79th Guards Sevastopolskiy Red Banner Missile Regiment

79-й гвардейский ракетный Севастопольский Краснознаменный полк

Military Unit: 18278; from 1978: 19970

Activated 22.8.58 in Uman, Cherkasy Oblast, as the 122nd Guards Aviation (Missile) Regiment, from the 198th Guards Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment, initially under the 83rd Guards Aviation (Missile) Division.

12.58 transferred to Plunge, Lithuania, attached to the 85th Engineer Brigade RVGK.

9.8.59 renamed 122nd Guards Engineer Regiment, and a day later (10.8.59) the 79th Guards Engineer Regiment.

1.7.60 renamed 79th Guards Missile Regiment, now attached to the 29th Guards Missile Division.

Organisation:

• 1st battalion with 4 R-12 (SS-4) pads - alert duty from 16.5.60 (two R-12 pads), and 1.10.60 (the remaining two R-12 pads) - no warheads for the last two R-12 missiles until April 1961
• 2nd battalion with 4 R-12 (SS-4) pads - alert duty from 1.1.61 (two R-12 pads, no warheads until April 1961) and 25.9.61 (the remaining two R-12 pads)
• 3rd battalion with 4 R-12U (SS-4) silos - alert duty from 1.1.63

1.7.62 renamed 514th Missile Regiment for operations in Cuba (Operation Anadyr).

On September 1st, 1962, the HQ, 1st and 2nd battalion stood down, and was relocated to Cuba (Operation Anadyr), attached to the 51st Missile Division - the battalions took over two sites in Cuba (Sagua la Grande I & II) - and went on alert duty 20.10.62.

Reformed 10.10.62 in Plunge, Lithuanian SSR, from the 353rd Missile Regiment (49th Guards Missile Division).

4.1.63 absorbed the 514th Missile Regiment (the old 79th Guards Missile Regiment) - alert duty from 1.2.63 (1st and 2nd battalion).

The three battalions stood down 15.3.78, and the regiment was transferred to Yurya, Kirov Oblast, attached to the 8th Missile Division.

The regiment went on alert duty with 9 RSD-10 Pioner-K (15P645K) (SS-20) missiles 30.9.80.

The regiment stood down August 1984, and began conversion to the RT-2PM (SS-25) missile - went on alert duty 30.7.85 with 9 missiles.

The regiment stood down 2004, and was disbanded December 2004.

US designation: Sateikiai MRBM complex 1960-1978 (Salantai 1 & 2 and Zemaiciu Kalvarija launch sites). Type I (pad) and IV (silo) sites.

Salantai launch site 1 with 4 R-12 pads (55 59 54N, 21 38 15E):

Salantai launch site 2 with 4 R-12 pads (56 02 21N, 21 41 26E):

Zemaiciu Kalvarija launch site with 4 R-12U silos (56 01 56N 21 54 23E):

Two alternative fixed field sites for the pad launchers, were set up at Telsiai (55 56 54N, 22 07 05E) and Alsedziai (56 00 14N, 22 06 06E), but both appeared to have become inactive by 1967.

Sagua la Grande I (R-12 missiles 1962) (22 43 37N, 80 01 26W):

No drawing.

Sagua la Grande II (R-12 missiles 1962) (22 39 18N, 79 51 49W):

No drawing.

Yurya Mobile IRBM/ICBM Base 3 (15P645K missiles 1980-1984, and 15P158 missiles 1985-2004) (59 20 35N, 49 25 26E):

No drawing.