The US Sixth Fleet is preparing to break the Montreux Convention. The US Sixth Fleet is preparing to break the international convention of Montreux American squadron in the Mediterranean Sea

The tale of how the US 6th Fleet escaped from the Mediterranean February 9th, 2013

The tale of how a “rusty” missile cruiser and an “ancient as a mammoth” guard drove the US 6th Fleet out of the Mediterranean

After the Moscow GRKR left Sevastopol and passed through the Bosporus and Dardanelles in early November last 2012, information was transmitted to US representatives through diplomatic channels of one of the Latin American countries that several anti-ship missiles with a special combat unit. Allegedly, one of the officers of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry reported this information to the ambassador of this country in Ukraine, citing his sources in the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet.

It is difficult to say whether this was real or whether it was a leak of information deliberately allowed by the Russian special services, but the Americans took it seriously. Moreover, the Moskva missile cruiser, despite the plans voiced in the Russian media to carry out an anti-piracy watch in the Gulf of Aden, was in no hurry to leave the Mediterranean Sea.

Meanwhile, in early December, the US Navy aircraft carrier strike group, led by the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier CVN-69 Dwight Eisenhower, entered the Mediterranean Sea. The AUG has joined the group of amphibious assault ships as part of the LHD-7 Iwo Jima amphibious assault ship, the LSD-44 Gunston Hall amphibious assault dock, and the newest LPD-21 New York amphibious assault dock.

As a result, a US Navy grouping was formed in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, which included 17 warships and auxiliary vessels with a total crew of about 10,000 people, including marines.

However, the Flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, without passing Suez and not returning back to Sevastopol, as again reported by the Russian media, stubbornly kept close to the American formation at the border of radar visibility. The veteran of the Black Sea Fleet patrol ship "Sharp-witted" was guarding the "Moscow", and the medium reconnaissance ship was the "eyes and ears" of the cruiser.

The Americans understood - "Moscow" came to their soul and will not go anywhere! At the same time, their intelligence reported that one of the multi-purpose nuclear submarines of the Northern Fleet entered the combat training range, but did not return at the estimated time, contact with the boat was lost. Presumably, the nuclear submarine goes to the Mediterranean Sea.

Not wanting to tempt fate any longer, the US Navy ships left the combat patrol area and headed for the exit from the Mediterranean Sea. When detachments of ships from the Baltic and Northern Fleets set out on December 17 and 18, the American squadron was already in the Atlantic on its way to the US East Coast.

As a result, the Eastern Mediterranean, adjacent to the coast of Syria, came under the control of the Russian Navy. Convinced that the warships of the "probable friends" had left the Mediterranean Sea, "Moscow" and "Sharp-witted" went on a well-deserved rest to Greece in order to start escorting large landing ships from December 24.

The BDK of the Black Sea, and a little later the BDK of the Baltic Fleet approached, began transporting "national economic" cargo from Novorossiysk to the ports of Syria. Six large landing ships, alternately replacing each other, made 9 paired flights since November, passing the Black Sea straits 20 times. The last day of the day, the large landing ships of the Baltic Fleet "Alexander Shabalin" and "Kaliningrad" passed through the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, returning from the Mediterranean Sea to Novorossiysk.

Having successfully completed the assigned tasks, "Moscow" and "Sharp-witted" returned to Sevastopol.

The day before, the sharp-witted patrol ship returned to Sevastopol:

PS: comments from warandpeace.ru readers:

The tale of how a "rusty" missile cruiser and "ancient as a mammoth" guard drove the US 6th Fleet out of the Mediterranean. This story sums up a long discussion about the possibilities of "Moscow" to drown the US AUG, clearly showing that the main thing is not technology, but people - 1000 Russian sailors are ready to launch rockets and drown along with the ship, but 10,000 Pindos - no! Reached the same "Varangian" from the depths of centuries to the consciousness of the US warriors,

With all due respect to the US Navy, and this is really the most numerous and powerful fleet in the world, the guts of its l / s are thin, which this story confirms. And this, by the way, is well understood by the US leadership, hence the craze for unmanned technologies and automated weapon systems. Only the Great Wars have been won before and will continue to be won by Countries and Peoples, and not computers and communications, especially if there are means to destroy this connection or at least disrupt it. And the “serious” countries, of course, have such an opportunity, which reduces to zero the likelihood of the US starting a war with any major power capable of counteracting the US Armed Forces in the air, space and cyberspace.

The United States Sixth Fleet is the operational association of US naval forces in Europe. The headquarters is located in Naples. Commander (since August 2008) - Vice Admiral Bruce Clingan. Since 2004, the headquarters of the Sixth Fleet has been operating as a single organization with the headquarters of the American naval forces in Europe. The commander of the fleet is also the deputy commander of the American naval forces in Europe (eng. COMNAVEUR). Both commanders hold respective positions in the NATO military organization.

The flagship of the fleet is the landing / combined command ship (LCC / JCC 20) Mount Whitney. The ships included in the 6th Fleet are changed on a rotational basis. The area of ​​responsibility of the fleet is the Mediterranean Sea and the adjacent waters of the Atlantic, especially the approaches to Gibraltar. However, since 2005, the area of ​​operations of the fleet has been expanded to include the coast of Africa (especially the Gulf of Guinea).

Naval fleet bases in Italy

Navy Augusta, located on the southeast coast of. Sicily, in the harbor of Megares, is a major supply point for fuel and lubricants and the combined NATO navies, primarily the ships of the US 6th Fleet.

The Naples Naval Base (which is also a forward base for the US Navy) is home to the US 6th Fleet and, occasionally, ships of the Italian Navy. In the area of ​​​​this base there is a stationary (protected) command post of the NATO Allied Commander-in-Chief, the headquarters of the combined armed forces, the NATO Air Force and Navy in the European theater of operations, the combined base aviation and the joint NATO submarine forces in the Mediterranean Sea, as well as the headquarters of the Lower Terrenian maritime district.

