On the morning of the parade, an estimated 14,000 military personnel, including a regiment of female cadets and youth cadets, assemble by battalions on the square together with the more than 210 vehicles and 3,800 vehicle crews assembled on Tverskaya Street just north of the
Manezhnaya Square, Moscow, during the major parades a battalion or company of historical Red Army vehicles, estimated at around 36 vehicles and composed of just the
T-34, GAZ-67 and the SU-100 plus the optional BM-13N (or at around an estimated 480 when counting other vehicles of the war which would take part just like in the parades of 1985 and 1990) assemble on the street as well with modern military hardware of the Armed Forces and the National Guard (and optionally by the other uniformed organizations). At the air bases outside Moscow (in areas like
Kubinka), more than 88 aircraft are assembled with their aircrews for the flypast segment. The celebrations begin at 9:55 am Moscow Standard Time with the arrival of the President and the
Prime Minister of Russia to a special grandstand in front of
Lenin's Mausoleum, where six of the past parades were reviewed by national leaders. They greet the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, service commanders, deputy ministers in the Ministry of Defence and commanders of the support units within the Armed Forces, together with veterans, veterans' families and representatives of the Suvorov and Nakhimov Schools assembled. To the left and right of the grandstand are the stands wherein veterans, veterans' families and descendants and families of personnel killed in action are gathered. In between the grandstand to the south of the stands are two platoons of armed linemen and markers from the
154th Preobrazhensky Independent Commandant's Regiment in the Imperial-styled military uniforms and some unarmed half-companies of the Kremlin Regiment, both of which would be later taking post to mark the distance of the troops marching past and to line the square's western side facing the Kremlin together with extra drum majors from the Band Service, which are there to coordinate the march past to be timed in with the music of the bands since the parade of 1995. At the square, the parade commander (usually a Colonel General or rarely a General of the Army with the billet of Commander of the Ground Forces or as the Deputy Chief of General Staff) takes his place in a special an Aurus Senat armored limousine (formerly a Zil until 2018), having just received the report on the readiness of the parade from the commandant of the Combined Arms Academy who is a general officer. In the seconds prior to the parade, the announcer traditionally says the following:
"Attention, this is Moscow speaking and showing. Listen to and watch Red Square. This is the Victory Parade in honor of the (insert anniversary year) anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945!". As the
Spasskaya Tower of the
Kremlin sounds the chimes at 10 am the parade commander orders the parade to present arms as the 154th PICR's 1st Honor Guard Company Colour Guard, to the melody of
The Sacred War being played by the Massed Bands, marches into the square and past the dignitaries with guard carrying both the
Flag of Russia and the
Victory Banner. As the colour guards approach the grandstand, the colour officers execute eyes left and resume above face after passing by. This is followed by the parade being commanded to stand at ease after the colours take their place at the northwest end of the square fronting the
State Historical Museum, besides the colour of the Armed Forces. Then the Minister of Defence (either a civilian or a general officer, usually a billet of a General of the Army if for the latter) is driven on the limousine to the center of the square nearest the official tribune, the parade presenting arms again at this point. The parade commander informs him of the readiness of the parade to be inspected. The following report is given: ::''Comrade Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation!'
