For "image cultivation"

Putin now flies a lap with supersonic bomber

Russian President Vladimir Putin after the flight - but he doesn't seem particularly enthusiastic.(Bild: AP/ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Russian President Vladimir Putin has taken to the skies again and flown a new supersonic strategic bomber. This was probably motivated by his desire to present himself to his people as a strong man ...

According to the Interfax news agency, the flight with the TU-160M from the military airfield in Kazan lasted around 30 minutes. Putin had made the decision to fly the day before during a visit to the aircraft factory, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. He did not want to reveal the route in advance. This was a military secret.

Vladimir Putin after the flight - but he doesn't seem particularly enthusiastic.(Bild: AP/ASSOCIATED PRESS)

On Wednesday, Putin took a look at the Tupolev bomber in the factory hall in Kazan and also sat down in the cabin. After the test flight, the Kremlin leader himself described the bomber as highly modern and reliable. "We are getting new technology, super technology," said Putin. He ordered the bomber to be taken over by the armed forces.

Appearance and reality ...
With this flight, Putin probably wanted to present himself to the Russians as a strong commander-in-chief against the backdrop of his ongoing war of aggression in Ukraine. In contrast to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Selensky, Putin, who sent 300,000 men to the front during a partial mobilization, has avoided going there himself since the beginning of the war. The image of the strong man is also likely to bring him a record result in the presidential election in mid-March. Putin wants to be elected to office for the fifth time. His victory is considered a certainty - also because the other candidates running against him either support him or have no profile of their own.

This is not Putin's first flight in a military aircraft. The first time was in March 2000 as co-pilot in a Su-27 fighter plane, when - shortly before his first presidential election - he also presented himself as a tough guy against the backdrop of the ongoing second Chechen war. He later sat in other fighter jets, including an old TU-160.

The Tupolev TU-160M is the modernized version of the Soviet supersonic aircraft TU-160. Russia resumed production of the strategic bomber in 2018, which is capable of firing both conventional and nuclear-tipped cruise missiles as well as hypersonic missiles.