MOSCOW. Nov 30 (Interfax-AVN) - The Combat Commonwealth 2005 exercise of the CIS Unified Air Defense System will be organized in Russia and Kazakhstan from July to September 2005, Colonel Alexander Drobyshevsky, Russian Air Force press service chief, told Interfax-Military News Agency Tuesday.
"The field phase of the exercise with live shooting will be organized in several stages at two Russian and one Kazakh firing ranges," he said.
He added that these would be the Ashuluk range in the Astrakhan region, the Telemba range in the Chita region and the Sary-Shagan range in Kazakstan.
The maneuvers are expected to see the participation of air forces and air defense forces of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine. Almost all armaments in service of the CIS Unified Air Defense System member nations will be involved, including the S-300, S-200, S-125 and S-75 SAM systems, and SU-24 Fencer, SU-27 Flanker, MIG-29 Fulcrum, MIG-31 Foxhound and A-50 Mainstay aircraft.
Combat Commonwealth 2005 will be held in the year of the CIS Unified Air Defense System's tenth jubilee. "For the ten years in existence, the CIS Unified Air Defense System has proved effective more than once," Drobyshevsky said.