Vladimir Putin’s paranoia makes him avoid flying. The Russian leader instead rides his private armored train equipped with, among other things, a spa, gym, bar and beauty salon. Leaked images and documents can now show Putin’s extravagant means of transport – which should have cost 800 million Swedish kronor to build, reports Dossier Center.
As Russian forces began massing near the Ukrainian border in late 2021 – Vladimir Putin began flying less and less and taking trains instead.
– Train departures can be spontaneous, unannounced. After the outbreak of the war, in February-March, he began to use the train very actively, especially to get to his residence in Valdai, a Russian military source told the Dossier Center.
Several photos and drawings of the train were published jointly by the Dossier Center, CNN, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Westdeutscher Rundfunk and Norddeutscher Rundfunk this week.
Photo: Dossier
Photo: Dossier
Specially equipped
The review is based on Russian intelligence documents, interviews with former military personnel and more than 25,000 internal documents from the company that built the train, Zircon Service.
The train consists of a total of 22 carriages, which, however, are rarely in use at the same time. Eight of them are technical carriages that house communication centers, satellite equipment and digital security systems.
The remaining carriages consist of, among other things, an elegant dining room, restaurants, cinema and a spa.
The sound-insulated beauty salon is equipped with advanced technology to inhibit aging and the hospital trolley is fully equipped with, among other things, a respirator and defibrillator.
Putin is said to have been especially supported by the fact that the televisions in the gym car lost coverage when the train passed through tunnels. Therefore, a costly technology investment must have been carried out.
Moscow’s Research Institute of Radio Communications was tasked with solving the TV mess and developed a new system that allows Putin to watch his program without interruption.
Staffed around the clock
The train is manned around the clock by dozens of people who must all be quarantined before Putin’s travels.
– People are always ready, so that they are already “clean” and can accompany the president when he is on board, says Gleb Karakulov, former head of the guard force that manages the security of the top layer of the Kremlin.
Putin is not only worried about his health, the security around him is enormous. His private train travels on secret rails with stations personalized to his needs. In addition, all walls, doors and windows are bulletproof.
Photo: Dossier
Photo: Dossier