World War II The army was formed on 10 November 1942 from the Air Force of the Karelian Front as the 7th Air Army, commanded by Major General
Ivan Sokolov. The army provided air support for the front during the war. Before the beginning of the
Svir-Petrozavodsk Offensive in June 1944, the air army carried out an air bombardment of over 3,000 aircraft on the north bank of the
Svir River. In May 1945 it included the
257th and
324th Fighter Aviation Divisions, the
280th Assault Aviation Division, the
80th and
114th Guards Bomber Aviation Regiments, the
679th and
716th Night-Bomber Aviation Regiments, and the
118th and
119th Separate Reconnaissance Aviation Squadrons.
Cold War In the immediate postwar period, between 1945 and 1946, most of its units were transferred to other armies. On 9 April 1946, the army was renamed the 3rd Air Army of
Long Range Aviation (DA) and transferred to Khabarovsk. It included the
6th (
Smirnykh) and
19th Bomber Aviation Corps (
Vozdvizhenka), each with two bomber aviation divisions. On 10 January 1949, the army was renumbered the 65th Air Army DA, and its 6th and 19th Corps became the 74th and 84th Bomber Aviation Corps, respectively. On 9 March, Colonel General
Vasily Zhdanov took command of the army. In April 1951, he was replaced by Colonel General
Georgy Tupikov. In July 1951, the 74th Corps and its divisions were transferred to the
50th Air Army DA. The army was disbanded in mid-1953, == Commanders ==