MOSCOW. March 25 (Interfax-AVN) - The former commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, Admiral Eduard Baltin, said on Monday that the Russian army should adopt a mixed manning pattern employing professional servicemen and recruiting conscripts at the same time.
The pattern already exists in the Russian army, Baltin told Interfax-Military News Agency. "All our aviation crews are professional, all our submariners are professionals and all special units too," he stressed.
The crew of Russia's latest submarine Gepard (Project 971) comprises 63 people, Baltin said. Half of them are officers and the rest warrants, not a single sailor is included, he stressed.
The admiral called for restoration of extended active duty service to solve the manning problem. An active duty serviceman should have the right to sign a contract with the commander upon expiration of his 1.5-2 year term and serve for another two or four years, he said.
At the same time, it is necessary to preserve active duty service, for Russia will have no resources for mobilization in case conscription is abolished, Baltin noted.
"We will have nobody to call to arms in case large-scale hostilities start. Our army is the smallest of all law- enforcement bodies. The Russian Interior Ministry is 1.5 times as large as the army," the admiral concluded.