Despite the recent United States flight ban on aircraft from Russia, a Russian plane set flight to the country's capital today. An Ilyushin Il-96-300 owned by the Russian government has taken the scenic route to Washington DC.

Significant measures in place

The United States followed the likes of Canada and the United Kingdom, and the European Union in banning Russian airlines and aircraft from its airspace. However, this plane seems to be an exception as it is fast approaching the US.

Flying nearly in a straight line north before heading west over the Norwegian Sea, the Il-96 veered south to join the North Atlantic Ocean under Iceland's airspace. Registration RA-96019 took off from St. Petersburg at 09:42 MSK and is estimated to arrive at Washington Dulles at 13:59 EST after a journey of 12 hours at 17 minutes. As of writing this article, Flight RSD88 is over the Atlantic, south of Nova Scotia, Canada.

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The flight path of RSD88. Photo: FlightRadar24.com

Government workhorse

The aircraft has been busy city-hopping over the last few weeks, being spotted in Moscow, Novosibirsk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Casablanca, and Havana. According to ch-aviaton, the unit is 13 years old. It performed its first flight in February 2009 and was delivered to Rossiya shortly after. The plane holds 124 economy seats, 24 business seats, and nine first class seats, providing a total capacity of 157.

Since 2010, the aircraft has been operating under the organization of SLO Rossiya, which is a Russian government group. When it comes to this type, SLO Rossiya holds a total of five Il-96-300s, five l-96-300PUs, and one Il-96-300VPU.

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The main Russian presidential aircraft is an Ilyushin Il-96-300PU. Photo: Anna Zvereva via Wikimedia Commons

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Specific roles

Only 30 Il-96s have been built. The quadjet has most notably been deployed for military missions. Commercially, only Cubana flies the plane outside Russia. The flag carrier of Cuba currently has four units in its fleet.

Performing its maiden flight in September 1988 and entering service with Aeroflot in December 1992, just Cubana, Rossiya, Ilyushin, VASO, and the Russian Ministry of Defence hold units of the family. There could be prolonged life for the program as Ilyushin is looking at a twin-engine solution.

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Photo: Getty Images.

Altogether, despite the type being over three decades old, it’s still performing critical missions for the country’s government. One Mile At A Time speculates that the flight could be leading to diplomatic negotiations. Alternatively, it could be sent to evacuate government officials from the US. Regardless, with several airspace bans in place and Russian activity at the center of attention following the nation’s invasion of Ukraine, this flight to Washington DC must be part of an important process in international politics as the sensitive situation continues to evolve.

What are your thoughts about this Russian government Ilyushin Il-96 flying to Washington DC? What do you make of the overall aircraft type? Let us know what you think of the plane and its operations in the comment section.