Gaeta is a forward base for the US Navy, in particular the flagship of the US 6th Fleet. The headquarters and coastal command post of the commander of the 6th Fleet are also located here.

At the forward base of the US Navy La Maddalena, a submarine floating base and one or three American multi-purpose submarines are based. It is possible for US ships to enter for logistic support, replenishment of fuel, water, food and recreation for personnel.

Organization of the command of the Navy and the forces of the Pacific and Atlantic fleets of the United States

In May 2006, the new Chief of Naval Staff (Admiral Michael Mullen) markedly upgraded the command's status (to the 2nd command echelon), giving it the strength of the Atlantic Fleet and transforming the position of commander of this fleet (COMLANTFLT) into the position of commander of the forces of the US fleet (COMUSFLTFORCOM). At the same time, his powers were significantly expanded. Being directly subordinate to and being the chief adviser to the NSH Navy on the issues of manning, logistics, equipment and preparation for the operational deployment of all forces of the US Navy, the commander of the USFFC also led the formations (components) of the Navy as part of the combined armed forces (USJFC - U. S. Joint Force Command), North American (U. S. Northern Command) and Strategic (U. S. Strategic Command) commands of the US Armed Forces. The current commander of USFFCOM is (since September 29, 2007) Admiral Jonathan Greenert (headquarters at Naval Forces Norfolk, Virginia).

The purpose and main functions of the command of the US Navy forces are substantiated by the leadership of the Navy with references to the following conceptual documents:

• The "Coordinated Strategy for 21st Century Maritime Power" is a new US Maritime Strategy jointly developed by the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard headquarters and finally adopted in October 2007.
• "CNO Guidance 2007-2008 Directive" directing the application of the provisions of the Naval Strategy to establish an assured advantage of American naval power and dominance at sea on a global scale.
• "Navy Strategic Plan" (Navy Strategic Plan), by now fully synchronized with the provisions of the Marine Strategy and defining the directions for developing a program for the development of future Navy for the period up to 2020.
• The “Naval Operations Concept”, developed in 2006, has now been brought into full compliance with the Naval Strategy and prescribes the future nature of the combat operations of the fleet and marines.

The most important function of the USFFC is to prepare the combat-ready forces of the Navy for deployment to the area commands of the US Armed Forces in cooperation with the commander of the Pacific Fleet. It includes:

• organization, staffing, combat training and equipment of the Atlantic Fleet and all naval forces (including the Pacific Fleet);
• development and implementation of the "Fleet Emergency Deployment Plan" (FRP-Fleet Response Plan) by observing the cyclical combat training of fleet forces, doctrinal concepts for the preparation and conduct of joint operations, including with the involvement of coalition forces, as well as the combat use of information networks;
• coordinated with the zonal commands (2nd echelon) coordination of the forces of the so-called global fleet (Navy Global Force), participation in the development and implementation of a system for conducting joint operations with the phased deployment of forces to the US Navy in the areas of the Pacific Ocean, Europe, OTsK, Central and South America;
• determination and generalization of the material and technical needs of the Navy for conducting operations, maintaining combat readiness and conducting operational-tactical training of forces;
• increasing the overall combat readiness of the fleet.

• submission to the Chief of Naval Staff of a consolidated report on the logistics requirements of the fleet to maintain the combat capability and combat readiness of the forces (including all components of the Navy as part of the area commands of the US Armed Forces) and the development of concepts of fleet operations (CONOPS);
• planning the operational use of the naval component as part of the US Joint Forces Command (JFCOM) and the forces of the fleet supporting the defensive capabilities of the North American Command (NORTHCOM) and the US Strategic Command (STRATCOM), including in global strategic operations, and the organization of the joint missile defense of the continental United States, in information operations and in the conduct of electronic intelligence;
• fulfillment of duties prescribed by the chief of staff of the Navy to combat terrorism and protect their own forces (AT / FP - Anti-Terrorism / Force Protection), including bringing the standards and rules of AT / FP to all units and ships of the Navy.

Organizational structure and combat composition of the command of the US Navy

In accordance with the operational organization, on the basis of associations of homogeneous forces of the Atlantic Fleet, the 2nd (deployed in the North Atlantic), 4th (in the South Atlantic, the Caribbean and the southeastern Pacific Ocean) and 6th (in the Mediterranean Sea) are formed fleets. At the same time, the 2nd Fleet remains directly subordinate to the Commander of the US Fleet (represents the Navy component in the OBC / USJFC command). When solving the tasks of defending the North American continent (CONUS) from the sea, the 2nd Fleet can interact with the 4th Fleet, which organizationally represents the Navy component as part of the command of the US Armed Forces in the zone of Central and South America. The Commander of the 3rd Fleet (formed as part of the Pacific Fleet) coordinates with the Commander of the Forces of the US Fleet the cyclical combat training of ships and units based on the US West Coast.

In the combat composition of the US Joint Strategic Command, USFFC is represented by sea-based strategic missile forces - Ohio-class nuclear missile submarines with Trident-2 SLBMs (from the fleet's submarine forces).

2nd Operational Fleet (headquarters at Naval Base Norfolk, Virginia), whose area of ​​​​responsibility until recently included the entire Atlantic Ocean (about 38 million square miles) - from the North Pole to the South and from the coasts of North and South America to the West coast of Europe , including also the West Coast of Central America - with the formation (by July 1, 2008) of the 4th Fleet, it is deployed and is responsible for planning and conducting military operations almost exclusively in the North Atlantic. Under the operational control of the Commander of the 2nd Fleet (currently Vice Admiral Marty Chanik), ship formations and groups cross the ocean, naval exercises are conducted, including combined forces and combined forces, as well as other special operations in order to increase the operational readiness of forces US Navy to conduct operations in the Atlantic zone.

