| 28th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1942-c.2009 |
| Country | Soviet Union, Russia |
| Branch | Soviet Air Force, Russian Air Force |
| Engagements | World War II Korean War |
| Decorations | .png){kind=small} Order of Kutuzov 3rd class |
| Battle honours | Leningrad |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Alexey Smirnov |
28th Guards Leningrad Order of Kutuzov Fighter Aviation Regiment (28th GIAP) (Russian: 28-й гвардейский истребительный авиационный Ленинградский ордена Кутузова полк (28-й гв. иап)) was an aviation regiment of the Soviet Air Forces during the Second World War, the Korean War, and became part of the Russian Air Force after 1991.
The regiment was formed in 1940 as the 153rd Fighter Aviation Regiment (iAP) (153-и ИАП). In November 1942, by order of the People's Commissariat for Defence, it was awarded the title of a Guards unit, and became the 28th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment. In 1950 it was dispatched to North Korea.
Initially, the regiment was equipped with I-153 and MiG-3 fighters. In 1942 it was re-equipped with P-39 Airacobra, then with Yak-15s, MiG-9s, MiG-15s, MiG-17s, MiG-19s, Su-15s, and then finally with MiG-23Ps and MiG-29s.[1]
The regiment lost 64 pilots and 94 aircraft in World War II. The regiment fought in the Korean War from June 22, 1950, to October 29, 1951. During its deployment, it lost three aircraft.
It served with 2nd Air Defence Corps, Moscow Air Defence District, Soviet Air Defence Forces[1] until 1994.
The 33rd Fighter Aviation Regiment (33 IAP) returned to Andreapol in Russia from Wittstock[2] (and briefly at Damgarten) in Germany, under the 16th Guards Fighter Aviation Division.
In April 1994, the 33rd and 733rd Fighter Aviation Regiments from the 16th Air Army in Germany were withdrawn to Andreapol with their 49 MiG-29s. At Andreapol, both regiments were merged under the 28th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, which received their MiG-29 aircraft to replace its aging MiG-23P aircraft. The regiment was disbanded in late 2009 during the reform of the Russian Armed Forces.
There were earlier reports about the exact evolution of the regiment's status. Michael Holm said that the regiment absorbed the 773rd Fighter Aviation Regiment when it returned in 1994. Piotr Butowski, writing in International Air Power Review, Vol. 13, Summer 2004, says that the regiment was disbanded. Butowski goes on to say that the number and traditions of the 28 Gv IAP were taken up by the 33 IAP.
- ^ a b Michael Holm, 28th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, accessed December 2012.
- ^ Butuwski, IAPR, 2004, 88.