Soviet Air Defence Aviation 1945-1991

In addition the Soviet PVO was tasked in the post-war years with the protection of coastal areas and Soviet Navy bases and a new service of the Soviet Armed Forces was established to defend against missile attacks.

The first jet fighters to see service with the PVO were the Mikoyan/Gurevich MiG-15bis Fagot-B and MiG-17F Fresco-C. Subsequently the IA PVO started fielding specialized all-weather interceptors; the first of these being the radar-equipped MiG-17P Fresco-B and MiG-17PF Fresco-D, followed by the MiG-17PFU Fresco-E, which traded the cannons for air-to-air missiles. These were superseded by the supersonic MiG-19P Farmer-B (cannon-armed) and MiG-19PM Farmer-D (missile-armed), as well as the Yakovlev Yak-25/Yak-25M Flashlight-A tailor-made for the interceptor role.

In subsequent years the IA PVO operated specialized supersonic interceptors, including the Sukhoi Su-9 Fishpot-A, Yak-28P Firebar, Tupolev Tu-128 Fiddler, Su-15TM Flagon-D, MiG-25PD/PDS Foxbat-D, and MiG-31 Foxhound.

Soviet Air Defence details the IA PVO's order of battle, aircraft types, and accounts of specific intercepts and incidents and is illustrated with more than 400 black/white and color photos and color profiles, producing a wealth of information for the aviation historian and enthusiast alike.