MOSCOW (AP) 鈥� Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Thursday took a co-pilot's seat in a nuclear-capable strategic bomber on a flight that appeared aimed at bolstering his image ahead of next month's election he's all but certain to win.
Putin's 30-minute flight in a Tu-160M supersonic strategic bomber also seemed intended to send a reminder of Russia's nuclear might amid soaring tensions with the West over the fighting in Ukraine.
Putin, 71, who is running as an independent candidate, relies on a tight control over Russia鈥檚 political system that he has established during . Friday's death of sent a chilling reminder of the Kremlin鈥檚 ruthless crackdown on dissent and dealt a heavy blow to the beleaguered
On Thursday, Putin, clad in a flight suit, boarded the warplane at a snow-covered airfield of an aircraft-making plant in the Volga River city of Kazan that has built the heavy bombers since the Soviet times.
The plant has received state orders to produce a modernized version of the Tu-160 bomber that first flew in the 1980s and was code-named Blackjack by NATO.
The aircraft Putin flew was one of the first such revamped bombers built, equipped with new engines and avionics and designated Tu-160M.
Speaking to reporters after the flight, Putin praised the new aircraft as 鈥渆xcellent,鈥� noting that it has big improvements compared to the initial version.
Thursday's flight marked at least the third time he got in a cockpit of a warplane. In 2000, he took a co-pilot's seat in a Su-27 fighter to fly to Chechnya during separatist fighting there and in 2005 he co-piloted a Tu-160 during military drills.
As part of the Kremlin efforts to project an image of an action-loving and physically strong leader, Putin also took a co-pilot's seat in an amphibious plane, flew a paraglider and drove a racing car and heavy trucks.
He also drove a heavy truck to a meeting in Kazan on Thursday, one of a series of campaign trips ahead of the March 15-17 presidential election.
With prominent critics who and most independent media banned, Putin鈥檚 reelection is all but assured. He faces a token opposition from three other candidates nominated by Kremlin-friendly parties represented in parliament.