The typical organizational structure of the 2nd Fleet provides for the formation of 20 operational formations (TF - Task Force), including:

• 20 o. With. - combat strike forces (Battle Force),
• 21 o. With. - patrol and reconnaissance forces,
• 22 o. With. - amphibious forces,
• 23 o. With. - landing forces,
• 24 o. With. - PLO forces,
• 25 o. With. - rear support forces,
• 27 o. With. - forces of constant readiness.

In a crisis situation, real or notional (when conducting major exercises to resolve armed conflicts), the 2nd Fleet takes over the organization of the 120th Joint Task Force (JTF 120), formed along with other joint formations as part of the US Joint Forces Command (USJFCOM). Such a formation may include aircraft carrier, expeditionary and naval strike groups of the Atlantic Fleet, army airborne and air assault rapid response units, Air Force units and subunits, MP amphibious assault forces and, if necessary, patrol ships and units of the US BOHR. In terms of tasks 120 r. O. With. includes strengthening and providing support to the ground forces in the entire area of ​​​​responsibility of the US Joint Forces Command (Atlantic theater).

The 4th Operational Fleet, formed on July 1, 2008 (Commander - Rear Admiral Joseph D. Kernan, Headquarters at Naval Forces Mayport, Florida), represents the Navy as part of the United States Central and South American Joint Command and is intended to deploy and operational use in this area. Having taken over some of the former functions of the 2nd Fleet in the Caribbean, it can interact with it in solving the tasks of commanding the US Navy forces to defend the territory of the States (at least from the southern directions). According to US news agencies, the 40th, 41st, 42nd, and 45th operational formations have now been formed, and the full complement of the 4th fleet should be completed by 2009. In a crisis situation, on its basis, it is planned (by analogy with the 2nd fleet) to form the 140th joint operational formation (JTF 140).

The regular combat strength of the US Fleet Forces Command is determined by the presence of combat-ready aircraft carriers, surface ships, submarines, air formations and squadrons of formations of homogeneous forces of the Atlantic Fleet, as well as ships of the auxiliary fleet of the Naval Sealift Command (MCC). In total, the Atlantic Fleet has about 160 ships and vessels, up to 1,300 aircraft and helicopters, and 118,000 Navy personnel. The organizational structure and composition of the commands of the homogeneous forces of the fleet are discussed below.

The Command of the Surface Forces of the Fleet (COMNAVSURFOR) is headed concurrently by the Commander of the Surface Forces of the Pacific Fleet (COMNAVSURFPAC). The surface forces of the Atlantic Fleet (COMNAVSURFLANT) form the backbone of the surface forces of the fleet and include the following formations: surface ships (2nd group of NK, groups of surface forces in the Mediterranean and combat operations) and destroyers (2, 14, 22, 24, 26 and 28 squadrons); amphibious (2nd expeditionary strike group, 2nd, 4th, 6th and 8th squadrons, 2nd group of the amphibious landing bridgehead, 21st and 22nd aviation combat control squadrons) and mine-sweeping forces (1st 11th division, 2nd and 3rd with the 31st division of the MTK squadron). In the operational use of the MTS, they are also assigned to the 14th and 15th squadrons of minesweeper helicopters from the air forces of the fleet. In addition, regional support patrol ships (PCs) are included in the surface forces.

The Fleet Submarine Force (COMNAVSUBFOR) is led by the Commander of the Submarine Forces, Atlantic Fleet (COMSUBLANT). They include the following formations: 2nd group of submarines (2nd, 4th, 6th and 8th squadrons of nuclear multi-purpose submarines, 12th experimental submarine squadron), 8th and 10th (16th and 20th i squadrons of nuclear missile submarines) group. At present, the submarine forces of the Atlantic Fleet unite up to 40 submarines and 15,000 personnel, including ship crews and maintenance personnel. Submarines carry out combat service in the Atlantic, the Arctic, the Pacific and Indian Oceans and the Mediterranean. Maintenance of boats and their crews between trips is carried out in two support centers (Naval Submarine Support Center) - in the Norfolk and Groton naval bases.

The Fleet Air Force Command (COMNAVAIRFOR) is led concurrently by the Pacific Fleet Air Force Commander (COMNAVAIRPAC). The Air Force Alliance of the Atlantic Fleet (COMNAVAIRLANT) includes: 2nd Aircraft Carrier Strike Group (AUG) with AVMA "Theodore Roosevelt" (on board 8 Acre), 8th AUG with ABMA "Dwight Eisenhower" (on board 7 Acre and commander 28 -th destroyer squadron), 10th - AVMA "Harry Truman" (3 Acre and commander of the 26th destroyer squadron) and 12th - AVMA "Enterprise" (1 Acre, commander of the 22nd destroyer squadron). As the AUG is formed, with the beginning of the combat training cycle before the next deployment to combat service, they become subordinate to the commander of the 2nd operational fleet. (AVMA "Carl Vinson" until 2010 is undergoing a major overhaul with recharging of reactors at the shipyard in Newport News.)

The air formations of the air forces of the Atlantic Fleet, on the basis of which, in particular, the air wings (Acre) of aircraft carrier aviation are formed, are currently (at the beginning of August 2008) represented by six typical Acres (of which two are helicopter). Currently, these are air wings: attack fighters consisting of 11, 15, 31, 32, 34, 37, 81, 82, 83, 86, 87, 103, 105, 106, 131, 136, 143, 211 and 213 ishae ( VFA); combat control and logistics support - 120, 121, 123, 124, 125, 126 airborne AWACS (VAW) and 40 ptae (VRC); 5th (8, 10, 26 pae - VP, 1st special pae - VPU) and 11th (5,16,45 pae, 1st separate test aero VX, 1st separate research aero VX and 30 -I separate combat training pae) patrol and reconnaissance; attack (40, 42 44, 46, 48 and 60 AE LMV - HSL) and combat helicopters (6 AE - VC, 14 and 15 AE VTS - NM, 3.5, 7, 11, 15 AE PV - HS, 2, 4, 22, 26, 28 and 84 ae bv - HSC).