The troops of the Moscow Garrison participating in the parade in honor of the (states anniversary number) of the victory in the Great Patriotic War have all been assembled!'Commander of the Parade, (states name and rank)'' Once the report is received, and to the tune of the Massed Bands the Minister and the parade commander are driven to inspect the parading contingents each together with the bands. As the limousines stop the Minister sends Victory Day greetings to each of the parading contingents, in which they respond with a threefold loud
Oorah that is heard all over the grounds. After the final greeting, the Massed Bands strike up to
Slavsya from
A Life for the Tsar as the PC returns to his place, the Minister driven to the grandstand amidst loud shouts of
Oorah by the parade contingents where he dismounts the limousine and the
Corps of Drums of the
Moscow Military Music College, an affiliate of the Suvorov Military Schools, take their place behind the parade commander's car led by the Commandant of the College and the college colour guard. The parade is ordered to stand at ease after the Minister informs the President that the parade is formed up for the march past in review and its inspection officially completed. In the 1965, 1985 and 1990 parades, the limousines would inspect the personnel of the mobile column at the Manezhnaya Square formed into battalions, in remembrance of the mounted inspection of the original 1945 parade, which included cavalry,
tachankas and
horse artillery in addition to the huge mobile column. Following the report of the Minister of Defence, the keynote holiday address to the nation of the President follows, preceded by a fanfare by the Massed Bands, usually Govovin's
Moscow Fanfare. A moment of silence, since 2015, features as part of the keynote address. As the president finishes the address and a threefold
Ура! resounds all over the square by the entire parade assembled and the honor guard presents arms, the Massed Bands play the
National Anthem of Russia and a ceremonial battery armed with the
76 mm divisional gun M1942 (ZiS-3) fire a
21-gun salute. In the 2000s, a band didn't perform the anthem, with the soldiers on parade singing all three verses. In 2009,
Defence Minister Anatoliy Serdyukov changed this, stating that because of the acoustics of the Red Square, only an orchestra would be used, saying that the soldier's "voices would be swallowed by the echo". As the anthem ends, the bands sound Retreat as the honor guard executes order arms and the parade commander orders the parade to commence the march past in the following manner: ::''Parade... attention! Ceremonial march past!'
Form battalions! Distance by a single lineman! First battalion will remain facing to the right, remainder... left.. turn!'Slope.. arms!'' As the command is given to start the march past in veiew the linemen take their places and the field markers also as well at the western end of the square facing the stands and the grandstand. As the PC ends the commands with
Eyes to the right, forward, quick march! the Corps of Drums of the Moscow Military Music College, as is their tradition since 1938, march first to the tune of the "General Miloradovich" by one of its late alumni, Lieutenant General
Valery Khalilov, one of the longest serving Senior Directors of Music of the Military Band Service and conductor of the Moscow area massed bands from 2002 to 2016, being played by the drummers and fifers. As the massed bands start playing the Corps of Drums stop playing by the signal of the Corps Drum Major and swings its drumsticks while on the eyes right. The Corps is followed by the colour guard of the 154th PICR and its 1st Honor Guard Company, during jubilee parades, the colour guard is followed by a company of colour bearers carrying the front standards in the order of their marchpast in the 1945 Victory Parade and their escorts, colours from the regiments, brigades and divisions which took part in the original 1945 parade and a historical unit of servicemen in period uniforms, optionally joined by the Kuban Cossacks, in memory of their contingent which marched past on that very parade, and the Escort Cavalry Squadron of the
Kremlin Regiment plus a number of international contingents. This is followed by the rest of the parade ground column, starting with the youth contingents and by the Combined Arms Academy, among other troops. The ground column ends, as the massed bands play either Victory Day or "Let's Go", with the traditional marchpast of the
Moscow Higher Military Command School, which has been done since the golden jubilee
October Revolution Day parade of 1967 as a commemoration of the school's importance as the first military officer cadet school to be established in modern-day Russia, the first time it had been seen last in the Victory Day parade ground column was in 1985 (the two battalions of the school's Corps of Cadets also march past the square in memory of the cadets who fought in the 1941
Battle of Moscow). With the ground segment competed the bands stop playing at the signal of the senior director and the senior drum majors and, to give way to the mobile column, march towards the facade of the GUM department store, with two sections of the MMMC Corps of Drums at either side of the bands, reflecting the formations of the massed bands alongside the Corps of Drums in the Red Square parades of the 1950s and the 1960s. The mobile column starts with the drive past of historical vehicles in jubilee years. In non-special anniversary years only a T-34/85 medium battle tank carrying the Victory Banner leads the column of tens of military vehicles and equipment. As the Massed Bands play appropriate music the column drives past the stands in the Square, with the crew commanders and unit leaders executing a hand salute in the eyes right position (save for MRLs and mobile ICBMs). Following the end of the mobile column with the service flags of the three branches of the Armed Forces the flypast then follows, usually as the Bands play the
Aviamarch and other air marches the flypast marks the formal termination of the parade with tens of aircraft from the Air Force flying past above the square in full view of everyone in attendance. However in certain parades, flypasts may be cancelled due to poor weather conditions, which occurred in the
