Former Russian General Critical of Putin’s Air Force Found Dead at Home: Reports – News18

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Last Updated: November 17, 2023, 08:59 IST

Vladimir Sviridov graduated from the Stavropol Higher Military Aviation School of Air Defense Pilots and Navigators, and served in the Far Eastern Military District and commanded an air squadron in a group of Soviet forces in Germany. (Image: @DanichPaula/X)

Former Russian general critical of air force training found dead. Questions surround the circumstances. Advocacy for increased pilot training

Former Russian General Vladimir Sviridov, who had criticised President Vladimir Putin’s air force training, was found dead at his Stavropol Krai home, according to media reports. The body of 68-year-old Sviridov was found alongside an unidentified woman on Wednesday, US-based Newsweek reported, citing a state-run news agency.

Reports from Russian outlets Baza and Kommersant, connected to Moscow’s security services, suggested the woman was Sviridov’s wife. Both were found lying together in bed at their Andzhievsky village home.

Sviridov, who once commanded the 6th Air Force and Air Defense Forces Army, had raised concerns about inadequate pilot training in a 2007 interview with the Russian magazine Take Off, citing the army’s average flight time of 25-30 hours compared to the recommended 100 hours per year for combat readiness.

‘No signs of violent death’

Law enforcement, cited by RIA Novosti, reported no signs of violent death but is investigating the circumstances. The Kremlin has not commented on the former Russian General’s demise. Sviridov, a graduate of the Stavropol Higher Military Aviation School, served in the Far Eastern Military District and commanded a squadron in Germany.

He graduated from the Military Academy of the General Staff in 2002, becoming deputy commander of the Air Force and Air Defense Army. From 2005 to 2009, he led the 6th Air Force and Air Defense Army within Russia’s Aerospace Forces.

According to the independent Russian news outlet Meduza, the 6th Air Force and Air Defense Army formed in 1998 by merging the 76th Air Army and 6th Separate Red Banner Air Defense Army, has military personnel involved in Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Kommersant reported that the regional FSB Directorate is conducting an investigation into Sviridov’s and the unidentified woman’s deaths. The circumstances surrounding their deaths remain under scrutiny. He joins a long list of Putin critics who have died over the years under mysterious circumstances.