Colonel-General Aleksandr Chaiko has been appointed commander of Russia’s Aerospace Forces (VKS), according to Russian media reports on May 4. If true, Chaiko is a rather unusual choice, given his army background and unimpressive record in Ukraine.
The Telegram channel Fighterbomber, which has close ties to the Russian aviation community, first reported that Chaiko had taken over as VKS commander-in-chief. The Russian dailies RBK and Vedomosti later corroborated the news. Russia’s Aerospace Forces comprise the Russian Air Force, Air and Missile Defense Forces, and Space Forces.
Chaiko, 54, is succeeding Colonel-General Viktor Afzalov. The latter was appointed in August 2023 to replace General Sergei Surovikin, who also briefly served as overall commander and then deputy commander of Russian forces in Ukraine but was relieved and exiled to a posting in Algeria following the mutiny by the PMC Wagner, the Russian state-funded private military company. This latest shake-up atop the VKS follows a leadership change in the Russian Ground Forces last year.
Chaiko is an unorthodox pick given that he came up through the Ground Forces rather than the VKS. That said, Surovikin had a similar background and is generally considered to have been a competent commander. From 2019–2021, Chaiko served as a deputy chief of the General Staff and twice as commander of Russian forces in Syria, reportedly earning the Gold Star, Russia’s highest military honor.
Still, Chaiko’s brief tenure in Ukraine is hardly a résumé booster. The general began the 2022 invasion as commander of Russia’s Eastern Military District, overseeing forces involved in the failed attack on Kyiv. Troops under his command committed mass atrocities in Bucha and other suburbs northwest of the Ukrainian capital.
Chaiko was relieved later that year and sent back to Syria, which has become something of a tradition for Russian generals fired in Ukraine. In late 2024, he was reportedly dispatched again to Syria as rebel forces were tearing across the country on their way to overthrowing Russian-backed dictator Bashar al-Assad. However, even that catastrophe did not evidently sink his career.
According to the Russian newspaper Kommersant, Chaiko then served as a deputy chief of the General Staff beginning in 2025. Which portfolio he held is unclear from public sources. But per a European intelligence report obtained by the independent Russian outlet Important Stories, Chaiko was one of just 10 generals afforded personal protection following the December 2025 assassination of another high-ranking officer. That list appears to have been hand-selected by General Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff and overall commander of Russian forces in Ukraine, who is rumored to be in Chaiko’s corner.
Russian media outlets have not offered any reason for the change in VKS leadership. It could be that Moscow is displeased with the service’s performance in protecting the rear from Ukrainian strikes. In recent weeks and months, Ukrainian drones have repeatedly struck Russian oil infrastructure, including critical export terminals in the Baltic and Black Seas.
As to why Chaiko was chosen to lead the VKS, the answer may lie more in internal politics than in any talents he brings to the job.
John Hardie is the deputy director of FDD’s Russia Program and a contributor to FDD's Long War Journal.
Tags: russia, Russia vs Ukraine, Russia-Syria, ukraine, VKS
