Battle parade

Unlike conventional military parades, consisting of the ceremonial passage of convoys of military personnel and military equipment (the “traditional part”), the military parade includes demonstrative tactical exercises, which show the stage-by-stage process of destroying a group of a conditional enemy (“tactical part”). During the military parade, in addition to demonstrating combat training of military personnel, it is also possible to clearly demonstrate military training and professional skills of military personnel, to make real use of modern weapons and military equipment in service. Units from all military branches participate in a fire attack on a conditional enemy: missile and artillery; aviation; tank and motorized rifle; air assault and parachute assault ^[1] .

In connection with the demonstration tactical actions, the battle parade was not held both times in the state capital ( Astana ), but at one of the largest military training grounds of Kazakhstan - the Matybulak training ground, belonging to the 40th military base of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan , near the village of Otar in Zhambyl area .

Both battle parades were held on Defender of the Fatherland Day on May 7 ^[3] .

On May 7, 2013, in honor of the 21st anniversary of the creation of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan , a military parade was held, in which 7,000 troops, more than 400 tanks and special vehicles, 80 aircraft and helicopters participated ^{[2] [4]}

The traditional part

The start of a combat parade is the usual parade. In front of the spectator stands, parades of military personnel were lined up, in front of which the flag of the Republic of Kazakhstan was carried. The parade was commanded by the commander of the ground forces, Lieutenant General Maikeyev Murat , who reported on the readiness of the troops to the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Colonel General Zhasuzakov Saken . After the arrival of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev , the chief of the General Staff reported to him about the readiness of the troops for the parade. After the speech of the head of state in two languages ​​(Kazakh and Russian), the national anthem of Kazakhstan was performed. After that, the ceremonial calculations began the solemn passage. According to the tradition of all military parades of Kazakhstan, the first parade calculation was a column of officers of the central apparatus of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Parade calculations from all law enforcement agencies were involved in the parade. In addition to formations from the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan, there were also ceremonial calculations of the Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan , the Border Service of the National Security Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan , formations of the Ministry of Emergencies of the Republic of Kazakhstan , the military police and the Republican Guard . Also passed the ceremonial calculation of cadets of the military institute of ground forces, military institute of internal troops, military institute of frontier service ^[1] .

Ceremonial calculations took place in full combat gear (helmets, body armor, camouflage suits, unloading). In many calculations, one line carried portable radios. The parade calculations of the airmobile forces took place with parachute systems on. At the end of the walking parade calculations in front of the stands, a group of Mi-17 army aviation helicopters flew with banners of the armed forces. ^[5] .

Tactical Unit

The parade commander addressed the Supreme Commander with a report on the readiness of all combat arms and announced that he would proceed to combat work to destroy the enemy advancing in several echelons. Directly in front of the stands of the spectators were the battle formations of the troops prepared for the offensive. Artillery, rocket and anti-aircraft missile calculations were located on the flanks. In the center were located fighting vehicles of tank and motorized infantry units. Artillery calculations were presented from the 44th artillery brigade from Saryozek and the 54th guards brigade from the 40th military base.

According to the conditional signal of the henchman, the first to launch fire at the conditional enemy was the missile division with the simultaneous launch of 4 Tochka-U tactical missiles. The next blow to conventional enemy air targets was inflicted by S -125 Pechora anti-aircraft missile systems. After the battle entered the MLRS "Grad" and "Prima" . The next opened volley of howitzers D-30A and Msta-B .

At the end of the shelling, army aviation began to destroy the conditional enemy. The first pair of Mi-24 helicopters fired Sturm-M anti-tank missiles, which hit point targets that designated enemy equipment. The second Mi-24 pair launched a salvo at the enemy from NAR units.

After an air strike on a conditional enemy, the ground forces went on the offensive. In the first line of the advancing combatants, the T-72B tank company advanced, firing from the guns on the move of the enemy. At the same time, BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles advanced in battle formation in the second rank. Both companies were represented by the 5th Mountain Motorized Rifle Brigade from Taraz.

Following the tanks and BMP-2, a hit of a conditional enemy made a link from 4 Mi-8 helicopters with the launch of NAR. After that, an armored personnel carrier BTR-82A from the 390th separate brigade of marines from Aktau and armored vehicles Otokar Cobra and Humvee from airborne troops went on the offensive. The advance of the armored personnel carriers was carried out with the air cover of a pair of Mi-24 helicopters, carrying out a volley from the NAR installations at the enemy.

From the Msta-B guns into the air were launched volleys with lighting shells that imitated enemy air targets. On them anti-aircraft missile calculations of the ground forces were launched from MANPADS "Igla". After that, the battery of the Sturm-S self-propelled anti-tank missile systems and a couple of Terminator tank support vehicles went into firing positions. They launched a volley of missiles at the conditional armored targets of the enemy. Also, with BMPT "Terminator" a volley was fired from automatic guns at the infantry of a conditional enemy in a given square. The next fire on the enemy was opened by two heavy flamethrower systems TOS-1A "Solntseyok" .

