185th Aerospace Forces Combat Use and Combat Mission Center (Ashuluk)
Identification and Nomenclature
Official designation: 185th Aerospace Forces Combat Use and Combat Mission Center (Ashuluk). Common Russian name: 185th Center for Combat Employment and Retraining of Personnel of the Aerospace Forces (185-y TsBP i PLS VKS). Publicly attributed military unit number: 28004. The site is widely known as the Ashuluk training ground (poligon Ashuluk) and supports the Air and Missile Defense branch of the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS).
Location and Geospatial Context
The center is located in Astrakhan Oblast, Russian Federation, in the vicinity of the Ashuluk garrison area within Kharabali District. The terrain is predominantly semi-arid steppe with sparse population density, enabling extensive safety arcs for live-fire engagements. The range comprises multiple dispersed firing lanes and prepared positions connected by an internal road network and serviced by regional transport infrastructure.
Mission and Organizational Role
The center’s core mission is the combat employment training and live-fire certification of ground-based air defense (GBAD) units of the VKS, including anti-aircraft missile troops (ZRV) and radiotechnical troops (RTV). Activities include new equipment fielding, operator and commander retraining, unit-level and large-force exercises, and evaluation of tactics, techniques, and procedures for integrated air and missile defense.
Range Infrastructure and Facilities
Infrastructure includes bermed and graded SAM firing pads, radar emplacement areas, command post locations, ammunition and fuel storage, vehicle parks, field camps, and range instrumentation sites for tracking, telemetry, and scoring. The layout enables temporary deployment of multiple GBAD systems with separation sufficient to mitigate electromagnetic interference and provide realistic engagement geometries across low, medium, and high-altitude target corridors.
Air Defense Radars (Observed/Reported)
Reporting and exercise media from the Ashuluk range have shown or attributed the presence of the following radar types: 59N6/59N6E Protivnik-G/GE (mobile 3D surveillance radar, L-band, used for wide-area air picture); 5N84A Oborona-14 (VHF early-warning radar, legacy long-range detection, often employed for long-wavelength coverage); 55Zh6M Nebo-M (modular, multiband integrated radar system used for long-range detection and cueing); 48Ya6-K1 Podlet-K1 (mobile low-altitude surveillance radar, optimized for low-flying targets including cruise missiles); Kasta-2E2 (mobile low-altitude surveillance radar). A 1L220-U Zoopark-2 counter-battery radar has been mentioned in some accounts; this is a Ground Forces artillery reconnaissance radar rather than an air-defense set, and its presence at the range is not definitively confirmed.
Surface-to-Air Missile Systems Activity
The range routinely hosts live-fire training for VKS GBAD systems. S-400 Triumf components—such as 92N6/92N6E engagement radar and S-400 TELs (e.g., 5P85-series)—have been deployed to Ashuluk for exercises and certification events. Other systems regularly associated with training at this range include S-300 variants, Buk, Tor, and Pantsir families. Equipment deployments are temporary and exercise-driven; the site serves as a training and certification venue rather than a permanently emplaced operational air-defense position.
2022 Imagery Assessment (S-400 TELs and 92N6 Radar Site)
Imagery assessments from 2022 indicated that a specified S-400-related emplacement at the range was empty at the time of collection—no S-400 TELs or the 92N6-series engagement radar were present on that pad. This observation is consistent with the range’s episodic use pattern and does not indicate a change in the range’s role; it reflects the rotational nature of unit deployments to Ashuluk.
Operational Pattern and Equipment Rotation
Unit presence at Ashuluk is rotational and linked to scheduled training cycles, state trials, and certification events. Radar and SAM assets are moved in for specific periods, conduct live-fire or tactical exercises, and then redeploy to home garrisons. As a result, satellite imagery can show empty pads or minimal activity outside scheduled events, followed by periods of intensive activity during exercises.
Training Activities and Target Use
Activities include sensor-to-shooter integration drills, live missile firings against aerial targets, and multi-layer defense scenarios combining long-range surveillance radars with engagement radars and command-and-control systems. Target presentations typically utilize remotely piloted or drone targets at varied altitudes and speeds to replicate different threat profiles, including low-altitude, high-speed, and maneuvering targets.
Safety, Airspace, and Range Control
During live-fire events, the range enforces restricted airspace and ground safety zones. Range control employs tracking and telemetry to score engagements and ensure adherence to safety arcs. Temporary airspace closures and Notices to Airmen/Mariners are issued during major events to segregate civil traffic from exercise activity.
Associated Training Areas
Public reporting links the 185th center with multiple VKS GBAD training areas, notably the Ashuluk range in Astrakhan Oblast and the Telemba range in the Republic of Buryatia. This distribution allows for varied terrain and climatological conditions in training and supports a broad set of unit requirements.
Data Reliability and Gaps
The unit designation "military unit 28004" is widely attributed in open sources to the 185th center at Ashuluk; the Russian Ministry of Defense does not consistently publish detailed unit identifiers or permanent inventories for this site in accessible official releases. The listing of radar types reflects systems reported or shown during exercises; the 1L220-U Zoopark-2 is unconfirmed at this location. The 2022 observation of an empty S-400 pad reflects a single time slice; equipment presence varies with training schedules. Precise equipment inventories, deployment timelines, and classified range instrumentation are not publicly disclosed.