Vladimir Masorin

Admiral of the Fleet Vladimir Masorin
Masorin receiving the U.S. Legion of Merit in 2007
Birth name	Vladimir Vasilyevich Masorin
Born	(1947-08-24) 24 August 1947 Bely, Kalinin Oblast, RSFSR, Soviet Union
Allegiance	Soviet Union (to 1991) Russia
Service / branch	Soviet Navy Russian Navy
Years of service	1970–2007
Rank	Admiral of the fleet
Commands	Caspian Sea Flotilla Black Sea Fleet
Awards	Order of Military Merit Order of the Red Banner of Labour Order for Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR, 3rd class Legion of Merit, Commander

Vladimir Vasilyevich Masorin (Russian: Владимир Васильевич Масорин; born 24 August 1947) is a retired Russian Navy admiral of the fleet who held multiple senior posts. He was Commander-in-Chief of the Navy from 2005 to 2007, Chief of the Main Staff and First Deputy Commander-in-Chief in 2005, and commanded two major formations, the Caspian Sea Flotilla and the Black Sea Fleet.

Early life and education

Masorin was born on 25 August 1947 in Bely, Kalinin Oblast (modern-day Bely, Tver Oblast), in the Russian SFSR of the Soviet Union. He graduated from the Nakhimov Black Sea Higher Naval School in Sevastopol, Crimean Oblast, in 1970. His later military education included the Higher Officer Classes in 1977, the Kuznetsov Naval Academy in 1986, and the General Staff Academy in 1993.

Naval service

He served as principal warfare officer on the Kashin-class destroyer Smyshlyony of the Northern Fleet. In 1977 he completed additional officer training and became executive officer of the Kashin-class destroyer Ognevoy. In November 1980 he became commanding officer of the Sovremenny-class destroyer Otchayanny, and the ship underwent sea trials under his command, before joining the 56th Destroyer Brigade of the Northern Fleet. Not long after that he commanded the Kanin-class destroyer Zhguchy.

In 1983 Masorin became chief of staff of the Northern Fleet's destroyer brigade. After completing the Kuznetsov Naval Academy he was appointed commander of the Northern Fleet's destroyer brigade in 1987. He later commanded the 7th Operational Squadron of the Northern Fleet from 1989.

Senior command

Following completion of the General Staff Academy in 1993, Masorin was the chief of staff and deputy commander of the Kola Flotilla of the Northern Fleet, before being assigned as commander of the Caspian Flotilla in August 1996. He rose to prominence in the Russian media when in the summer of 2002, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov gave high praise to the naval drills that he oversaw in the Caspian Sea. On 9 October 2002 Masorin became commander of the Black Sea Fleet and around that time was also promoted to the rank of admiral. Under his command, the Black Sea Fleet was rated for being one of the best formations of the Navy and undertook drills with foreign partners. In September 2004 they participated in the "Ioniex-2004" drill with the Italian Navy, and they later took part in the NATO-led Operation Active Endeavor in the Mediterranean Sea.

On 17 February 2005 Masorin was made the Chief of the Main Staff and First Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy. He was in that post until 4 September 2005, when he was appointed the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, succeeding Admiral of the Fleet Vladimir Kuroyedov. Masorin assumed command of the Navy in the wake of several high-profile accidents and after years of under-maintenance of the fleet due to a lack of funding. He acknowledged that the Navy's inadequate ability to respond to accidents and also called for a reduced fleet, centered around submarine and nuclear forces as opposed to a large ocean-going navy as had been advocated by Kuroyedov. He was also promoted to admiral of the fleet after becoming Commander-in-Chief of the Navy.

Masorin reviews the U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard in Washington

Masorin (right) with Mike Mullen, Chief of Naval Operations, and Vice Admiral John G. Morgan

Masorin with his successor, Vladimir Vysotsky

During his tenure as Commander-in-Chief, the Russian Navy in 2006 began preparing its naval base in Tartus Governorate, Syria, for the deployment of a naval task force there for the first time since 1991. In 2007 a large naval exercise was carried out in that area involving the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov. In late 2005 and early 2006, during a controversy between Russia and Ukraine over basing rights in Crimea, Masorin said that the Black Sea Fleet will continue to use the facility until at least 2017.

On 10 July 2006, Masorin was on board a Russian Navy Tupolev Tu-134 which crashed on takeoff from Gvardeyskoye Air Base, Simferopol, Ukraine. He, along with the other occupants survived the crash and subsequent fire.

On August 24, 2007, Masorin became the first Russian recipient of the Legion of Merit (Commander) from the United States. His award was conferred by U.S. Navy Chief of Naval Operations Michael Mullen, for meritorious conduct to increase cooperation and interoperability with the U.S. Navy and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization from September 2005 to August 2007. Under his leadership the Russian Federation's navy participated in operation Active Endeavor, a NATO maritime counter-terrorism operation in the Mediterranean Sea. He consistently advocated continued Russian participation in the joint and combined military exercises including BALTOPS, Northern Eagle FRUKUS and Pacific Eagle.

His visit to Washington, D.C., during which he received the Legion of Merit was first official visit of a Russian Federation Navy commander-in-chief in eleven years. His predecessors as Russian Navy commander-in-chief previously making official visits to Washington were Fleet Admirals Vladimir Chernavin and Felix Gromov.

Admiral of the Fleet Masorin retired on 13 September 2007, not long after reaching his 60th birthday, the normal retirement age, and was succeeded by Admiral Vladimir Vysotsky.

Later work

Masorin remains as advisor on the staff of the Russian Minister of Defense.

Personal life

He is married with two sons.

Awards and decorations

Russian and Soviet

• Order of the Red Banner of Labour
• Order of Military Merit
• Order for Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR, 3rd class

Foreign

• United States: Legion of Merit

References

Media related to Vladimir Masorin at Wikimedia Commons