The final blow to the enemy from the air was carried out in three waves. In the first wave, a blow was struck by a group of 7 Su-27 aircraft following a “wedge” in combat order, which dropped the FAB-250 and FAB-500 air bombs on the conditional enemy. In the second wave, a blow was struck by a group of 4 Su-25 attack aircraft under the cover of 4 MiG-29 fighters. Attack aircraft in pairs launched a salvo of NAR from a dive . The third wave was represented by a group of 4 MiG-27 fighter-bombers, which, under the guise of a MiG-29 pair, dropped 24 FAB-250 bombs.

For the final destruction of the conditional enemy, the landing was carried out in four ways. The first over the positions of the conditional enemy, under the cover of a MiG-29 pair, flew the military transport aircraft S-295 , from which there was a parachute deployment of a platoon of fighters of airborne forces on the "Crossbow" parachutes. After the parachute landing, from the helicopters of the EC-145 , airborne assault was carried out by assault of special forces of the Main Intelligence Directorate. The third method of landing was the descent of fighters of special forces by a halyard from the sides of Mi-17 helicopters, which hovered over the landing site. At the final stage, the landing took place in a landing way when a heavy Mi-26 transport helicopter landed from the rear ramp to a company of airborne troops. At the end of the landing, all landed fighters went on the offensive. At the same time, the S-295 military transport aircraft, from which it had just been parachuted, landed on an unpaved strip located behind the spectator's platform ^[1] .

At the end of the rout of a conventional enemy in the sky above the training ground, the Sunkar aerobatic team performed on L-39 aircraft , the Training Aviation Center from the city of Balkhash . After that, a conventional aerial battle was shown between a pair of MiG-29 and a pair of Su-27. Demonstration performances in group flight training were also made by the Zhetysu aerobatic team of 4 aircraft of the Su-27 of the 604th air base in Taldykorgan.

After that, a live broadcast from the Caspian Sea was shown, in which a group of ships of the Naval Forces of Kazakhstan carried out an artillery salvo from multiple rocket launchers at a conventional naval enemy ^[2] .

The end of the military parade was marked by the performance of the drill song with all the parade calculations ^[5] .

Battle Parade Evaluation

According to Roger McDermott, an analyst at the Jamestown Foundation , the military parade held in Kazakhstan has become an extraordinary and unusual phenomenon that distinguishes it from conventional military parades. According to the expert, the “ceremonial” and “splendor” of the military parade conceals deep processes in the armed forces, which confirm the efforts of the state authorities to modernize the army to high technologies and standards of the 21st century ^[2] .

In the Canadian military magazine (“Uniform Honor”), the 2013 military parade was named the first full-scale military parade in the history of Kazakhstan ^[6]

On May 7, 2018, in honor of the 26th anniversary of the creation of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the 73rd anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War, a second military parade was held.

Unlike the 2013 parade, it was significantly smaller. In total, the parade involved 3,000 military personnel, more than 300 units of military equipment and about 30 aircraft ^[7] .

The traditional part

Major General Bektanov Murat commanded the parade. The Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, hosted the parade.

Before the ceremonial passage, a ceremony was held to present combat banners to 16 brigades of territorial troops, which are located in two cities - in Astana and Almaty, and in 14 regions of Kazakhstan. Battle banners were handed over to akims of these cities and regions. Territorial troops were formed in December 2015.

Following the presentation of the military banners, a solemn march began in which 19 foot parades from the Special Operations Forces, Airborne Assault Forces , the State Guard Service , the National Guard , cadets VISV , the 390th separate brigade of marines, territorial troops and the military police participated calculations.

The traditional part ended with the flight of a group of Mi-17 helicopters of army aviation with banners of the armed forces, followed by a group of UH-1 and EC-145.

The military parade of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan was the last to parade down the parade ground ^{[7] [8]}

Tactical Unit

The tactical part of the parade began with a report from the parade commander to the host on the readiness of troops and combat aircraft for hostilities, after which the signal of the ermine sounded. The speaker voiced the combat mission assigned to the troops, according to the scenario of which it was necessary to destroy the base of an illegal armed formation of up to 1,000 militants who occupied the village. The enemy was designated by static and moving targets on the target field of the landfill.

The combat scenario was divided into 5 successive stages ^[7] .

Intelligence from the air. Air Raid and Fire Raid

The first to launch a strike was the Wing Loong strike reconnaissance UAV (acquired in 2016), first demonstrated to the general public at a military parade in Astana on May 7, 2017. At the same time, reconnaissance with relaying the terrain image was carried out by Skylark and Hermes UAVs. From the board of Wing Loong, a VA-7 guided air-to-surface missile was launched with a semi-active laser homing head, which destroyed the militant command post.

The next blow to targets simulating a convoy of militant vehicles was dealt by a group of 5 Su-30SM aircraft (purchased in 2015), from which OFAB-250 bombs were dropped. After that, the attack on the conditional enemy was inflicted in pairs by 4 Su-25UBM attack aircraft (upgraded in 2017) from the N- S-8 . Following the conditional enemy, they dived a Su-30CM steam from the NAR S-13 from a dive.

