Caspian Flotilla The Caspian Flotilla ( ) is the oldest Russian military flotilla , stationed in the Caspian Sea . It was awarded the Order of the Red Banner in 1945 . Establishment . The Caspian Flotilla ( CF ) was created in November 1722 in Astrakhan by the order of Peter the Great . Led by the admiral Fyodor Apraksin , it participated in Peter ' s Persian campaign of 1722 - 1723 and the Russo - Persian War ( 1804 - 1813 ) , assisting the Russian army in capturing Derbent and Baku during the Persian Expedition of 1796 . As a result of the Treaty of Gulistan of 1813 , the CF remained the only military flotilla in the Caspian Sea . Baku became its main base in 1867 . Revolution . As the situation on the Caspian Sea stabilized in due course , the number of ships in the CF began to decrease . By the beginning of the 20th century , it had 2 gunboat s and a few armed steamers . The sailors of the CF were actively engaged in the revolutionary movement in Baku in 1903 - 1905 and establishment of the Soviet authority in 1917 in that region . In order to provide assistance to the Red Army , they formed the Military Fleet of the Astrakhan Region ( " Военный флот Астраханского края " , or Voyenniy flot Astrakhanskogo kraya ) in April - June 1918 , reinforced with torpedo boat s and submarine s from the Baltic Sea in the fall of 1918 . On October 13 , the Soviets renamed it to the Astrakhan - Caspian Military Flotilla ( " Астрахано - Каспийская военная флотилия " , or Astrakhano - Kaspiyskaya voennaya flotiliya ) . The ships of the flotilla were captured by the counterrevolutionary Centrocaspian government in August 1918 and later regained by the Soviets after the overthrow of the Musavat government . Soviet era . In July 1919 , the Astrakhan - Caspian Military Flotilla was combined with the Volga Military Flotilla ( Волжская военная флотилия , or Volzhskaya voyennaya flotiliya ) and renamed to the Volga - Caspian Military Flotilla ( Волжско - Каспийская военная флотилия ) . On May 1 , 1920 , the Soviets established the Caspian Fleet , which comprised 3 auxiliary cruiser s , 10 torpedo boats , 4 submarines and other ships . Together with the Caspian Fleet , there was the Red Fleet of the Soviet Azerbaijan , stationed in Baku , as well . Both fleets completed the conquest of the Caspian Sea from the White Army . In July 1920 , Caspian and Azerbaijani fleets were combined into the Naval Forces of the Caspian Sea ( " Морские Силы Каспийского моря " , or Morskiye Sily Kaspiyskogo morya ) and would later be renamed to the Caspian Flotilla on June 27 , 1931 . During the Great Patriotic War of 1941 - 1945 , the Caspian Flotilla secured vital sea shipping of army units , military equipment and different cargo , especially during the Battle of Stalingrad and the battle for the Caucasus . During the Cold War the Caspian was used to test missile armed ekranoplane s . Post Soviet era . The Flotilla has now dropped in numbers , and the Kazakh contingent was removed to serve as a basis for Kazakhstan ' s naval service . For several years Russia continued to lead a joint Turkmen - Russian force based at Astrakhan . Among the Flotilla ' s units from 2000 has been a new Naval Infantry brigade , the 77th , based at Kaspiysk . The headquarters and two battalions of the brigade were scheduled to be established by August 1 , 2000 . It was reported by AVN Military News Agency in June 2000 that the new brigade , which has inherited the lineage of the disbanded 77th Guards Motor Rifle Division formerly with the Northern Fleet , was to have its troops housed in Kaspiysk and Astrakhan , and have as many as 195 combat vehicles and 1 Gepard class frigate sent to it from Chukotka and the Northern Fleet , respectively . The brigade was also to have helicopters added to it , ran the June 2000 report . The Brigade ' s full name was the 77th Detached Guards Moscow - Chernigov Order of Lenin , the Red Banner , Order of Suvorov Marine Brigade . It was disbanded in 2009 . The brigade comprised a headquarters at Kaspiysk ; the 414th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion ( Kaspiysk ) ; the 725th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion ( Kaspiysk ) ; the 727th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion ( Astrakhan ) ; the 1200th Detached Reconnaissance Battalion ( Kaspiysk ) ; the 1408th Independent Howitzer Artillery Battalion ; the 1409th Independent Howitzer Artillery Battalion ; the 975th Detached Naval Infantry Battalion ( Kaspiysk ) ; the 1387th Detached Air Defence Missile and Artillery Battalion ; and the 530th Detached Electronic Countermeasures Company . Also the flotilla has received one of new Buyan class stealth type river gun boats built by The St . Petersburg Almaz shipyard . On 13 and 23 November 2009 there were two separate sets of explosions at the 31st Arsenal of the Caspian Sea Flotilla , an ammunition depot , in Ulyanovsk . Ten servicemen died . The depot is to be closed .