Putin’s Flight to India Becomes World’s Most Tracked

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s flight to New Delhi became the world’s most tracked aircraft on popular aviation website Flightradar24 as he began a two-day state visit to India for the 23rd India–Russia annual summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The flight, operated by his customised Ilyushin Flying Kremlin jet, drew tens of thousands of online watchers before landing in Delhi on the evening of 4 December 2025, underscoring intense global interest in the visit.​

Putin was received at Delhi’s Palam airport by Modi in a protocol-breaking gesture and is set for tightly packed talks on defence, trade, energy and the Ukraine conflict during a roughly 30-hour stay. Indian and international coverage describe the trip as the Russian leader’s first visit to India since the start of the Ukraine war, giving the tracking milestone added geopolitical weight.​

Why the flight became the world’s most tracked

Flightradar24, which displays civilian and government aircraft movements in real time, reported that one of the Russian government planes heading to India was its most-followed flight globally while en route to New Delhi. The tracker highlighted the aircraft as it carried Putin to India for his summit with Modi, with media reports noting that at one point more than 20,000 people were watching the flight live. Some Indian coverage, focusing on the specific presidential aircraft with callsign RSD 369, cited figures above 50,000 people tracking its movements over the course of the journey.​

The flight left Russia on 4 December and approached India as Putin started a two-day state visit that includes formal talks, a business event, and meetings with India’s president. Commentators link the surge in tracking activity to the rarity of Putin’s foreign travel since the Ukraine conflict, as well as to heightened scrutiny of India’s ties with Moscow amid Western sanctions.​

Key facts about Putin’s India-bound flight

Main factors behind the unusually high online interest include Putin’s status as one of the world’s most closely guarded leaders and the geopolitical stakes of his first India visit since the war in Ukraine began. Coverage also points to growing public fascination with real-time tracking of high-profile aircraft, which allows users to watch major diplomatic movements unfold almost minute by minute.​

The ‘Flying Kremlin’ presidential aircraft

The plane that drew global attention is a specially configured Ilyushin Il‑96‑300PU, a long-range four‑engine airliner developed by the Soviet-era Ilyushin design bureau and heavily modified for presidential use. The aircraft, operated by Russia’s elite special flight detachment, is fully designed and manufactured in Russia and is often referred to as the Flying Kremlin because it serves as a mobile command centre and symbol of presidential power.​

Reports on Putin’s India trip note that the aircraft, flying under a state callsign such as RSD 369, attracted intense interest from aviation enthusiasts and political observers, with tens of thousands tracking it online. News outlets also highlighted that it often travels with at least one additional government jet, with transponders alternately switching on and off to complicate efforts to pinpoint the president’s exact position.​

Features of Putin’s ‘Flying Kremlin’ aircraft

Aviation-focused coverage in India emphasised that the Flying Kremlin differs from the heavily modified Boeing and Airbus platforms favoured by many Western leaders, reinforcing Moscow’s push to showcase a fully domestic design for its head-of-state aircraft. Analysts note that the aircraft’s security features and the use of multiple government planes on the India route illustrate the Kremlin’s caution when Putin travels overseas.​

Modi’s airport welcome and optics in Delhi

When Putin’s aircraft landed at Delhi’s Palam Technical Area on Thursday evening, Modi personally received him at the airport rather than delegating the task to a minister, as is common protocol for visiting leaders. The two leaders shook hands, exchanged a brief embrace and then left the airport together in the same official vehicle, in a made-for-television sequence that Indian outlets described as underlining the warmth of the relationship.​

From the airport, Modi and Putin rode in a car with the Russian leader’s armoured Aurus Senat limousine following behind, a reversal of the arrangement seen when they met at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit earlier in the year. Modi then hosted a private dinner for Putin in Delhi, intended to set the tone ahead of formal summit talks scheduled for the following day.​

Key moments after landing in Delhi

Indian commentary suggests that these visuals were designed to send a message of continuity and trust in India–Russia ties at a time when New Delhi also deepens relations with Western partners. Coverage linked the airport welcome and car ride to earlier public displays of camaraderie, reinforcing the image of a close personal equation between the two leaders.​

Summit agenda: defence, trade and Ukraine

Putin’s schedule in India spans roughly 30 hours and centres on the 23rd annual India–Russia summit, with multiple ceremonial and working engagements compressed into a single full day. According to official briefings and media reports, the programme includes a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan, a visit to Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial at Rajghat, delegation-level talks at Hyderabad House, a business outreach event, and an evening meeting with President Droupadi Murmu.​

Diplomatic reporting indicates that defence cooperation, long-term energy supplies, bilateral trade mechanisms and the Ukraine conflict are expected to dominate the discussions between Putin and Modi. Russian officials have hinted at talks on advanced military platforms such as the Su‑57 fighter jet, while Indian analysts say New Delhi will seek assurances on timely delivery of spare parts and equipment for its large inventory of Russian-origin systems.​

Indicative schedule of Putin’s India visit

Economic and strategic stakes are high: India remains a major buyer of Russian arms and discounted oil, while Russia looks to Asian partners to offset Western sanctions and lost markets. Observers say any announcements on defence co-production, energy deals or payment mechanisms could signal how both sides plan to manage pressure from the United States and Europe.​

Why a tracked flight matters diplomatically

The fact that Putin’s aircraft became the world’s most tracked flight on the day he arrived in India highlights how intensely global audiences are watching the trajectory of India–Russia relations. Live tracking numbers in the tens of thousands and widespread sharing of screenshots on social media reinforced the sense that this short journey carried outsized diplomatic significance.​

Indian and international coverage stresses that this is Putin’s first trip to India since Russian forces entered Ukraine, making every gesture and announcement in Delhi subject to close reading in Western capitals as well as in Moscow and Beijing. Analysts quoted in local media frame the visit as a test of India’s balancing act: preserving a time-tested partnership with Russia while simultaneously expanding cooperation with the United States, Europe and Indo-Pacific allies.​

Key implications observers are watching

For many diplomats and analysts, the image of Putin’s Flying Kremlin topping global tracking charts on approach to Delhi serves as a metaphor for the scrutiny surrounding this visit: every movement is logged, dissected and debated far beyond India’s borders. The outcomes of the summit, and the tone set by both leaders, will help determine whether the world’s most tracked flight marks a simple curiosity in aviation history or a turning point in a key strategic partnership.