Vice Admiral Shahin Sultanov Ashraf oglu is the Commander of Azerbaijani Naval Forces.

Career in Azerbaijani Navy

Sultanov graduated from Navigation

Navigator

A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation. The navigator's primary responsibility is to be aware of ship or aircraft position at all times. Responsibilities include planning the journey, advising the Captain or aircraft Commander of estimated timing to...

 department of Azerbaijan Naval Academy (formerly Caspian Military and Navy College named after S.M. Kirov). He was appointed the Commander of Azerbaijani Naval Forces in 1999.

Sultanov's rank was raised to Counter Admiral

Counter Admiral

Counter admiral is a rank found in many navies of the world, but no longer used in English-speaking countries, where the equivalent rank is rear admiral...

 on January 19, 2002. On June 24, 2005 he was promoted to Vice Admiral

Vice Admiral

Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...

.
He was awarded with Veten Ughrunda Medal (In the Name of Motherland) on June 24, 2003; Azerbaijani Flag Order

Azerbaijani Flag Order

Azerbaijani Flag Order , is an award presented by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.-History and status:Azerbaijani Flag order was among several medals and orders, requested to be reviewed and created by the President Abulfaz Elchibey on November 10, 1992 by a Presidential Decree No. 370....

on June 22, 2006; Herbi Xidmlete Gore Medal on June 24, 2010.

As the commander of forces, he's modernized the Azerbaijani Navy and established close contacts with Turkish

Turkish Navy

The Turkish Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces.- Ottoman fleet after Mudros :Following the demise of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of World War I, on November 3, 1918, the fleet commander of the Ottoman Navy, Liva Amiral Arif Pasha, ordered all flags to be...

 and Pakistani Navy.

See also

• Azerbaijani Army
• Ministers of Defense of Azerbaijan Republic
  Minister of Defense (Azerbaijan)
  The Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan is the Azerbaijani government ministry, associated with the Azerbaijani military. The ministry is responsible for keeping Azerbaijan defended against external threats, preserving its territorial integrity, waging war on behalf of Azerbaijan , and the...
  
  
• General Staff of Azerbaijani Armed Forces
  General Staff of Azerbaijani Armed Forces
  The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan Republic is the military staff of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. It is the central organ of the Armed Forces Administration and oversees operational management of the armed forces under the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan Republic.The Chief of...