Kapustin Yar Air Base

Kapustin Yar is a military airfield located near Znamensk, Astrakhan Oblast, Russia, serving the Kapustin Yar military training ground. The airfield was built in 1954 and has been in continuous use since then. Until the 1990s, it was known by the code name "Picture," and previously as "Constitution." It is classified as an Airfield 3rd class. The airfield is owned by the Ministry of Defence and operated by the Russian Aerospace Forces. The main air unit stationed at Kapustin Yar is the 35th independent mixed air squadron (military unit 33782), which operates MI-8 helicopters, AN-26, and AN-72 transport aircraft. Ground support for flights is provided by the 88th aviation commandant's office (military unit 54003).

The airfield features a concrete runway, 09/27, which was constructed in 1958, replacing a dirt runway. Prior to the current airfield, the Zhitkur military airfield, located 52 km north-east, was used for aviation support of the area from the late 1940s to early 1950s. The 19th Separate Mixed Aviation Squadron, formed in 1954, initially operated from Vladimirovka village before relocating to the newly created Kapustin Yar airfield in 1956. This squadron was reorganized into the 158th separate mixed air regiment in 1959, and later, in 2009, it was reorganized into the current 35th separate air squadron, transferring from the RVSN to the Air Force of the Russian Federation.