Russia

Moscow Sheremetyevo – July 2019

LANDSIDE

The restaurant in terminal F still offers excellent views. However I got told not to use my camera the second time I went but binoculars were ok.

AIRSIDE

International terminal has plenty of windows and all movements can be seen. The new domestic terminal on the far side also looks like it would have excellent views.

HOTELS

Radisson Blu – Access to terminal. You have to book an exectutive room with a view and even then it may not be great. There are 10 floors, we were on the 8th which was just high enough. Only 2 rooms on each floor have a good view. 843 and 831. Presumably the same numbers on each floor. The rooms then curve away until its a side on view which we were initially given until I complained. I didn't pay for a view to only see the airport out to the side. The best we could get was 845 which was ok. So odd numbers 843 and above and odd numbers 831 and below. Odd numbers 833 - 841 look forward but are set back with the hotel extending out on either side. A bit like a H shape. So there would be partial view of the ramp and runways. Might still be ok.

The 11th floor restaurant is only open from 5pm but has a balcony with great views. If you book an executive room then there are free alcoholic drinks and snacks on the 11th floor from 9pm to 1130pm. The restaurant can be accessed even if your not staying there so I would probably stay at a cheaper hotel next time and use the restaurant in the terminal to spot from and then the Radissons balcony. There are a couple more hotels in close proximity to the terminals.

WHAT TO EXPECT

This place is very busy now with nonstop movements. Aeroflot dominate and most their fleet can be seen in a couple of days.

Nordwind, Pegasus, Rossiya and Royal Flight have regular flights.

On the cargo side Air Bridge are based and usually have a few aircraft around.

A few government aircraft are based with a couple of IL76 and AN72s.

A few E135s appear to be based on the executive front.

I believe a few old Russian aircraft remain WFU at the tech school.

Moscow Vnukovo - Jul 2019

LANDSIDE

No views from the terminal area. We hired a car for the afternoon to drive around the perimeter which is necessary to see the Biz and government ramps on the other side. Just opposite the threshold of runway 01 is a layby you can park in and seems to be a viewing area. A few locals were watching the planes. Good views of some of the Biz ramps and movements on both runways.

On the opposite end near the threshold of runway 19 the perimter road has good views of the main government ramp and most stuff can be read off. Theres also the pipes which run about 10 foot high across the road. You can climb up to them which gives a better view.

AIRSIDE

Domestic terminal had good views and all movements could be seen. The international side would have views across to most of the government aircraft although they would probably be mostly tail on.

HOTELS

Hilton Doubletree opposite the terminal. A 5 minute walk via the underground walkway. They offer rooms with a view which as usual cost more. There are views of some of the domestic stands with the runway off to the side. Not easy to read everything off especially when they land from the far end. The Biz turn off early and some things only come into view for a short time. It can be difficult to read stuff on the runway given the angle and thickness of the glass. There is a balcony / emergency exit on each level at the side of the hotel. This provides good views of arrivals or departures and also the government ramp on this side. Just don't let the door close behind you or you will get locked out. We were on the 8th floor which was fine but I think it went upto 11. Room 864 is the best as its next to the balcony or even numbers lower down.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Pobeda and UT Air are the main carriers. Yakutia, Rusline, Rossiya, Atran, Azur Air, Azimut and Gazprom all have regular flights amongst others. By far the best airport in terms of variety and quality. And then theres the Government and Biz with 38 Government and about 30 Biz logged.

Moscow Domodedovo - Jul 2019

LANDSIDE

None from the terminal. Reportedly some views can be found near the runway thresholds. Most aircraft appeared to arrive on the same runway.

AIRSIDE

Domestic terminal had excellent views from the upstairs area including a lot of the remote stands and most of the stored aircraft. The international side looked like it would also have good views but wouldn’t have views of the remote stands so stuff may be missed.

HOTELS

There is a hotel located within the terminal. Some rooms reportedly have views but not sure how good,

WHAT TO EXPECT

Given the lack of views from landside I opted for a transit. Booked a flight with S7 from St Petersburg to Krasnoyarsk with a 9 hour layover. Worked out excellent. Good views from the domestic pier with all arrivals and some departures on the nearby runway. Most based aircraft seen during this time.

Lots of S7 including all the A321s and a good number of Ural.

Alrosa, Redwings, Smatavia and Yamal also have regular flights.

St Petersburg Pulkovo – July 2019

LANDSIDE

None seen from inside the terminal. Turn right out of the terminal and its possible to get views of several stands and the runway threshold from the car parks in the bottom corner. On the other side if you walk towards the Park Inn hotel there are some views of the runway on this side as well as some remote stands. The Biz ramp is in this direction and some could be read from outside the hotel reception.

AIRSIDE

Decent views from the domestic terminal and most movements should be seen. Some gates are out of sight and may be missed taxiing out.

HOTELS

Park Inn by Radisson.

They offer rooms with a runway view. The only problem with that was shortly after checking in around 7pm they stopped using the runway in front of the hotel. All arrivals and departures landed on the other side. The hotel has rooms facing the other way which may be more beneficial depending upon the situation at the time. The other runway can not be seen as its offset and behind the terminal. But departures could be seen on climb out. Rooms facing the runway give views of an AN24 WFU along with several helicopters on the far side. Windows at the end of the corridor provide views of the Biz ramp.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Rossiya are based with mainly A319 flights along with a variety of the other domestic carriers and some different aircraft to those seen in Moscow. On the international side an Uzbek and Air Astana A320 stood out.

