Czechoslovak Tactical Air Force 1968


	Czechoslovak People's Army -Air Force Command 10th Air Army - 1968

In the case of World War 3, the Czechoslovak 10th Air Army would have been joined by the Soviet 57th Tactical Air Army from the Carpathian Military District. These two Warsaw Pact air armies would have fought with NATO's Fourth Allied Tactical Air Force (4 ATAF) forces in the mid-sixties. The Czechoslovak 10th Air Army alone can represent a powerful force with four air divisions:

Soviet Carpathian Military District - 57th(14th) Tactical Air Army in 1968

The Czechoslovakian 1st Fighter Air Division received more than fifty high-speed MiG-21F-13 ‘Fishbed-C’s between 1965 and 1968. These four squadrons daytime tactical fighter and two squadrons older MiG-19S ‘Farmer-C’ were designed to fight against the NATO 4 ATAF (Fourth Allied Tactical Air Force) in the mid-sixties. All MiG-21F-13 and MiG-19S day-time fighter was inexpensive self-made aircraft, equipped with the deadly thirty-millimeter machine guns and maneuvered excellently.

In the case of overnight and bad weather, the Czechoslovakian 1st Fighter Air Division used older MiG-19PM ‘Farmer-D’ and newer MiG-21PFM ‘Fishbed-F’ fighter-type equipped with RP-1 and RP-21 radar. Both types were armed with RS-2US 'AA-1 Alkali' beam-riding guidance air to air missiles.

The Czechoslovakian Tactical Forces would have fought with USFE Seventeenth Air Force, the Republic F-105D Thunderchief, the North American F-100D Super Sabre, the Luftwaffe and the Royal Canadian Air Force Lockhead's F-104 Starfighter types over Central-European battlefield in the mid-sixties.


		Right: A Czechoslovak S-105 (MiG-19S) 'Farmer C', of the 5th Fighter Air Regiment, lands at its home base at Line, southwest of Pilsen. Photo Zdenek Prochazka collection



		The ‘0711’ MiG-21F-13 ‘Fishbed-C’ aircraft was born in 1967 at the Czech Aero Vodochody factory called S-106 name. The Aero S-106 Czech production version of the Soviet Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21F-13 fighter. The 0711 served on the Czechoslovakian 1st Fighter Air Division daytime tactical fighter and later trainer fighter until 1989. Photo: 211.airspace.cz.



		A rare shot of the Czechoslovak MiG-19PM 'Farmer D' of the 5th Fighter Air Regiment, undergoes a routine pre-flight check. Photo Jaroslav Bartácek collection


	The most significant development of the 10th Air Army in the mid-1960s was the acquisition of the Sukhoi Su-7 nuclear strike aircraft type. As a first-line army of the Warsaw Pact, which was not supported by locally-based Soviet troops in peacetime, it bought 105 Sukhoi Su-7BM / BKL ‘Fitter-A’ and Su-7U ‘Moujik’ swept wing, supersonic fighter-bomber aircraft between 1964 and 1967.

The 10th Air Army supported the 1st and 4th Czechoslovak armies against NATO forces with new Sukhoi Su-7 ‘Fitter-A’ nuclear attack capacity in the case of the Third World War.

After the Czechoslovak 20th and 28th Fighter Bomber Air Regiments received Sukhoi Su-7BM/BKL ‘Fitter-A’ bombers, the early MiG-15SB ‘Fagot-A’ fighter-bombers type was permanently withdrawn from the Czech Air Force.

Later the other four fighter bomber air regiments (2nd, 6th, 18th, 30th sbopl) flew about 160 older MiG-15bis, bisSB, bisR ‘Fagot-B’ and MiG-15UTI ‘Midget’ fighter-bomber aircraft at this time.


	Czechoslovak 10th Air Army used two regiments nuclear strike capacitive Su-7BM/BKL 'Fitter-A' bomber aircraft type and four regiments close air support MiG-15 'Fagot-A/B' fighter-bomber aircraft type in the second half of the sixties. Photo source: www.valka.cz

During the Second World War's successful airborne tactics were also used at the Czechoslovak People's Army. The 46th Transport Airborne Division's regiments supported the 22nd Airborne Brigade and 4th and 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Company units. The 1st Transport Airborne Regiment was primarily equipped with self-built IL-14 ‘Crate’ cargo aircraft.

The Division's two Helicopter Regiments, each with 36-36 pcs Mi-4 ‘Hound’ helicopters, were able to fly similar missions like the US ARMY Air Cavalry's combat tactics in Vietnam.

12th Helicopter Regiment at Olomouc

Czechoslovak Air Force 10th Air Army in 1968 map

In the middle of the sixties, only the then over 10 years old, slow IL-28RT ‘Beagle’, and MiG-15bisR ‘Fagot-B’ reconnaissance aircraft were available to use to the Czechoslovak People's Army -Air Force Command. There was also a need for a high-speed type that would have been more likely to survive NATO's air defense. Therefore, a reconnaissance version of the MiG-21F-13, the FR, was developed at the Vodochody plant.

Its first test flight was flow non 9th December 1965, with factory tests taking place in April 1966, to include two flights with photo-containers. It could be fitted with two containers with four AFA-39 cameras in each, mounted under-wing, however the modification did not reduce the aircraft original function. Between May 1968 and February 1969, the 47th Reconnaissance Air Regiment received 11 MiG-21FR ‘Fishbed-C’ high-speed reconnaissance aircraft.

At the 10th Electronic Warfare Air Battalion IL-28RTR and IL-14RT aircraft were used for ELINT - electronic intelligence tasks.