ABSTRACT
During the Second World War, 1941-45, Soviet naval aviation demonstrated its importance by providing air cover for the Navys surface forces as well as vital air support for the Red Army in the life-and-death struggle against the Wehrmacht. When the Germans attacked the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, the Soviet naval air arm had a total of 3,020 aircraft in its inventory. Soviet naval aviation conducted offensive air operations at sea, defended naval bases, co-operated with the army in the coastal zones, and secured friendly sea lanes while disrupting the enemys naval communications. The Russo-Japanese War demonstrated the need for a reconnaissance element assigned to Russian surface and ground forces. The political leadership in Russia, realizing the nature of the threat to Russias security and their own industrial limitations, have opted to spend the states precious economic resources on the Army, making the Navy, for the most part, handmaiden to service.
