98th Guards Airborne Division
Division Overview and Command
The 98th Guards Airborne Division is a formation of the Russian Airborne Troops (VDV) with headquarters in Ivanovo, identified as military unit 65451. According to the provided data, the division commander is Colonel Victor Gunaza. The division comprises the 217th Guards Airborne Regiment (military unit 62295), the 331st Guards Airborne Regiment (military unit 71211), the 1065th Guards Artillery Regiment (military unit 62297), the 5th Separate Guards Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment (military unit 65376), the 215th Separate Guards Reconnaissance Battalion (military unit 54387), the 661st Separate Guards Engineer-Sapper Battalion (military unit 65379), the 674th Separate Guards Communications Battalion (military unit 65381), and the 1683rd Separate Material Support Battalion (military unit 65385).
Garrisons and Locations
The divisional headquarters and the 217th Guards Airborne Regiment are based in Ivanovo, while the 331st Guards Airborne Regiment is garrisoned in Kostroma. Supporting regiments and separate battalions are predominantly co-located in the Ivanovo area. The Ivanovo location provides immediate access to the Il-76-capable Ivanovo-Severny airfield used by Military Transport Aviation, facilitating rapid airland/airdrop operations. These garrisons sit on established road and rail corridors in central Russia, supporting routine movements, mobilization, and sustainment.
Order of Battle (Military Unit Numbers)
Administrative identifiers reported for the division and its subunits are as follows: Division Headquarters (military unit 65451, Ivanovo); 217th Guards Airborne Regiment (military unit 62295); 331st Guards Airborne Regiment (military unit 71211); 1065th Guards Artillery Regiment (military unit 62297); 5th Separate Guards Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment (military unit 65376); 215th Separate Guards Reconnaissance Battalion (military unit 54387); 661st Separate Guards Engineer-Sapper Battalion (military unit 65379); 674th Separate Guards Communications Battalion (military unit 65381); and 1683rd Separate Material Support Battalion (military unit 65385). In Russian Ministry of Defense usage, these "military unit" (v/ch) numbers function as formal administrative identifiers.
Airborne Regiments: Structure and Equipment
The 217th and 331st Guards Airborne Regiments are equipped for air-delivered and air-assault operations with light armored, air-droppable vehicles. The 217th is reported with BMD-2 infantry fighting vehicles, BTR-D airborne armored personnel carriers, BTR-ZD (Skrezhet) self-propelled anti-aircraft gun carriers mounting ZU-23-2, and 2S9 Nona-S 120 mm self-propelled gun-mortars. The 331st is reported with BMD-2, 2S9 Nona-S, and BTR-D. This mix provides protected mobility, organic direct fire, limited point air defense, and battalion- and regimental-level indirect fire suitable for rapid insertion and maneuver.
Divisional Artillery and Fire Support
The 1065th Guards Artillery Regiment fields a combination of towed and self-propelled indirect fire systems, specifically the 122 mm D-30 howitzer and the 120 mm 2S9 Nona-S self-propelled gun-mortar. The D-30 (2A18) provides 360-degree traverse on its three-leg mount, a standard high-explosive range of approximately 15.4 km (greater with rocket-assisted projectiles), and a typical sustained rate of fire in the 5–8 rounds per minute bracket. The 2S9 Nona-S, armed with the 120 mm 2A51 gun-mortar, supports both high-angle mortar and low-angle direct fire; effective ranges are roughly 8.8 km with standard ammunition and up to about 12–13 km with rocket-assisted rounds, with a practical rate of fire around 6–8 rounds per minute. This combination gives the division flexible close and general support fires suited to airborne operations.
Short-Range Air Defense Posture
The 5th Separate Guards Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment provides short-range air defense with 9K35 Strela-10 infrared-guided surface-to-air missile systems, supplemented by BTR-ZD (Skrezhet) vehicles with twin 23 mm ZU-23-2 guns and BTR-D carriers for mobility and support. The Strela-10 family offers passive, optically aimed engagement of low-altitude aerial targets, with typical engagement ranges up to approximately 5 km and altitudes to about 3.5 km depending on missile variant (e.g., 9M37 or 9M333). BTR-ZD platforms provide close-in point defense against low, slow targets, including helicopters and UAVs, complementing the missile systems.
