On the evening of October 12, an unusual long-haul aircraft Il-96-400VPU with tail number RA-96104 circled in the sky over Moscow. The information appeared on the flight tracking service Flightradar24.
The Il-96-400VPU aircraft took off from Vnukovo Airport in the afternoon at 14:25. Then the plane flew to the Urals, sharply turned around, and returned to the Moscow region at 19:49.
However, instead of landing, the special aircraft circled and made figure eights in the air for 1 hour and 23 minutes, sometimes slowing down to a critical 100–150 knots. The maneuvers of the Il-96-400VPU are clearly visible on the published map.
The total duration of the giant loop to the Urals and back was 6 hours and 47 minutes.
It should be noted that the aircraft with tail number RA-96104 was built in 2011 as a cargo version of the Il-96-400T. However, it was then transferred to the Federal Security Service, clarified the Ato.ru portal. VPU in the name of this aircraft stands for Airborne Command Post.
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