Putin Sent A "Doomsday Plane" To Iran After The U.S. Resumed Strikes

• 14.07.2026, 18:49

The Russian dictator is afraid of losing one of his last allies.

A Tu-214PU aircraft, which serves as a command post for Russia’s top leadership, flew from Vnukovo to Tehran on Monday morning, according to data from Flightradar24, as noted by The Times of India. Aircraft RA-64531, like other aircraft of this class, is operated by the “Rossiya” Special Flight Squadron and is one of the Air Command’s most heavily protected aircraft.

The Tu-214PU (the letters “PU” stand for “command post”) is equipped with data relay nodes, secure strategic communications systems, and systems that enable the coordination of government and military operations during crises. It is designed to operate even under high-risk conditions, ensuring continuity of command, notes The Times of India; for this reason, it is referred to as Russia’s “doomsday plane”—by analogy with the U.S. president’s aircraft.

Russia and Iran did not disclose the mission’s objectives or composition. But on Monday evening, the aircraft flew to Beijing—just a few hours before the U.S. launched a massive strike on military targets in Iran. This operation and subsequent strikes will weaken the ability of Iranian forces to attack civilian ships in the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S. Central Command stated.

Iran and the U.S. resumed exchanging strikes last week over disputes regarding whether Tehran should control shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. President Donald Trump announced that the ceasefire—a preliminary agreement reached by the parties a month ago—had ended. Over the weekend, he sent a letter dated July 10 to Congress stating that he was resuming military operations against Iran.

In March, during the height of the armed conflict between the two countries, Moscow began providing Tehran with data on the locations of U.S. and allied military facilities in the Middle East so that Iran could carry out precision strikes against them.