Reconnaissance, Engineering, Signals, and Logistics Enablers
The 215th Separate Guards Reconnaissance Battalion supports target acquisition, route and drop-zone reconnaissance, and battlefield surveillance in support of divisional operations. The 661st Separate Guards Engineer-Sapper Battalion provides mobility, countermobility, and survivability tasks such as obstacle breaching, mine and improvised explosive device mitigation, gap crossing support, and field fortification. The 674th Separate Guards Communications Battalion establishes and maintains command-and-control networks, including radio, wire, and higher-echelon connectivity to VDV and joint force command elements. The 1683rd Separate Material Support Battalion delivers supply, transport, maintenance, and repair services necessary to sustain airborne operations post-insertion and during conventional maneuver.
Mobility and Airlift Interfaces
The division’s basing in Ivanovo provides direct access to the Ivanovo-Severny airfield, a principal Military Transport Aviation base used by Il-76 aircraft. Divisional equipment such as BMD-2 and 2S9 Nona-S is designed for air-landing and, with appropriate platforms and parachute systems, airdrop from Il-76 aircraft. The Il-76 family supports medium-to-heavy payloads over strategic ranges and is routinely employed to move VDV units to staging airfields or drop zones. Road and rail infrastructure in Ivanovo and Kostroma further enables pre-deployment concentration and onward movement to airfields or operational areas.
Equipment Technical Snapshot
BMD-2: air-droppable, amphibious infantry fighting vehicle with a 30 mm 2A42 cannon, coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun, and roof-mounted launcher capable of employing 9M111/9M113 family anti-tank guided missiles, providing direct fire and limited anti-armor capability. BTR-D: lightweight, air-droppable armored personnel carrier derived from the BMD chassis, configured to transport airborne infantry and specialist teams, typically armed with machine guns for local security. BTR-ZD (Skrezhet): BTR-D chassis mounting the twin 23 mm ZU-23-2 cannon, providing close-range air defense and ground support against lightly armored targets. 2S9 Nona-S: 120 mm self-propelled gun-mortar with combined mortar/howitzer capabilities and amphibious mobility. D-30 (2A18): 122 mm towed howitzer with 360-degree traverse and standard HE range around 15.4 km, extendable with rocket-assisted projectiles. 9K35 Strela-10: short-range IR-guided SAM system on a tracked carrier, engaging low-altitude targets within roughly 5 km slant range and up to about 3.5 km altitude.
Infrastructure and Training
Divisional basing in Ivanovo and Kostroma supports routine airborne training cycles that include parachute qualification and refresher jumps, air-landing drills, live-fire exercises for artillery and air defense units, and field training at regional ranges. The presence of an Il-76-capable airfield at Ivanovo enables coordination and execution of joint VDV–Military Transport Aviation training events, including loading procedures, rapid embarkation and debarkation, and airdrop rehearsals for personnel and light armored vehicles. Specific training area boundaries, schedules, and detailed facilities are not publicly disclosed.
Operational Role and Employment
As part of the VDV, the 98th Guards Airborne Division is organized for rapid deployment, seizure of key terrain, disruption of adversary rear areas, and reinforcement of critical sectors in conventional operations. The division’s light armored, air-transportable equipment and integrated fires and short-range air defense allow insertion by air landing or parachute, followed by decentralized maneuver and consolidation until heavier forces arrive. The unit mix listed—two airborne regiments with organic indirect fire, a divisional artillery regiment, SHORAD coverage, and dedicated reconnaissance, engineering, communications, and logistics elements—aligns with standard VDV divisional functions.
Information Availability and Caveats
Exact personnel strengths, equipment quantities by type, detailed deployment timelines, and specific facility layouts are not publicly available or are classified. The unit designations, military unit numbers, basing locations at the city level, and the equipment types listed herein are based on unclassified information and the provided unit list. Where equipment types are noted, this indicates reported presence within the unit and does not imply complete inventories or exclude other systems not specified.