31st Guards Airborne Division
| 31st Guards Airborne Division | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1948-1959 |
| Country |
 Soviet Union |
| Branch | Soviet airborne |
| Type | Airborne |
| Size | Division |
| Garrison/HQ | Novohrad-Volynskyi |
| Engagements | Hungarian Revolution of 1956 |
The 31st Guards Airborne Division was an airborne division of the Soviet airborne from 1948 to 1959. Originally part of the 39th Guards Airborne Corps, it was directly subordinated to Soviet airborne headquarters after the corps was disbanded in 1955.[1]
History
The 31st Guards Airborne Division was formed on 1 October 1948 from the 356th Guards Airborne Regiment in Novohrad-Volynskyi, part of the 39th Guards Airborne Corps. Its 381st Guards Air Landing Regiment was converted to an airborne regiment at some point. The division's Separate Air Landing Security Company was disbanded in 1949. On 15 November 1953, its 716th Separate Guards Communications Company became a battalion, along with the Separate Medical & Sanitary Company. The Separate Guards Antitank Battalion and Separate Guards Reconnaissance Company were disbanded on the same date. On 30 April 1955, the 109th Guards Airborne Regiment became part of the division after its original parent unit, the 100th Guards Airborne Division was disbanded. The 152nd Separate Tank Destroyer Battalion was activated on the same day. Due to the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, two regiments of the division were placed on alert. On 1 November, the division landed at Veszprém airport and Tököl airport, along with the 7th Guards Airborne Division. It helped suppress the Hungarian uprising during Operation Whirlwind[2] and took part in fighting in Budapest between 4–7 November.[3] The division left Hungary in late November.[4] During Operation Whirlwind, the division was commanded by P.M. Ryabov.[5] 24 soldiers from the division were killed during the crushing of the Hungarian uprising.[6] In 1959, the 31st Guards Airborne Division was disbanded.[1]
Composition
In 1948, the division was composed of the following units.[1]
- 115th Guards Airborne Regiment
- 381st Guards Air Landing Regiment
- 1295th Guards Artillery Regiment
- 95th Separate Self-Propelled Artillery Battalion
- 764th Separate Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion
- 152nd Separate Antitank Artillery Battalion
- Separate Guards Reconnaissance Company
- 716th Separate Guards Communications Company
- 157th Separate Guards Engineering Battalion
- Separate Supply Truck Battalion
- Separate Air Landing Security Company
- Separate Medical & Sanitary Company
- Separate Training Battalion
References
- 1 2 3 Holm, Michael. "31st Guards Airborne Division". www.ww2.dk. Retrieved 2015-11-22.
- ↑ Schmidl, Erwin A.; Ritter, László (2006-01-01). The Hungarian Revolution 1956. Osprey Publishing. p. 24. ISBN 9781846030796.
- ↑ Kershaw, Robert (2010-07-22). Sky Men: Always Expect the Unexpected - the Real Story of the Paras. Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 9781848949225.
- ↑ Kostin, Boris Akimovich (2005). Маргелов [Margelov] (in Russian). Moscow: Young Guard. pp. 104–115.
- ↑ Zaloga, Steve (1995-01-01). Inside the Blue Berets: A Combat History of Soviet and Russian Airborne Forces, 1930-1995. Presidio. ISBN 9780891413998.
- ↑ Россия (СССР) в войнах второй половины XX века [Russia (USSR) in the Wars of the second half of the 20th century]. Moscow: Triad Farm. 2002. p. 237.