Putin’s Flight Route to Budapest Set to Pass Over Türkiye and Serbia
Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to meet former U.S. President Donald Trump during his upcoming visit to Hungary. Putin’s flight, operated with an Il-96-300PU aircraft, has been planned to completely avoid European Union airspace.
According to Airlive, citing sources from the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the approved route will pass over the Black Sea, Türkiye, the Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas’ neutral airspace, as well as specific regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia.
The route, approximately 5,000 kilometers long, is nearly three times longer than the direct path. Poland and Romania’s airspaces were excluded from the plan due to security concerns and the EU’s ongoing airspace restrictions on Russian aircraft.
The report also suggests that the flight’s security could be ensured by Russian Su-35S and Su-30SM fighter jets, which may escort the presidential aircraft from Russia’s Hmeimim Air Base in Syria over international waters.