In addition, the Mediterranean Fleet Aviation Command (COMFAIRMED) is assigned to the air forces of the Atlantic Fleet, consisting of: 4 air bv (Avb Sigonella, Italy), 2 rae (Avb Rota, Spain), tactical support centers (TSC) at the air bases of Rota and Sigonella.

The Naval Sealift Command (headquarters in Washington), transferred by the Chief of Naval Staff (as internaval) under the control of the US Fleet Forces Commander, solves in the interests of the US Navy a set of tasks related to ensuring the strategic mobility of the country's armed forces and logistical support for naval groups in all areas of their forward presence and deployment. The Commander of the ILC (Vice Admiral) ensures the logistical readiness of the ship's staff of the command for the emergency transfer of troops and cargo in the interests of both the Navy (on the directives of the Commander of the US Fleet Forces and the Chief of Staff of the Navy) and the Department of Defense (on the instructions of the Commander of the Joint Strategic Transportation Command VS - OKSP). At the same time, he operates the headquarters (at the Norfolk Naval Base) of the Military Sealift Fleet Support Command subordinate to him. Logistic support of the Navy as part of advanced groups is provided by five zonal commands of the ILC (Sealift Logistic Command). At the same time, the Atlantic Logistics Command (headquarters at the Norfolk Naval Base) operates directly in the interests of the command of the US Navy, which ensures the transportation of logistics equipment and ammunition for the US Armed Forces in the Western Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, and is also responsible for the logistics of forces 2- th and 4th operational fleets.

The ship structure of the ILC includes up to 120 ships for various purposes, including ships of the auxiliary fleet (categories of mobile logistics support and logistics services, are included in the number of ships of the Navy); special purpose; ensuring strategic transportation, advance storage of OBT and stocks of logistics and the reserve of the ILC of the first stage. Up to 100 ships of the ILC of all categories are constantly at sea, performing their tasks in the interests of providing for the fleet and the US Armed Forces as a whole. (The Atlantic Fleet has up to 30 ships at all times.)

The Naval Mine and Anti-Submarine Warfare Command (NMAWC) was formed (as an internaval united two separate commands) and became part of the US Fleet Forces Command on October 1, 2006. It does not have permanent forces in its composition - squadrons of mine-sweeping ships, squadrons of minesweepers, heterogeneous anti-submarine defense forces are still administratively part of the formations of homogeneous forces of the fleets and, according to operational planning, are transferred to the command of the Navy (operational fleets) in advanced areas for military service.

The NMAWC command is seen primarily as a center of excellence for combat operations using mine and anti-submarine forces and assets, coordinating all aspects of the development and combat use of these forces with the commands and bodies of tactical and technical developments of the Navy. The competence of the command includes: promotion of new technologies in the creation of new types of anti-mine and anti-submarine weapons; determination of requirements for the current and future combat readiness of ASW and PMO forces; improving their combat and qualification training in order to increase the effectiveness of operations at any level, including when providing certification exercises for operational formations and groups before deployment to combat service and directly as part of advanced groupings.

Coastal Commands, transferred to the forces of the US Navy (see diagram), play an important role in solving a number of specific tasks assigned to the USFFC command. According to their functional purpose, one of them develops the concepts of the combat use of the forces of the fleet, the other - the directions of the combat use of information networks, the third is in charge of providing the fleet with ammunition and weapons, the fourth processes the data of oceanographic and hydrographic studies, including hydroacoustic reconnaissance, obtained by special-purpose ships of the ILC , the fifth solves the urgent tasks of combat and logistics support for the expeditionary forces of the Navy.

The Naval Expeditionary Forces Support Command (NECC - Navy Expeditionary Combat Command, headquarters at the Little Creek Naval Base, Virginia) is especially significant in the US Navy Forces Command, due to its specifics. It was formed by the decision of the chief of staff of the Navy in January 2006 and by now has a carefully developed organizational structure of forces. The NECC command coordinates the combat readiness, manning, training and equipment of its units and subunits (a total of up to 40,000 regular and reserve troops) deployed in bases on the East and West coasts of the United States, as well as abroad, and determines the order of their combat use in the advanced groups of the Navy. Mobile units of support and reinforcement forces for expeditionary and operational formations of the fleet from the composition of the expeditionary groups for security, ammunition disposal, coastal combat operations, logistic support for the Navy, groups of river patrol boats, engineering and construction units and other command units are constantly deployed to forward areas, participate in maritime security operations and in the combat operations of the American and coalition armed forces (in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Persian Gulf and the Horn of Africa zone).

As a result of a large-scale reorganization of the command of the US Navy forces, giving it the formations of the Atlantic Fleet, the ILC and a number of other significant structures, the leadership of the Navy managed to significantly raise the status of USFFCOM and promote it to the category of one of the leading forces in this type of aircraft. The commander of the US Navy has essentially become the second person in the leadership of the naval forces. It is no coincidence that Admiral Harry Rughead, who held this position from May to September 2007, was appointed to the post of Chief of Naval Staff.

Typical structure of the 6th Fleet

• 3.1 Task Force 60 Battle Force
• 3.2 Task Force 61, Amphibious Assault Force
• 3.3 Task Force 62, Landing Force (Marine Expeditionary Unit)
• 3.4 Task Force 63 Logistics Force
• 3.5 Task Force 64 Special Operations
• 3.6 Task Force 67 Land-Based Maritime Patrol Aircraft
• 3.7 Task Force 68, Maritime Force Protection Force
• 3.8 Task Force 66/69 Submarine Warfare

During World War II, the Americans brought dozens of ships to the Mediterranean Sea, and after the war they decided to turn it into their own lake. At the end of 1946, the Pentagon formed the Mediterranean Squadron. In June 1948, it was reorganized into the 6th Operational Fleet, which since 1950 has been referred to as the US 6th Fleet. American ships are based in Spain, France, Italy, Greece and Turkey. Several times, detachments of ships of the 6th Fleet, which included cruisers and even battleships, entered Constantinople.

