic support, military educational establishments are aimed at supporting warfare of large units, units and services units .

One fact that differ UKR Air Defense from others is its 24 hours duty function to defend UKR state border in peaceful time. Every day almost 3,000 servicemen, representing more than 120 military specialties. Air Defense units cover state border ranging up to 7,000 km, monitor various agencies aircraft flights in state's airspace as well as border-crossing with 9 neighboring states. Radio-technical units, command posts' teams monitored more than 400 000 aircraft, detected more than 100 border violators during latest 3,5 years. About 3 500 times duty forces were alerted to execute missions assigned and to prevent possible airspace violations.

By the Decree of the President of Ukraine in 1997, the first Sunday of August is celebrated annually as the Air Defense Day.

Ukraine's military is better known for its misfires than its bulls eyes. In the two years alone, the troops have accidentally fired missiles at an apartment complex and a passenger ship. Its most notorious disaster of all, the downing of a Russian airliner over the Black Sea in the fall of 2001, killed 78 people and drew international ridicule and repulsion.

The main feature of The Air Defence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine: even in peacetime it carries out combat tasks of Ukraine’s airspace border protection – 24-hour combat duty.

Every day 3000 servicemen of more than 120 specialties carry out combat duty. Units and elements of the Air Defence protect the state border of distance of over 7000 km, observe and check flights of planes of all national state structures and during state border crossing through the borders of 9 neighboring states.

Every month radar troops, crews of command posts of the Air Defence track more than 9000 aircraft. The crews on combat duty are always ready to prevent any airspace violations and to render assistance for aircraft in case of emergency.

The structure of The Air Defence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is being created and developed taking into account all experience gained before, coming from the geopolitical position of Ukraine, its military doctrine orientation, existing power and means of the Air Defence and according to the technical and economical abilities.

The integrated system of the Air Defence, which has been created using all power and means of all branches of the Armed Forces, is effective and economical but a strict centralized control system is required.

The transfer of main military activity to aerospace, direct relation of results of military conflict on the fact who dominates in aerospace stipulate the essential increase of role of means of air attack and air defense. The confirmation of above mentioned fact is modern military conflicts, operations conducted by multinational forces in Gulf Bay and also operation of combined NATO armed forces in Yugoslavia.

The modern air defense must be multifunctional, capable to fight with not only aircraft and helicopters but cruise missiles and other unmanned means.

The effectiveness of combat application of different powers and means of the Air Defence must be achieved by the usage of combat capabilities taking into consideration the specified cooperation and centralized control.

Thus, in general the achievement of high effectiveness of The Air Defence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine under today’s economical conditions is possible due to creation of the combined air defense system of the respective scale which shall have unified concept, assigned tasks and performance characteristics of its means.

The combined air defense system shall use effective means of reconnaissance, destruction means, electronic countermeasures and automatic control systems. The foundation of such air defense system shall be aviation and anti-aircraft missile means disposed in ranges and altitudes of target destruction.
Air Defense Force History
“Birth” of the Air Defense Force of Ukraine, its formation and development are tightly connected with history of the country.

In the period of 1914-1917 there were developed main operational-tactical principles of air defense of logistic objects. These principles were totally implemented in action in the process of organization of air-cover of important objects of Odessa operational command (Odessa, Mykolaiv, Kherson etc.)

In the middle 1915 there was created the service of air (visual) observation, warning and communication that was aimed to detect enemy aircrafts, to monitor their action and to warn air defense units of their appearance.

January, 1992 – The Command of 8th Separate Air Defence Army and the personnel of combat anti-aircraft units and radar troops, fighter aviation and logistical support elements and units had sworn allegiance to the people of Ukraine.

April-May, 1992 – The Command of The Air Defence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is founded according to the Decree of the President of Ukraine #209 dated 5 Apr 1992 “About urgent measures as for creation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine” and the Order of Minister of Defence.

June, 1996 – Lieutenant-General STETSENKO is appointed Deputy Minister of Defence – Commander-in-chief of The Air Defence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine by the Decree of the President of Ukraine #449/96 dated 20 Jun 1996.

3 July 1996 - Experimental firings (launchings) of short and medium range SAM complexes are conducted on the Ukrainian territory for the first time in the history of Ukraine.

2 July 1997 – The professional holiday - the Day of The Air Defence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is established by the Decree of the President of Ukraine #602/97 as a national-wide recognition of the Air Defence contribution to the defensive potential of State. The Day of the Air Defence is yearly celebrated on the first Sunday of July.

In 1997 the Program of The Air Defence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was worked out and approved by the Minister of Defence of Ukraine. The Program includes the system of concepts on tasks of the Air Defence, the general ways, phases and perspectives of its development. The primary purpose of the Program is the foundation of the unified state air defense system taking into account today’s military and political situation, methods and rates of the Armed Forces development, financial and economical ability of Ukraine and up-to-date requirements for the state defense potential.

July 2000 – In accordance with the Decree of the President of Ukraine #931/2000 of July 31, 2000 Lieutenant-general Volodimir V. Tkachov was appointed Deputy Minister of Defense - Commander-in-chief of the Air Defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

October 2000 – Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted Law of Ukraine “Of the Armed Forces of Ukraine” in which Air Defense force gained the status of the armed service of the Armed forces of Ukraine – this was the token of recognition of achievements of “sky guards” in the process of strengthening of the defensive capacity of the state and operational readiness of its Armed Forces.