Russian authorities are investigating the disappearance of some planes and helicopters in the hands of Ukrainian forces fighting Moscow's invasion.
This information is provided by the Russian newspaper Izvestia, whose source “The Federal Security Service has opened two criminal cases – negligence and abuse of power – against several employees of the Federal Air Transport Agency.”
The workers in question are suspected of “illegally removing 59 planes and helicopters from Russian jurisdiction” since Moscow ordered the invasion of Ukraine almost two years ago.
Transport Ministry sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirm that some of the missing planes were used by Ukraine in military operations against Russia.
These are MI-8 helicopters and Il-7 multifunctional strategic transport aircraft.
An audit carried out at Rosaviatsiya in July 2023 revealed the problem, and the discrepancies found led to criminal investigations.
According to the sources, suspicious officials “removed the aircraft from the civil property registry without complete documentation” and “provided contradictory and unreliable information about the location of the aircraft outside of Russia.”
Asked about the topic this Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to answer questions about the investigation into the disappearance of the Russian plane.
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