The 6th Fleet is usually equipped with ships, aircraft and Marines of the US Atlantic Fleet, arriving in the Mediterranean for 6-8 months. The flagship missile cruiser is there for 2-3 years.

Since the mid-1960s, the basis of the 6th Fleet has been an operational formation consisting of two multi-purpose aircraft carriers, two missile cruisers, sixteen frigates and destroyers. Of the 140-160 aircraft based on two aircraft carriers, about half are capable of carrying nuclear weapons. The 6th Fleet also has submarines and amphibious assault ship formations with the marines.

Since 1964, the American 16th squadron of nuclear submarines armed with ballistic missiles has been based in the Spanish port of Rota, and now cruisers and destroyers equipped with the Aegis-3 missile defense system are based there.

Let me remind you that on February 21, 2008, an SM-3 missile, which is part of Aegis-3, destroyed a failed American reconnaissance satellite weighing 5 tons at an altitude of 247 km above the earth's surface. Thus, the Americans demonstrated the capabilities of the Aegis system to shoot down ballistic missiles not only in the upper stage, but also at high altitudes. Soon, the sea and land (in Eastern European countries) American missile defense system may pose a serious threat to Russia's existing intercontinental missiles.

In March 2011, the Monterey cruiser, equipped with a missile defense system, entered the Mediterranean Sea. And at present, 4 ships with the Aegis-3 system are based there.

What is the balance of power between the Black Sea and the 6th American fleets now?

By August 1991, the Black Sea Fleet had more than 1,300 formations, units and subunits, 500 aircraft, more than 100 ships, more than 70 thousand personnel, including 2 thousand marines, and had an operational zone that included the Black, Azov and Mediterranean seas and part of the Atlantic Ocean.

Alas, the collapse of the USSR and the liberal reforms in the Russian Federation led to a decrease in the combat power of the Black Sea Fleet by more than an order of magnitude. Well, the transfer of Crimea to Ukraine made the Black Sea Fleet conditionally combat-ready.

The division of the Black Sea Fleet did not lead to the ordering of the situation in the Black Sea and the Crimea, but to some kind of unstable equilibrium or, as physicists say, to a metastable state.

The basing of the Russian fleet in Sevastopol has also become exceptionally unstable.

All the leading powers of the world have long maintained their naval bases on the territory of other countries. Moreover, this was done both with the consent of these countries, and without it. A typical example is Gibraltar, where Spain has been trying to expel the British for 200 years, and Guantanamo Bay, where the Cubans have been dreaming of expelling the Yankees for half a century. But in all cases, these naval bases are compact pieces of the coast.

Actually, our military wanted to do the same in the 1990s during the division of the Black Sea Fleet. They wanted to get the entire Great Sevastopol Bay. I note that there are 21 bays in Sevastopol, of which six are of such a size that any of them can accommodate the entire fleet of Ukraine. I'm not talking about the fact that Ukraine received a naval base in Odessa, Donuzlav, Feodosia and Kerch.

Russia, apart from Sevastopol, does not have a single naval base on the Black Sea. In Novorossiysk, for a number of reasons, only temporary parking of warships is possible.

However, the Ukrainian side insisted that the military installations of both sides in Sevastopol resemble a striped pattern. I myself visit Sevastopol almost every year, but I still cannot understand exactly where the territory of one fleet ended and the territory of another fleet began. The situation is the same with berths, warehouses, various coastal services, cultural facilities, etc.

Immediately after the capture of Kyiv by the pro-American junta, the Ukrainian media were full of articles predicting the death of the Black Sea Fleet. With sarcasm, options were considered when Russia would beg the United States to allow it to keep the Black Sea Fleet to maintain prestige, etc. Alas, the authors of these articles were absolutely right.

Zapadentsy militants would not even need to storm the military facilities of the Black Sea Fleet. It was enough for them to block several streets with barricades and completely paralyze the functioning of the Russian naval base. It is clear in advance that the invasion of the militants would not have allowed the Russian ships to be taken away without bloodshed. But even in the case of fantastic luck - Kyiv's consent to the withdrawal of Russian ships within a week or even a month - it would have been possible to withdraw less than a third of the ships of the Black Sea Fleet and up to 20% of auxiliary vessels.

For example, if the cruiser "Moskva" was in full combat readiness, then the second largest warship of the Black Sea Fleet, the BOD "Kerch", under its own power, can only leave in a few months. The same can be said about the huge floating hospital "Yenisei" and dozens of other ships.

Do not forget that a significant part of the crews of the auxiliary vessels of the Black Sea Fleet have families and property in Sevastopol. They hate Maidan people, but will they agree to drop everything and leave Sevastopol? In general, where should the Russian fleet go? - Nowhere!

We should not forget that Kyiv, both under Yushchenko and under Yanukovych, interpreted the agreement on basing the Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol in a peculiar way. So, the Russian Federation could not introduce new ships to Sevastopol, even in exchange for scrapped ones. It was impossible even to carry out the modernization of ships or re-equip them with new types of weapons.

Since 2002, the Ukrainian authorities have not given corridors for testing ship-based missiles of the Black Sea Fleet: anti-ship missiles "Vulcan", "Rastrub-B", SAM "Fort", "Storm", etc.

Russia spent a lot of money on maintaining the Peschanaya Balka missile range of the Navy in the Feodosiya region, but since 2002, when the Ukrainian S-200 anti-aircraft missile shot down the Russian Tu-154 aircraft, launches of anti-ship missiles (not missiles!) By Ukraine are prohibited, because of which , in particular, the adoption of the Uran anti-ship missiles was delayed, which had to be brought up already off the coast of the Caucasus. But Kyiv did not set such restrictions for its Navy, Air Force and Air Defense.

