Russia plans exploratory flight over Turkey

MOSCOW

Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov (C) greets President Dmitry Medvedev (R) in Moscow, Jan 19. AP photo

Russian inspectors will conduct a surveillance flight over Turkey between the dates of March 12 and 16 with an An-30b plane, according to The Voice of Russia.

“The plane will take off from Diyarbakır airport for a pre-determined route. It will have a maximum of 1500 kilometers range,” the Information and Media Service department of Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement. During the flight Turkish and Russian experts will control the management of equipment and observation system, thus Russia will make its third surveillance flight over the countries which are party to the Treaty on Open Skies. The treaty came into force on January 1, 2002, and currently has 34 signatory states, and establishes a program of unarmed aerial surveillance flights over the entire territory of its participants.