2022 Victory Day Parade.
Gallery of the stages of the parade File:Военный парад на Красной площади 9 мая 2016 г. (2).jpg|The combined regiment of the Russian Aerospace Forces on parade. File:Военный парад на Красной площади 9 мая 2016 г. 001.jpg|
Spasskaya Tower File:2019 Moscow Victory Day Parade 13.jpg|The trooping of the Russian Flag and the Banner of Victory. File:2020 Moscow Victory Day Parade 013.jpg|The parade report. File:2020 Moscow Victory Day Parade 015.jpg|The inspection of troops. File:154th_Preobrazhensky_Independent_Commandant's_Regiment_04.jpg|154th Preobrazhensky Independent Commandant's Regiment. File:Moscow Victory Day Parade (2019) 53.jpg|The Combined Arms Academy opening the active duty portion of the ground column. File:2020 Moscow Victory Day Parade 041.jpg|The mobile column. File:2020 Moscow Victory Day Parade 058.jpg|The flypast. File:2020 Moscow Victory Day Parade 061.jpg|The marchpast of the massed bands. File:Moscow Victory Day Parade (2019) 03.jpg|President Putin greeting the commanders of parade formations. File:Moscow Victory Day Parade (2019) 02.jpg|President Putin (center), General Shoigu (left) and General Salyukov (right) walking to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. File:Wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier 2016-05-09 04.jpg|Wreath-laying ceremony at the
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Full order of the parade The parade march past order, since the parade of 2010, is arranged in the following manner as it passes before the dignitaries: • Corps of Drums, Moscow Military Music College •
154th Preobrazhensky Independent Commandant's Regiment Honor Guard and Color Guard • Youth contingents •
Suvorov and
Nakhimov Military Schools • Cadet Corps colleges of the Armed Forces and other uniformed organizations •
Young Army Cadets National Movement Moscow Area (led by the Chairman, includes female students of the Moscow National Pensions School Cadet Corps) • Combined Regiment of the
Russian Ground Forces • Combined Regiment of the
Russian Aerospace Forces • Combined Regiment of the
Russian Navy • Regiment of female cadets of Armed Forces academies (starting 2016 as a battalion, expanded to full regiment in 2017) •
Strategic Missile Forces •
Russian Airborne Forces • Other military services (e.g.
Military Police,
NBC Protection Military Academy,
Russian Railway Troops) • Affiliated uniformed services •
Ministry of Emergency Situations •
Border Service of the Federal Security Service •
Separate Operational Purpose Division of the
National Guard of Russia's
National Guard Forces Command •
Police of Russia • Military forces of the
1st Guards Tank Army, Moscow Military District •
Moscow Higher Military Command School Supreme Soviet of Russia Preparations in 2010. Early preparations for the parade begin in the last two months of the previous year. In these early stages, organizers at the MoD discuss the size of the parade, units/military equipment attending, extra details and on jubilee years, the invitation of foreign troops. During this time, regular participants practice their drill routines from their home units at various locations. Full parade rehearsals begin in March at a training center in the village of
Alabino, which is located in the
Moscow Oblast. In their working uniforms, parade participants do a full run through of the entire ceremony to the closest extent possible. In the last week of April, the rehearsals are moved to Red Square, as they are conducted in the evening time. The
flypast segment of the parade begin during these practice runs with all aircraft practicing from the Kubinka airfield. In some cases, the flypast is rehearsed solely without any mobile and ground columns. Typically, the final dress rehearsal takes place 2–3 days before the actual parade and is usually live-streamed on outlets such as
Ruptly.
Presiding officers ==Traditions and additions==