Russian ships with special ammunition on board were banned from entering Sevastopol. As a result, the 9th division of the Black Sea Fleet was forced to relocate from Sevastopol to the Caucasus.

On the other hand, since the mid-1990s, NATO ships began to regularly enter Sevastopol. In almost every of my short trips (5-12 days) I saw NATO ships in the Sevastopol Bay, including cruisers and destroyers, equipped with Aegis and Tomahawk missiles. I note that for more than half a century the United States has never announced the presence or absence of nuclear weapons on board its ships. But Kyiv never asked. Americans could bring nuclear weapons into Sevastopol, but Russians could not.

Each visit of NATO ships to Sevastopol caused outrage among the townspeople. They were met by crowds of indignant people with posters of "Yankee Go Home" and much more offensive content.

I myself saw the arrival of NATO ships. Marines lined up along the sides in flak jackets with machine guns at the ready. Usually, NATO ships moored to the wall of the Sea Passenger Port next to the Grafskaya Pier. The port area is fenced off with a high fence, and hundreds of policemen and SBU agents managed to hold back the indignant crowd. In a number of cases, as, for example, during the Syrian crisis, a crowd of Sevastopol residents did not allow the Americans to enter the city. Then the Ukrainian authorities dressed them in civilian clothes and released them in small groups under the guise of employees of the passenger port. But having seen at least one Negro among them, the people got into a fight, and the police brought the "tourists" back to the port.

There is no doubt that the vast majority of residents did not go to these rallies on the basis of the principle “you can’t break a butt with a whip.” But here I am, having seen enough of the American destroyer in the passenger port, riding in a crowded city bus. A heavily drunk 25-year-old swears at the American military. The old woman begins to reason with him, saying that the Americans are bad, but there is no need to swear. Immediately, half of the bus takes up arms against ... grandmother: right, they say, the guy says, and there is no need to make a remark.

Weighty volumes will soon be written about the “conquest of the Crimea” in the spring of 2014. I will say that if this had not happened, the Black Sea Fleet would not exist now.

The reunification of Crimea with Russia in itself increased the capabilities of the Black Sea Fleet many times over. Similar cases have already taken place in history. Thus, while Norway remained neutral, the possibilities of the German fleet in the North Sea and the Atlantic were extremely limited. In order to block Germany, the British and French from the end of September 1939 planned to occupy Norway. Moreover, in early April 1940, the allied troops had already boarded transports heading for Norway. But then it turned out that the Germans were already there.

As a result, the situation in the North Sea and the Atlantic changed dramatically despite the fact that the Allied fleets were still several times stronger than the German one.

Since March 2014, the Russian Bastion anti-ship system equipped with Onyx missiles from Cape Fiolent has been targeting most of the Black Sea up to the Turkish coast and the entire coast of Ukraine, including the port of Odessa.

According to plans, at the end of 2014, the Black Sea Fleet will replenish two new submarines of project 636.3 "B-261" "Novorossiysk" and "B-237" "Rostov-on-Don", and four more such boats will be put into operation in 2015-2017 gg. At the same time, it is planned to commission new frigates.

However, even with the commissioning of new ships, the Black Sea Fleet will still be inferior in terms of tonnage and firepower to the 6th Fleet by at least an order of magnitude. But does this mean that the Americans will dominate the Black Sea and decide to carry out any military actions there?

In my opinion, this is impossible. Let's start with the fact that the Montreux Convention of 1936 forbids warships of non-Black Sea states to stay in the Black Sea for more than 21 days. And the total tonnage of such ships should not exceed 30 thousand tons. Moreover, one state should not account for more than 20 thousand tons.

Thus, the Yankees can simultaneously keep only two ships of the cruiser or destroyer class in the Black Sea and no more than three weeks. I note that Turkey, proceeding from its own strategic interests, will oppose with all its might any violation of the Montreux Convention.

Accordingly, the Convention deprives the Americans of the opportunity to introduce aircraft carriers into the Black Sea. Therefore, in February-May 2014, the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier George W. Bush hung around in the Aegean Sea. At the same time, Crimea and the southern part of Ukraine were within the range of his aircraft.

In turn, the numerous airfields of the Crimea make it possible to significantly increase the aviation group there. For example, there is an urgent restoration of a large airfield in Gvardeisky, where long-range naval aviation was based until 1991. Now Tu-22M3 is expected there.

It is worth paying attention to the incident on April 12, 2014, when, off the coast of Romania, a Russian Su-24 fighter-bomber flew twelve times within an hour and a half at an altitude of 150 meters at a distance of about a kilometer from the American destroyer Donald Cook, equipped with the Aegis missile defense system. -3". As you know, American planes regularly flew and fly over Soviet and Russian ships, almost touching the tops of the masts, and such routine matters are not reported in the press, notes are not sent.

It would seem that the flight of an old aircraft at a distance of 1000 meters from the destroyer is an excellent training for the Aegis complex and the Vulcan-Phalanx short-range self-defense complex. The Yankees were supposed to rejoice, not freak out.

Nevertheless, the State Department burst into hysterical statements about Russian provocation, "unprofessional actions of Russian pilots," and so on. Interestingly, the Yankees do not emphasize the location of the second Su-24 in the area of ​​the incident. According to grandmothers in the Sevastopol central market, the second car was a Su-24MP, equipped with the Khibiny KS418E radar warfare system. After turning on this complex, all American air defense and missile defense systems lost their target and temporarily went out of order. Apparently, it dawned on the Yankees that the natives might well devour Cook.

In my opinion, when taking into account the correlation of forces in the Black Sea, the geographical factor should also be taken into account. Our admirals and professors of the Naval Academy since the 1950s have become obsessed with the battles of 1941-1945. on the Pacific Ocean. There, battleships and cruisers constantly became easy prey for aircraft carriers. But here is the military service 1967-1990. in the Mediterranean refuted all the positions of armchair theorists.

