Russian troops hone landing skills near Norwegian border
A big landing ship sails into the Pechenga Bay to pick up marine infantry from nearby garrisons.
The exercise started on Friday as troops and equipment was taken onboard landing ship Kondopoga. Included was armored personnel carriers BTR-82A, multi-purpose fully amphibious auxiliary armored vehicle MTLB-V and trucks type KAMAZ and Ural. The hardware was taken on board both from the shore and from offshore position, the Northern Fleet informs.
The training took place in the Pechenga Bay only about 15 kilometers from the border to Norway.
The Kondopoga has the capacity to carry up to ten tanks and 340 troops. The training included both loading and unloading of goods and personnel, the Navy says.
It has been a busy week for the troops serving in the Kola Peninsula, in northwest Russia. According to the Northern Fleet, more than 100 training exercises have been held offshore and in coastal bases since 1 June. In 57 of the cases, use of weapons was included. In the Barents Sea, three nuclear powered submarines shot torpedos on underwater and surface targets and several anti-submarine vessels engaged in firing of rocket-propelled depth bombs. Almost at the same time, Il-38 aircraft and Ka-27 helicopters applied anti-submarine weapons in the area.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: New Canadian navy ships to be affiliated with Inuit communities, CBC News
Finland: Swedish soldiers take part in Finnish naval exercise, Yle News
Norway: Norway rearming in Arctic to face new security landscape, The Independent Barents Observer
Russia: Russia’s Northern Fleet holds exercise in Barents Sea, The Independent Barents Observer
Sweden: Over 100 aircraft take part in multinational exercise in Arctic Europe, Radio Sweden
United States: U.S. fighter jets intercept Russian warplanes off Alaska, Radio Canada International
