Page:NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE SURVEY 18; CZECHOSLOVAKIA; ARMED FORCES CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110009-4.pdf/21

APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110009-4

FIGURE 9. Czechoslovakia-produced MAYA (L-29) trainer jet (U/OU)

FIGURE 10. FITTER aircraft deploying chute on landing (U/OU)

fighter interceptors, SAM's, conventional AAA, or a combination of the three is usually delegated by the district headquarters to zonal authorities.

Tactical air elements are organized into tactical fighter, fighter-bomber, reconnaissance, transport, and helicopter regiments. While the tactical fighter regiments of the 10th AA have a secondary mission of air defense, their primary role, and the role of all tactical elements, is to provide support for the ground forces. This tactical force would be expected to move forward with its supported ground forces under the direction of the front commander. The aircraft assigned give the tactical air force a capability to support a ground force commander with strikes in the immediate forward edge of the battle area (FEBA), as well as relatively longer range attacks against targets which have an effect on the ground battle.

2. Strength, composition, and disposition^[1]

The total aircraft strength of the air forces is slightly more than 700. Included are some 486 combat aircraft, 34 transports, and 187 helicopters. Personnel strength of the air and air defense forces is about 57,800 including 1,200 pilots. About 32,100 of these total are air force personnel assigned to non-air defense functions; the other 25,700 are in the air defense force.

Air defense elements consist of three jet fighter regiments. A little more than 50% of the 132 aircraft in these regiments are the all-weather FISHBED D and E. The remaining aircraft include FISHBED C and E (MiG-21), FAGOT (MiG-15), and MAYA (L-29) (Figure 9). The tactical air elements are the best equipped. There are three tactical fighter regiments with a total of 132 aircraft, the majority of which are the FISHBED J Export. The four fighter-bomber units are equipped with nearly equal numbers of FITTER A (Figure 10) and FAGOT—a total of 144 aircraft. In addition, there are two reconnaissance regiments and one transport regiment in the tactical force. The reconnaissance regiments are equipped with FISHBED H (MiG-21R), MAYA (L-29), BEAGLE (Il-28), and CRATE (Il-14). Support aircraft include CRUSTY (Tu-134), COKE (An-24), and CRATE transports, HARE (Mi-1), HOUND (Mi-4), and HIP (Mi-8) helicopters.

There are four SA-2 surface-to-air (SAM) brigades and one separate SA-2 SAM regiment, consisting of 24 firing battalions. These SAM units are deployed to provide a vital area defense of the principal cities of Prague, Brno, Ostrava, and Bratislava, and one regiment provides area coverage for the country's western border area. Additionally, the national air defense forces have one SA-3 regiment deployed to provide low-altitude defense of the western approaches to Prague. The integrated air defense system has conventional antiaircraft artillery, 62 early warning radar sites, and 12 aircraft-control radar sites. The total personnel strength of the air defense force is estimated to 25,700—of which approximately 10,700 and 15,000, respective, are air force and ground forces personnel assigned to air defense functions.

CAF combat units are located at the following airfields: Pardubice, Dobrany, Hradce Kralove, Prerov, Bechyne, Castav/Chotusice, Namest nad Oslavou, Mosnov, Žatec, and České Budejovice.

17

APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110009-4

1. For current information see European Communist Aircraft Order of Battle (DI-240-1C-73 series), published by the Defense Intelligence Agency. Information on Czechoslovak airfields is provided in this General Survey, under Transportation and Telecommunications.