AN24 RA47697 and T154 RA-85343 remained WFU.

Krasnoyarsk – July 2019

LANDSIDE

No views from the terminal.

AIRSIDE

Decent views of the runway and a few of the remote stands could be seen.

HOTELS

None seen

WHAT TO EXPECT

Theres not a whole lot of movements here but arriving early meant all 4 Nordstar ATRs would be in. And the main reason for visiting was the stored aircraft in the technical school as well as Cheremshanka airport which is about 2km down the road and has a parallel runway with the main airport. We thought about walking to Cheremshanka but it was more of a motorway without a footpath. so we found a driver who took us for few roubles.

Cheremshanka has several Yak 40s and AN24s WFU. From outside the terminal area you can see most stuff although several AN24s couldn't be logged due to the angle and reg behind the engines. Also 10 DHC6s are based.

Back at the main airport saw a few Russian movements with a couple of YAK42s and AN24s operating. Unfortunately the stored aircraft and parts of the ramp in the distance could not be seen from here. Departure provided good views of the technical school. Also there was 4 Beriev 200s at the end of the ramp but unreadable.

Technical School - Compound near the end of the runway:

RA-86453 IL62

RA-85165 T154

RA-87450 Y40

RA-87386 Y40

RA-26554 AN26

RA-67148 Let 410

RA-70365 AN2

C/P24472 Mil8

RA-20995 Mil2

RA-65605 T134

Also down the other side of the airport, alongside the runway but behind a building is:

IL62 RA-86459.

Novosibirsk – July 2019

LANDSIDE

Didn’t investigate this area but didn’t look like there would be any views. There is a military base here. Some aircraft could be seen on approach but too far away to identify.

AIRSIDE

From domestic there was excellent views of the runway and several stands.

HOTELS

None seen.

WHAT TO EXPECT

S7 have a large base and at certain times of the day plenty can be seen. A Yamal SSJ, Izhavia Yak 42 and UT Air ATR where the best of the rest.

A few stored aircraft remained. S7 IL86 and T154 plus Alrosa T134 and T154.

A couple of Russian Border Guards AN26 and a few Biz also present.

On the international side an Air Astana E190 and Chinese AF IL76 and B737.

Ulyanovsk – July 2019

Barateyevka

Theres only a handful of flights each day but with several aircraft WFU and a large museum its well worth the visit. We had a driver to take us over to Vostochny which is about a 45 minute to an hours drive.

WFU:

RA-85609 T154 N/T

RA-85765 T154 AFL

RA-85315 T154 AFL

C/P85617 T154 AFL

C/P65078 T134 AFL

C/P76503 IL76 AFL

RA-87315 Y40

RA-26025 AN26

RA-26544 AN26

30 Red AN26 Grey cls – No markings c/n 0302

RA-85774 T154 previously reported here not seen

Museum: Only open a few days a week. Check website.

C/P77110 T144 AFL

RA-86062 IL86 Atlant Soyuz

RA-86507 IL62 Magadan

C/P86650 IL62 AFL

C/P74250 IL18 AFL

RA-85061 T154 AFL

RA-85470 T154 Novosibirsk

C/P65748 T134 AFL

RA-87299 Y40 AFL

RA-87357 Y40 Volga Dnepr

RA-87653 Y40

RA-42539 Y42 Karat

RA-26503 AN26 N/T

C/P46761 AN24 AFL

C/P42322 T104 AFL

C/P76490 T114 AFL

C/P76462 T116 AFL

C/P45017 T124 AFL

C/P40561 AN2

C/P48104 AN14

C/P56360 YAK12

C/P44292 YAK18

C/P44251 YAK18

C/P1988 PO-2

C/P67252 Let410

C/P15154 M-15

C/P25564 Mil8

C/P35277 Mil4

C/P23855 Mil2

C/P06132 IL14

C/P91588 IL14

RA-15122 M-101T

Vostochny

The Factory is a few miles away from the airfield. A few aircraft can be seen parked outside it. At the airfield a small part of the ramp can be seen along with a couple of hangers. But most of the ramp is out of sight and tails can be seen in the distance from the access road.

Preserved at a Tech college alongside the factory:

CCCP-86685 IL62 - Unmarked with fake tail

Factory:

? IL76 Primer - MAKET on fuselage - c/n 0063473187

B-2872 T204 Air China

SU-EAK T204 TNT

041 T204 A/W – c/n 1450743164041

113 T204 Primer – Previously RA-64013

152 T204 Primer - Has OAK titles - presumably 64152

(034) T204 A/W – c/n 1450743764034 – Presumed from previous reports / photos

Airfield:

97019 SSJ A/W

97020 SSJ Primer

RA-89126 SSJ AFL

RA-26571 AN26

2 Vladivostok T204s - should be RA-64038 and 64040 by default. 64026 and 64039 seen in primer inside the factory last year. RA-64044 and 64045 with RosKosmos.

2 Red Wings T204s – RA-64019 and 64020 reported stored there and my photos do resemble a 19 and 20 on top of the tails.

3 Russian Air Force AN124s WFU at end of runway should be RA-82024, RA-82026 (marked as 10 Black), and RA-82033.

2 Polet AN124s - should be RA-82075 and 82080. Can't find any other options.

4 Volga Dnepr An124s also seen but these appear to be active.

RF-76754 IL76 - Active, seen on arrival

At least 6 other IL76s parked - 3 in Volga Dnepr cls