Police in Russia is searching for radio parts stolen from a top-secret military aircraft ‘Doomsday Plane’ designed for use during a nuclear war.
The robbery, which raises questions about the security of sensitive military-related installations, took place as maintenance work was being carried out on the Ilyushin Il-80 plane.
The aircraft was modified from a Soviet jet airliner during the late Cold War to serve as an aerial command post for top officials to control their troops during a crisis.
Signs of a break-in via the cargo hatch had been spotted last Friday and that 39 electronic units had been removed said Russian media.
Police said the aircraft had been at an aerodrome in the city of Taganrog, but gave no details about the nature of the stolen equipment except for its estimated worth — more than 1 million roubles.
Russian military experts speculated that the items had been stolen because some of the units had been assembled using precious metals such as gold and platinum.