Russian commando frogmen


The Russian commando frogmen are a Russian Naval Spetsnaz unit under operational subordination to the Main Intelligence Directorate. It is the special forces unit of the Russian Naval Infantry and is composed of highly trained and elite marines within the Naval Infantry. It is also part of the Coastal Troops of the Russian Navy. The navy itself does not have any special forces units. Russian FSB special forces Alpha Group and Vympel also have frogman units in their respective naval components.

History

Pre war and WWII

On 22 October 1938, during wargaming between units of the Russian Pacific Fleet in Vladivostok, a group of Soviet military divers exited a Shch-112 submarine through a torpedo tube, entered the naval base and completed certain acts of sabotage. These combat divers were equipped with oxygen rebreathers, dry suits, handguns and grenades. This did not lead to a permanent combat diver unit being set up, but it was the beginning of the history of combat divers.
The Soviet Union started frogman operations during World War II. The first unit of combat divers, was formed in Leningrad in 1941. The most prominent of these new recruits was Viktor Leonov, who joined the Soviet Navy in 1937. He was assigned to a submarine training detachment and then transferred to a repair station in the Northern Fleet at Polyarnyy. Leonov had trained as a scuba diver, after which he joined 4th Special Volunteer Detachment, where he proved his daring and leadership skills conducting numerous clandestine operations and twice being awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Soviet combat divers were quite successful during World War Two. They performed a variety of missions numbering well over 200 operations. These operations consisted of more than just combat operations and demolitions. There were many rescue missions which also included female divers recovering weapons and other military equipment from sunken cargo ships. Other operations also included making minor repairs of ships that were afloat and clearing approaches to wharf facilities at the sites of fords across the Volga river. There were also operations which involved recovering the dead that were present on sunken ships or in the Volga river.
In 1953, according to directives of the Main Headquarters of the Naval Forces of the USSR, they started to establish completely secret Detached Naval Reconnaissance Points. In the beginning they were named Naval Reconnaissance Divisions of the Special Intelligence, purposed for high risk special operations.
The mission of the Naval SPETSNAZ was to conduct what the Soviets call Special Reconnaissance. During the Cold War, each Soviet fleet would have a brigade of "naval assault pioneers" with a wartime strength of up to 1,300 men and capable of deploying about 100 teams. Naval special forces were organized into spetsnaz brigades consisting of five spetsnaz detachments, a signal company, support units, and a headquarters company containing highly skilled professional soldiers and frogmen responsible for carrying out reconnaissance, assassinations, kidnappings, rescue missions and contact with agents behind enemy lines. The organization of a naval special purpose brigade reflects its emphasis on sea infiltration, with up to three frogman battalions, one parachute battalion, and a minisubmarine battalion, as well as the signal company, headquarters company, and support elements.
In 1967, the Anti-diversionary forces and means, or 'PDSS', began development in the Soviet Black Sea Fleet. PDSS is a complex of special measures developed by the Soviet Navy to counter possible attacks by frogmen. PDSS includes specially trained units of the Soviet Navy, frogman and anti-frogman training and special weapons and tactics. According to some historians, Soviet Naval Commanders decided to form PDSS after the Lionel Crabb incident.

Post breakup of the USSR

Most Soviet Naval spetsnaz units were transferred to the newly formed Russian Navy and subsequently downsized. At least one unit, the 17th Naval Special Purpose Brigade, was transferred to the Ukrainian Navy and was reorganized as the 1464th Marine Reconnaissance point. Shortly after, the 1464th MRP was again reorganized as the 7th Special Purpose Brigade of the Ukrainian Navy, after about two-thirds of the unit's personnel swore an oath to Ukraine. In 2003, the unit became the 73rd Naval Center of Special Operations.
Russian naval spetsnaz, have been less visible in the wake of the USSR's dissolution. By the end of the 1990s there was only one full-strength naval spetsnaz brigade, at Ocharkov on the Black Sea. However, in 1998 the Russian Navy's commander in chief, Admiral Vladimir Kuroyedov, reaffirmed that naval special-operations units remain assigned to the Russian Baltic, Northern, Pacific, and Black Sea fleets. Although the admiral provided few specifics on the size and capabilities of the units, he did indicate that they were elite, that they were equipped with special weapons, and that they were comparable to U.S. Navy SEALS or the Israeli Navy's Shayetet 13 counterparts, stating that these units have no special name beyond their "combat swimmer" or "naval spetsnaz" designations.

Units and structure

Naval Special Reconnaissance (OMRP)

The first Naval Special Reconnaissance unit, the 42nd OMRP is composed of reconnaissance divers that fall under operational subordination to the Main Intelligence Directorate. There are currently four OMRPs in Russia, one for each fleet: Northern Fleet, Baltic Fleet, Black Sea Fleet and Pacific Fleet with each consisting of approximately 120–200 personnel.
PDSS are special purpose unit of the Russian Navy, trained to conduct land and sea operations behind enemy lines, and to conduct underwater combat, mining and clearance diving. These units include combat swimmers tasked to protect ships and other fleet assets from enemy frogmen and foreign special forces. The precise composition, activities and location of the unit are strictly classified.
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Every PDSS unit has approximately 50–60 combat swimmers.
Russian frogmen use this equipment among others:

World War II

Soviet combat divers were quite successful during World War Two. They performed a variety of missions numbering well over 200 operations. Some of the operations were: