Russia fires at I.S targets from Caspian Sea
 

Russia fires at I.S targets from Caspian Sea
Russia's defence minister says his country is using warships in the Caspian Sea to target Islamic State in Syria.

The minister told President Vladimir Putin in televised remarks that Russia carried out 26 missile strikes from four warships of its Caspian Sea flotilla.

He said the operation destroyed all the targets and did not launch any strikes upon civilian areas.

Meanwhile, Russia has conceded the country's air force will work in conjunction with Syrian army ground offensives to help bring down the terror group.

It comes after Moscow began launching air strikes on I.S last week.

- See more at: Russia fires at I.S targets from Caspian Sea

I hope these missiles are not between 25 - 50,000' :eek:

halas

Russia fires at I.S targets from Caspian Sea
 

Well maybe the Americans have also fired sea launched missiles at IS but haven't gone public,there is all sorts of stuff going on,military and non military,but I would say one thing,the west has to put up or shut up!

I think he makes the point because we fly through that airspace. How high do these missiles go when fired?

Caspian See
 

I think Erdogan is not going to be to impressed with the new violation of Turkish Air Space....

I heard an Airbus 206 declare a mayday over Saudi with one engine out heading for Sharm....wonder was it a stray missile....😱

Caspian Sea would mean that fireworks would fly over Northern Iran, not Turkey. Looks like Saudi and Egypt routes are about to become busy for westbound and what about northern routes to the States?????

J

There's no way all the west bounds will fit through Saudi and Egypt FIRs. It's a bun fight already trying to get to KITOT...

Maybe chaff dispensers will be the next FCOM change? :-o

the missile is following the terrain up to 50m height
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3M-54_Klub

Am I alone in being surprised that the Russians have these vessels on the Caspian - which is just a huge, landlocked lake? How did they get there being just one question..... ?? And were they originally placed mainly for defensive reasons ?? The whole Russian involvement in the Syrian debacle is very confusing.

All five Caspian littoral states maintain naval forces on the sea.
The Russians have the Volga river to bring their weaponry into the lake/sea

The Russians need to maintain their naval bases on the Syrian Mediterranean coast.

They will do whatever it takes, and support whoever they need to, to keep those ports.

Very similar to the Crimean situation - access to the naval ports on the Black Sea. If they had lost the Ukraine to the EU - as was increasingly likely - they would have, militarily, been severely undermined.

Chess Player
 

Putin is an excellent chess player. He is doing exactly the same what he has done in Ukraine. He utilizes the state of chaos in Syria and the indecisiveness of Obama and his western allies to serve his own goals to restore Russia's place in the world back to it's old Soviet Union glory.

A strong naval force is essential to project your power in order to serve your global interests. The ice free ports in Crimea and the eastern Mediterranean are part of that global strategy.

While air superiority is essential for the success of an armed conflict, no war has ever been won by air strikes only. Boots on the ground only will assure the success of your campaign. That's exactly what is going to happen in Syria now, and that's what happened in Ukraine.

Under the pretense of preserving peace Russian ground troops will deploy in Syria to support the only structured military force besides ISIS, Putin's old ally Assad.

There is nothing the West can do now except watch in awe how quickly and efficiently Russian forces will deploy into Syria and reinstall the old Assad regime.

The Russians operate on quite less restrictive Rules of Engagement....you can call that efficient if you like max but I'm guessing the civilian collateral damage may not agree..

At the end of the day Putin will face the same problems in Syria like J.W and Obama in Irak and Afghanistan. Win the war will be the easy task, win the peace will be "mission impossible".

Looking to the map, I see a lot of Sunni Muslim countries next to Russia. Russians, should have strong concerns regarding the security in there country.

It looks like it maybe getting a little crowded on the Iraq/Turk/Iranian border that you guys / girls have to fly through (and me as humble SLF). I believe ATC is not the best on the Turkish side either, given some posts on here and from friends who are current and ex EK. Factor in some bad weather / fast attack jets / and now cruise missiles and it sounds like a real potential issue on the routes to and from Europe in particular. What alternative routes are there which could take the volume of traffic that squeezes through there currently ? On my trips I have been up over Iran and over the Ukraine (before that areas troubles), out over Jordan/ Lebanon and once through Saudi / Egypt, but more often than not it is through the area where the latest issues have been since the block on flying over Iraq. Would be interested to hear your professional opinion on the options available.


Regards
Mr Mac

Well here it´s just business as usual....

Russian Missile Strikes in Syria Trigger European Alert to Airlines - WSJ

EASA Safety Information Bulletin
 

Re-routes by Emirates
 

In light of last weeks and the continued launching of Russian missiles from the Caspian sea, does any crew member from Emirates know if re-routing over Egypt and Saudia Arabia is occurring in the company for flights to and from Europe.
Your CEO has been very vocal ever since the MH hit over Ukraine last year so I would imagine and hope he is practising what he preachers? any info will be appreciated

Looking at EK/EY's flights to the US over the past few days, starting the 11th the usual overflight of the caspian sea, passing overhead Baku and then heading into Russian airspace is no longer taking place. They are now passing through northern Iran's bottleneck and then heading north to Russia to join the usual route. On some days EK is using the more easterly route out of DXB completely avoiding Iran and then towards northern towards Russia (typically used by the polar flights).

Right now the Caspian Sea itself is being avoided by most, due to it being the area of missile launches to Syria (via Iran and Iraq).

I would not be surprised if the Iranians asked for assurances from the Russians and details on the exact route and heights these missiles to Syria are cruising at.

The last thing they would want is a MH17 and a mass avoidance of their airspace. They are making a lot of money day in and day out with the many GCC bound flights.

EK is monitoring the situation. From the 2nd floor Costa...

Etihad Airways and Emirates will continue to fly over Iranian airspace | The National