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The Red Banner Black Sea Fleet is responsible for operations in the Black Sea, and more importantly, it provides surface warships and aircraft for operations in the Mediterranean Sea as the Fifth Eskadra. The Black Sea Fleet, however, does not provide submarines as already noted in previous posts. This mission is performed by the Northern Fleet. Because of the significance of the Black Sea-Mediterranean operations, the Black Sea Fleet operates a larger percentage of surface warships than the Baltic Fleet.

Black Sea ports are second only to those of the Baltic in handling Soviet maritime imports and exports. As in the Baltic, there are major shipyards located along the Black Sea coast. Despite its relatively southern location, some Black Sea ports, including the leading port of Odessa, are frozen for about six weeks of the year, as is the smaller Sea of Azov, immediately north of the Black Sea. Still, the Black Sea climate is the best in the Soviet Union, with many resorts located along the coast, several reserved for naval personnel. Good flying weather is a major reason the Navy’s air training center is located in the area.

Soviet naval forces have operated continuously in the Mediterranean steadily from 1964 onwards. By the early 1970s, the Soviets had an average daily strength of 50 or more naval units in the Mediterranean. This force reached a peak during the October 1973 Yom Kippur War with some 73 surface ships and over 23 submarines. Efforts by the Soviets to obtain naval bases for the Mediterranean squadron centered on Egypt (until the Soviets were ejected in 1973) and continue in Syria. Air bases are available to the Soviets in Libya as well as Syria.

The typical composition of the Fifth Eskadra is as follows:

7 torpedo attack submarines
2 cruise missile attack submarines
12 cruisers, destroyers and frigates
1-3 minesweepers
1-3 amphibious ships
Approx 25 auxiliary ships, including survey, research and intelligence collection ships.

Soviet combat operation sin the Black and Mediterranean Seas are supported by land-based aircraft from bases in the Crimea. In addition the helicopters of the Moskva-class area based in the Black Sea as are 1-2 of the Kiev-class aircraft carriers. The Black Sea Fleet has the largest cruiser-destroyer force of any of the Soviet fleets. In total, the Black Sea Fleet has 26 percent of the Navy’s major surface combatants, but only some 9 percent of its diesel-electric submarines. The Black Sea Fleet also operates 27 percent of the Navy’s aircraft, including most of the Navy’s training planes, and some 20 percent of its total personnel.

The Black Sea Fleet headquarters is located at Sevastopol.



Sources are the “4th Edition Guide to the Soviet Navy” and “Combat Fleets of the World, 1993”