President Putin's plane was surrounded by fighter jets
According to the British "Daily Mail" report on November 18, an Il-96 presidential plane carrying Russian journalists and government officials was intercepted by three Swiss Air Force F/A-18 fighter jets while passing through Swiss airspace, causing a dangerous scene.
According to reports, one of the fighter jets is so close to the Russian plane that not only can you see the Swiss flag on the tail, the aircraft number J-5024, but also the face of the pilot, who moves from the left to the wing of the Russian plane, and then from the right.
The Daily Mail reported that Andrey Kolesnikov, the editor-in-chief of the Russian Vanguard magazine, wrote on Facebook that he and other journalists and the delegation were intercepted by three Swiss warplanes.
Kolesnikov shared the photos at the time. They were originally going to Peru to attend the APEC summit, but when they flew over Switzerland, they were approached by fighter jets, and the reporters on board took pictures of the fighter jets with the Swiss logo.
Russian reporters filming Swiss jets in the cabin were also worried about being asked to make an emergency landing. Although they were on Putin's presidential plane, the passengers were still very nervous.
"It was so close that I could even see the faces of the Swiss pilots!" Kolesnikov said. Fortunately, the Swiss fighter jets left as soon as they flew over the Swiss border.
According to the "Russian Satellite Network" website on the 19th, the situation took place in Swiss airspace. The passengers on the plane were members of the Russian delegation, including Alexander Vermin, director of the Military Technical Cooperation Bureau, and members of the Kremlin press corps.
Russian aircrew members said it was common for Swiss fighter jets to approach the presidential plane at close range, while members of the Kremlin press corps, who have worked with the president for more than 15 years, said they had only encountered a similar situation once, but then the fighter jets were not as close to the passenger plane as this time.
The Swiss military aircraft tracked the plane within minutes and approached it to a non-safe distance. A few minutes later, the Swiss fighter jet pulled out a long puff of smoke and left.
Aeroflot's RA-96019 and RA-96018 Il-96 aircraft are Putin's presidential jets. The plane is 55 meters long, weighs 230 tons, can fly 9,500 kilometers continuously, and is worth 200 million US dollars. Putin's plane is called "the flying palace" by Russians. There are bedrooms, bathrooms, conference rooms and advanced communication command systems in the plane, which can ensure that the president can contact any place in the world at any time in the air.
