Mystery US military plane lands in Moscow, Kremlin says it knows nothing

Moscow: A US military transport aircraft made an unusual flight into Moscow on Tuesday, triggering speculation over its mission at a time when Washington-Moscow diplomacy over Ukraine has largely stalled.

The US Air Force C-17 Globemaster III landed at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport after flying directly from Riga, Latvia, according to data from flight-tracking service Flightradar24 cited by Reuters and AFP.

But neither Washington nor Moscow has publicly explained why the aircraft was in Russia or who — or what — was aboard.

The Kremlin added to the mystery by saying it had no information about the flight.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters there were no plans for meetings with representatives of the US administration this week and said he did “not have such information” when asked about the aircraft.

The US administration has made no public comment on the flight.

From Washington to Riga to Moscow

Flight-tracking data showed the Boeing C-17, carrying the US-registered tail number 07-7181, had arrived in Riga on August 23 after departing from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, near Washington.

It then flew from Riga to Moscow on Tuesday, landing at Vnukovo at around 0700 GMT.

Joint Base Andrews is a major US military facility used by the president and other senior American officials for official travel.

The C-17 Globemaster is a large military transport aircraft designed to carry troops, equipment and other heavy cargo over long distances.

But flight-tracking data cannot establish what the aircraft was carrying, and Reuters and AFP said they were unable to independently verify its passengers, cargo or purpose.

Rare flight fuels questions

The flight attracted particular attention because direct journeys by US-registered aircraft to Russia have become highly unusual.

According to Reuters, the last direct flight of a US-registered jet from Europe to Russia took place in January, when US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner travelled to Moscow for Ukraine peace talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Kremlin said last week that it had no information about another planned visit by Witkoff or Kushner.

US-Russia negotiations aimed at ending the Ukraine war have largely stalled as Washington has increasingly focused on the conflict with Iran.

The unusual arrival has prompted speculation that the aircraft could be connected to diplomatic activity or a prisoner exchange.

However, there is no confirmation from either government that Tuesday’s flight was connected to either, and the identities of anyone aboard remain unknown.

For now, the one certainty is the flight itself: an American military transport plane travelled from a US base near Washington, stopped in Latvia and then landed in the Russian capital — without either side publicly saying why.

-- With AFP inputs