62nd Missile Division

62nd Missile Division is a major formation of the Russian Strategic Rocket Forces, historically part of the Soviet Strategic Rocket Forces. It has been a key component of the Soviet Union's and later Russia's strategic nuclear deterrent, operating multiple generations of intercontinental ballistic missile systems. The division is permanently based in Siberia, with its headquarters and primary missile fields located near the city of Uzhur.

History

The division was formed in 1960 as part of the massive expansion of the Strategic Rocket Forces under Nikita Khrushchev. It was initially equipped with R-16 ICBMs and was assigned to the 33rd Guards Rocket Army. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, the division, like other RVSN units, was placed on high alert. Throughout the Cold War, it underwent several re-equipment cycles, transitioning to the UR-100 missile in the late 1960s. Following the Dissolution of the Soviet Union, the division was inherited by the Russian Federation and continued its strategic alert duties. In the 2000s, it began a modernization program to receive the RS-24 Yars system, a key element of the state armament program outlined by the Russian Ministry of Defence.

Structure and organization

The division is a combined arms formation comprising several missile regiments, each operating a specific number of ICBM launchers. It also includes technical support units, security forces, signal regiments, and engineering battalions. The structure is designed for independent, sustained operations from its hardened silo bases. The division falls under the operational command of the 33rd Guards Rocket Army, which is itself part of the Strategic Rocket Forces central command in Moscow. Key supporting elements include independent battalions for nuclear warhead handling and transport, often coordinated with the 12th Main Directorate.

Equipment and capabilities

The division has operated multiple Soviet ICBM systems. Its initial equipment was the R-16, the world's first mass-produced ICBM. This was replaced by the UR-100 family of missiles, which were housed in hardened silo launchers. The primary system for decades became the R-36M ICBM, known in the West as the SS-18 Satan, a heavy missile with multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles. As of the 2020s, the division is undergoing rearmament with the mobile and silo-based versions of the RS-24 Yars, a modern MIRV-capable solid-fuel missile. This system is a core component of Russia's strategic forces alongside the RS-28 Sarmat and RT-2PM2 Topol-M.

Commanders

Commanders of the division have typically held the rank of Major general or Lieutenant general. Early commanders were veterans of the Great Patriotic War who transferred from the Red Army to the new missile force. Notable commanders include Major General Vladimir Tikhonov, who led the division during a period of heightened tensions in the late Cold War. Leadership has often rotated with officers from other key divisions like the 28th Guards Rocket Division or the 39th Guards Rocket Division, as part of standard Russian Armed Forces personnel policy. Command tenures usually last several years before promotion to army-level staff positions within the RVSN.

Bases and deployment

The division's main garrison and headquarters are located in the closed administrative-territorial formation of Uzhur-4 in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Siberia. Its missile regiments are deployed across vast, remote areas in fixed silo launcher fields surrounding the garrison. This geographic positioning in central Siberia provides significant depth for defense and complicates anti-ballistic missile planning for potential adversaries. The bases are self-contained military towns with extensive security perimeters, historically monitored by KGB and now FSB border troops. The deployment area is strategically situated between the fields of the 7th Guards Rocket Division to the west and the 14th Rocket Division to the east.

Category:Missile divisions of the Soviet Union Category:Missile divisions of Russia Category:Strategic Rocket Forces