| 53rd Guards Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade (2023–present) 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade 268th Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment (1961–1967) | |
|---|---|
| Russian: 53-я зенитная ракетная бригада | |
 Brigade's shoulder sleeve insignia | |
| Active | 1961–present |
| Country |  Soviet Union (1961–1991) Russia (1992–present) |
| Branch | Soviet Army (1961–1991) Russian Ground Forces (1992–present) |
| Type | Surface-to-air missile brigade |
| Part of | 20th Guards Army |
| Garrison/HQ | Kursk MUN 32406 |
| Equipment | SA-11 Buk |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Colonel Sergey Muchkayev |
The 53rd Guards Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade is a surface-to-air missile brigade of the Russian Ground Forces. Part of the 20th Guards Army, the brigade is based at Kursk.[1]
Formed from an anti-aircraft regiment in 1967 in Armenia, the brigade was transferred to East Germany shortly after its formation and served as part of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany for the remainder of the Cold War. After the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Germany in 1992, the brigade was relocated to Kursk.
A joint investigation team of Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine has concluded that the brigade provided the unit that shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 which killed 298 people.[2][3]
On 21 February 2023, Russian president Vladimir Putin awarded the unit the honorary 'Guards' title for its service in the Invasion of Ukraine.[4]
- ^ Holm, Michael. "53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade". www.ww2.dk. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
- ^ "MH17 missile owned by Russian brigade, investigators say". BBC News. 24 May 2018.
- ^ Smith-Spark, Laura; Masters, James (24 May 2018). "Missile that downed MH17 'owned by Russian brigade'". CNN.
- ^ "Putin awards honorary Guards title to anti-aircraft missile brigade that supplied the Buk that shot down Flight MH-17". The Insider (in Russian). Retrieved 2023-02-22.