Soviet strategic air defense: The struggle for competence

Abstract

Abstract : All militaries face the problem of training in peace to prepare for war. Peacetime desires for safety, comfort and the accommodation of inertia frequently permit a certain 'formalism' to creep into peacetime training. 'Formalism' or 'pencil-whipping' the training schedules comes to prominence when the shams of peacetime operations are stripped away by real wars or war-like incidents. The Soviet Air Defense Force, hereafter PVO, has been especially unlucky in the variety of incidents that have highlighted training deficiencies. In the Brezhnev period, incidents of incompetence could be resolved by simple punishment of the people involved and no wider implications were drawn. In a period of glasnost and political debate, wider implications are always drawn. In a period of glasnost and political debate, wider implications are always drawn. PVO is working hard to overcome the widespread impression of PVO incompetence highlighted when Matthias Rust landed in Red Square. PVO must demonstrate its day-to-day competence and prudent expenditure of resources in order to assure its access to continued support for new systems and a good share of the best conscripts and officer cadets.