Our cruisers, Project 68bis, while tracking aircraft carriers, were on alert No. 2 or No. 1, which made it possible 15 seconds after receiving the order to open fire on the enemy with the main caliber. It was assumed that in a few minutes of intense firing, the cruiser would disable the aircraft carrier. Recall how, during the Vietnam War, American aircraft carriers burned for days due to the accidental explosion of one small unguided rocket under the wing of their own attack aircraft.

In the Mediterranean, our sailors considered the weapon of the first strike against ships not the P-35 anti-ship missiles, but the Volna air defense system. Why? The first has a reaction time of 5 seconds, the second has 40 seconds. And when the adversary is from 1 to 8 km, the Volna is much more effective, and the P-35 will finish off an already burning target.

But these are all elements of a great war. And no matter what Russia does in the Black Sea and Ukraine, the US will never dare to start an all-out thermonuclear war. A local nuclear war is not terrible for either the United States or the Russian Federation. Thus, the explosion of 200-500 tactical nuclear weapons in the Black and Mediterranean seas will leave the radiation background within the normal range both in Washington and in Moscow. But the European powers will never agree to a local war in Europe. So only separate conflict situations can arise in the Black Sea.

So, for example, the Americans can enter the territorial waters in the Crimean region. In this situation, you can do without "Onyx" or "Mosquito". A “random” bulk is enough, or better, a ram by a Sevastopol tug of an American cruiser, and the hulls of our tugs are quite strong. After all, the cost of a tugboat is 100 times lower than the cost of a cruiser.

I think American admirals should think carefully before sending their ships "on friendly visits" to Ukrainian ports. There is actually a civil war going on in Ukraine. People in unmarked uniforms are burning infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, shooting down helicopters. A Yankee cruiser will appear in Odessa and come under fire from a large-caliber sniper rifle, or better, from an RPG or a portable ATGM. So the admirals of the 6th Fleet would read Griboyedov: "Friends, is it possible to choose a nook for walks further away."

And now, on May 14, 2014, there is not a single Yankee ship in the Black Sea. The frigate "Taylor" passed the Bosporus on May 12, and now, apparently, already in the Aegean Sea. And, by the way, since January 1, 2014, not a single American ship has not only entered the Ukrainian port, but has not even come close to their territorial waters. Why would?

The invincible and legendary Sixth Fleet of the US Navy hurriedly left the Mediterranean Sea as the Russian naval group approached the coast of Syria. Actually, the Sixth Fleet itself and its commander, Vice Admiral Craig Pandolph, have not gone away - they are still in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bresponsibility entrusted to them, being listed in all operational reports and financial reports. At the numerous Mediterranean bases of the Sixth Fleet, life also flows as usual - outfits, leave, perimeter security, painting fences, theft of material assets, unpaid bills for electricity, gas and fresh water.

Another thing is that the ships of the Sixth Fleet have strangely disappeared from the Mediterranean!
There is a fleet, but there are no ships, - you will probably be surprised, - Is this possible?

Yes, it is possible, if we are talking about the US Navy. In contrast to the structure of the Russian Navy, where each fleet has an invariable list of ships assigned to it, including its own flagship (Northern Fleet - TARKR "Peter the Great", Baltic Fleet - destroyer "Persistent", Black Sea Fleet - GRKR "Moscow", Pacific - RRC "Varyag"), the concept of "fleet" for the US Navy is nothing more than a sphere of responsibility. It is impossible to give a specific answer to the request: "Show the ships of the Sixth Fleet" - the composition of the fleet changes almost daily. That's quantum mechanics!

For example, any aircraft carrier strike force that has passed the Strait of Gibraltar is automatically assigned the designation Task Force 60 (Task Force 60) and the AUG becomes the main striking force of the Sixth Fleet. And the commander of the aircraft carrier group, respectively, receives the post of commander of Operational Force 60, and is now directly responsible for the situation in the Mediterranean Sea.

Following this logic, every landing helicopter carrier and its escort that entered the waters of the Mediterranean receive the designation Task Force 61. Now they are the main amphibious forces of the Sixth Fleet.
Any destroyer squadron in the Mediterranean turns into a DESRON SIX ZERO (or simply “destroyer squadron 60”), destroyers leave - “destroyer squadron 60” is disbanded.

How do the Americans manage not to get entangled in this cycle and not accidentally lose their six dozen destroyers in the expanses of the oceans? Imagine this conversation on the sidelines of the Pentagon:

Where is the destroyer John Paul Jones?

Last year he was seen off the coast of Jamaica ...

Damn, he was supposed to arrive in Norfolk back in September. Where did he disappear to?

And the John Paul Jones is quietly rusting in Pearl Harbor harbor, waiting for a new order that might send her to the coast of Greenland.

Three things help to avoid such a mess: a specific home port for each ship (standard and mandatory world practice), a rather vague division into Atlantic and Pacific commands, and, most importantly, regardless of fleet number, American ships are organized into permanent divisions, battle groups and aircraft carrier strike groups.

Refueling at full speed

For example, the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, together with the missile cruiser Cape St. George, four Aegis destroyers (Sterret, Hasley, Momsen and Shope), and a number of auxiliary ships and frigates, form a "carrier combat group number 9.

Based on this concept, each of the six American fleets constantly has in its composition (i.e., in its area of ​​​​responsibility) one or more aircraft carrier strike groups, amphibious groups or destroyer divisions, from which the naval composition of the fleet is formed. Ships come and go, but their number always stays the same.

And now - noticing the Russian squadron on the horizon, most of the American ships hastened to leave the zone of responsibility of the Sixth Fleet, leaving the Mediterranean borders of NATO, sorry, with a bare bottom. Speaking in Russian, the Sixth Fleet ceased to exist, remaining only in the form of paper instructions and the empty berths of the Mediterranean bases.