After the planes, helicopters began to strike at the conditional enemy. The first enemy was attacked by a pair of Mi-35s (acquired in 2017) with the Sturm-V anti-tank missiles. The second air strike was delivered by a group of 4 Mi-171Sh helicopters (acquired in 2015), which launched a salvo from the S-8 NAR on the enemy. According to the scenario of the combat mission, the suppression of the radio communications of the militants was carried out by electronic intelligence and electronic warfare complexes Amethyst and Cicada, which were deployed along the flanks of the spectator platform.

At the end of the air raid, artillery fire raids began. The first salvo against a conditional enemy was carried out by the artillery division of the Smerch MLRS. Then the heavy fire-throwing systems TOS-1A Solntseyok opened fire. The next salvo was carried out by the D-30A and Msta-B howitzer divisions.

The final part in the fire attack was performed by the Prima and KazGrad MLRS batteries (a Kazakhstani development based on the KamAZ-5350 chassis).

Destruction of enemy conventional armored assets was carried out by the calculations of the Sturm-S self-propelled anti-tank systems by launching the Ataka missiles and the calculations of the MT-12 Rapira anti-tank guns ^{[8] [7]} .

Armored Tactical Attack

To completely destroy the militants, an armored tactical group goes on the offensive. The offensive is carried out in three waves.

In the first wave was the T-72B tank battalion. From the spot, the crews of the tanks fired 3UBK14 with the 9M119 guided missile at the enemy’s armored means, after which the tanks went on the offensive while firing from the guns on the move. In one line with the tanks, tank support combat vehicles were advancing (the class of combat vehicles is indicated in Kazakhstan terminology) “Terminator”, firing from automatic guns. To accomplish the assigned fire mission, tank units carry out a retreat to the flanks, freeing the offensive zone for combat vehicles of motorized rifle units.

In the second wave, in battle order, 2 motorized rifle companies on the BMP-2 and BTR-82A attacked in the same line, firing automatic cannons on the move. According to the experience of recent military conflicts, BMP-2s are equipped with lattice anti-cumulative screens.

In the third wave, the Arlan combat wheeled vehicles (licensed version of Marauder of Kazakhstan production, adopted in 2016) were attacked by 2 special reconnaissance and assault companies of a separate reconnaissance regiment of the Vostok Regional Command. Their crews fired at the conditional enemy from remotely controlled stabilized NSVT Utes machine guns mounted on top of the vehicles ^{[8] [7]} .

Airborne Assault Operations

At this stage, the landing of special forces was presented in three different ways - assault, landing, as well as descent from a helicopter through a halyard.

The first from the Mi-17V5 helicopter to land the calculation of the heavy machine gun "Cliff" and the calculation of the 2B24 Virgo mortar, which were supposed to cover the following landing groups. A group of UH-1 and EC-145 helicopters landed the second landing group. The third group of landing landed with a pair of Mi-17 on the halyard. The landed groups carried out the task of destroying the advanced guards of the militant base ^{[8] [7]} .

Blocking an Enemy in a Settlement

The next step after the destruction of the enemy base guard was its blocking in the village. To do this, scouts on ATVs and buggies for additional reconnaissance of the enemy took place on the flanks. Also, in order to hamper the enemy’s actions, a fire support company was advanced, armed with automatic ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft guns and 2B9 “Vasilyok” automatic mortars mounted on the KamAZ-5350 chassis, as well as KPV and NSVT Utes machine guns mounted on Toyota Land Cruiser 70 pickup trucks. The speaker commenting on the course of events emphasized the fact that such borrowings were made on the basis of the experience of modern local conflicts - "tactics adopted from militants - hit the enemy with his own weapons."

To demonstrate the possible means of reinforcing advanced special-purpose groups, ATVs with trailers are mounted on the front lines with various weapons: a NSVT machine gun, 82-mm mortar, 30-mm automatic grenade launcher AGS-17 and ATGM . The speaker comments that, in the experience of recent local conflicts, the use of all-terrain vehicles and cross-country vehicles such as ATVs and buggies increases the effectiveness of troops in hard-to-reach areas. The last wheeled vehicle advancing on the enemy was a company of armored vehicles HUMVEE ^{[7] [8]} .

Completion of the destruction of the militant base

The last stage was to land a parachute landing, which was supposed to complete the destruction of the blocked enemy. For this purpose, landing on the Berkut-2 guided parachute systems (purchased in 2015) ^{[3] [9] [9]} was dropped from a military transport S-295 from a height of 800 meters.

The task of the landing, which included a group of advanced aviation gunners, was to conduct target designation for attack aircraft. For this, the gunners were armed with complexes of laser illumination of targets.

The end of the military parade was held under the performance of the drill song with all the parade calculations ^[8] .

• Battle parade. May 7, 2013 . On the YouTube portal
• Battle parade. May 7, 2018 . On the YouTube portal
• "What will surprise the military at the Battle Parade." Photo report of Grigory Bedenko. Inform Bureau.KZ
• "How was the Battle Parade-2018." Photo report of Grigory Bedenko. Inform Bureau.KZ