“With the start of the special military operation in Ukraine the intensity of military and cargo aviation flights doubled. As of today, An-124 and Il-76 aircraft transported 2,300 units of equipment, more than 300,000 servicemen, and 160,000 tons of cargo,” the head added.

According to Shoigu, the volume of airlift increases annually, and it is due to the increase of combat readiness events, exercises and inspections, as well as work within the international military cooperation, which includes assistance to the Russian contingent in Syria.

He also stressed that this type of aviation is used to help Russian regions and other countries to extinguish forest fires and overcome the consequences of natural phenomena.

Shoigu said that the Russian aircraft fleet is being renewed on a regular basis, the number of aircraft is increasing and therefore it is necessary to pay special attention to the training of pilots.

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