This is not new - the brave British sailors acted according to a similar scenario, who, having barely received information about the German battleship Tirpitz entering the sea, abandoned the unarmed transports of the PQ-17 convoy to the mercy of fate and shamefully fled at a 30-knot course. It is significant that the British squadron, at least, was not inferior to the German ships and even had an advantage due to the presence of carrier-based aircraft. The death of the PQ-17 convoy was a shameful stain on the entire history of the British Navy.

It happened this time too: a middle-aged missile cruiser, a couple of large anti-submarine ships, four landing ships with full holds of "black jackets", a small frigate and a patrol boat, laid down back in 1966, drove all the super-ships of the "probable enemy" off the coast of Syria ", disrupting the already prepared plans for an armed invasion. American sailors are seriously afraid of the Russian Navy - they have long understood that when the shells run out, our ships will break through their side, as happened in the Black Sea.

On a long trip

Let's see for fun who opposed the small Russian squadron:

Nuclear aircraft carrier "Dwight Eisenhower" - a clot of combat matter weighing 100 thousand tons; an invincible monster capable of smashing the enemy at a distance of a thousand kilometers and surveying the entire surface of the Mediterranean Sea in a day. Two Westinghouse reactors, unlimited fuel autonomy. The displacement of the huge ship is twice the total displacement of all the ships of the Russian group.

The main argument of the killer machine is 70...80 aircraft for various purposes, capable of pouring 1900 tons of ammunition from the vast cellars of a super-aircraft carrier onto the heads of enemies. The most modern equipment, radars and supercomputers, a seawater desalination plant, catapults, ammunition elevators, arresters and aircraft lifts, heavy armor, unique fire extinguishing systems, gigantic storage and cold chambers, almost six thousand crew members.

Following the escaped Eisenhower, Turkish politicians looked sadly, who now have to independently resolve the situation on the border with Syria.

For two weeks, the Iwo Jima, overloaded with military equipment, importantly plowed the Syrian waters, but as soon as she saw the small Russian large landing ships, she rushed to the West, waddling and puffing at a 23-knot course.

Together with the Eisenhower aircraft carrier, his personal guard left the Syrian waters - the Hue City missile cruiser with full cellars of Tomahawks prepared for shelling Syrian cities. The most modern ship equipped with the all-seeing Aegis system and 122 launchers to launch any type of missiles in service with the US Navy. But no modern technology has saved the Americans from a fierce fear of the Russian squadron. And for good reason - a quarter of a century ago, the Yorktown missile cruiser, similar in design to Hue City, returned from a Black Sea cruise with a destroyed deck and broken sides. Although it would seem - he just tried to get closer to Sevastopol ... And here - the whole of Syria, Russian sailors will generally cut the good in half with a ramming blow.

In total, the Americans concentrated a grouping of 17 of the most powerful and modern ships on sea approaches to Syria: an aircraft carrier and UDC, Aegis cruisers, destroyers, frigates, integrated supply ships and ships of the Maritime Transportation Command. And the total number of ships of the Sixth Fleet reached 40 units! To date, most of them have left the Mediterranean Sea, and the rest of the ships hid in the bases.

One of the military transports of the Maritime Sealift Command. Used for fast worldwide delivery of equipment, equipment and personnel of the Army and Marine Corps

The idea is not bad - in order to ensure effective command and control of the forces of the Navy and the Marine Corps, it was proposed to build a specialized command ship, extremely saturated with receiving and transmitting equipment, with equipped rooms for briefings and meetings, comfortable admiral's cabins and command posts. On board there is equipment for receiving a helicopter. Externally, "Mount Whitney" is distinguished by a flat spacious deck, which is literally dotted with casings of antenna devices. In principle, Mount Whitney is indistinguishable from civilian research vessels or ships for communication with spacecraft. The only thing that gives out a warship in it is the six-barreled automatic anti-aircraft guns "Phalanx" installed on the bow and in the stern.

Command ship of the Sixth Fleet

Speaking of bases, the Sixth Fleet has a significant number of logistics points in the Mediterranean. Among them are objects in Italy: in addition to the already mentioned naval base Gaeta, on the coast of this country there is a large naval base Naples with a highly protected coastal command post and an advanced base station La Maddalena (nuclear submarine base on the island of Sardinia). In addition, the Sixth Fleet can use the Italian Naval Base La Spezia, Taranto, Brindisi, Augusta (a major fuel supply point). Another large facility is located on the coast of Spain - the Rota naval base, which is used jointly with the Spanish Navy. Also, to accommodate basic patrol and anti-submarine aircraft, the US Navy can use numerous air bases in European countries (for example, AB Sigonella on the island of Sicily).

Entrance to the territory of VMB Rota, Spain

Epilogue

Whatever events unfold in the Middle East, the Syrian coast is under constant control by the Russian Navy. We won this round - American ships left the Mediterranean, and without the help of American aircraft carriers, UDC and Aegis destroyers, NATO does not have a clear advantage at sea - European non-aircraft carriers and frigates, devoid of any serious strike weapons, do not pose a threat to Russian grouping of ships of the Black Sea, Baltic and Pacific fleets. Let's hope that sailors from the North Sea will soon approach the area and our Navy will be able to conduct truly grandiose exercises in the Mediterranean Sea.

Yes, the Sixth Fleet is cool and strong, but the atomic era is guaranteed to "multiply by zero" all non-nuclear weapons in a global war. And in local conflicts, the one who is more daring and decisive has the advantage. The US Navy has extensive maritime combat experience, but the Americans do not like to fight unprepared, they need time to deploy and prepare thoroughly. Our sailors, on the contrary, are ready to fight in any conditions - this is our main and only trump card; unexpected tricks and desperate courage devalue any Aegis and Tomahawks.

The position of the large aircraft carrier ships of the US Navy on December 5, 2012. The Eisenhower aircraft carrier and the Iwo Jima UDC are located off the coast of Syria

The position of the US Navy's major aircraft carriers on January 17, 2013. All but one returned to their bases.