A United States Air Force (USAF) Boeing C-17A Globemaster III was tracked flying from Riga International Airport (RIX) in Latvia to Moscow Vnukovo International Airport (VKO) on the morning of August 25, 2026, according to data published by flight tracking service Flightradar24.
The aircraft used the callsign RCH4555 and carried the serial 07-7181. Flightradar24 data showed it leaving Riga at approximately 08:50 Moscow time, with the track ending at Vnukovo at approximately 10:04. The service listed no further movement for the airframe after that point.
Flightradar24 records for the same airframe show it arrived in Riga on August 23, 2026. Its departure point was listed as Camp Springs, Maryland, the location of Joint Base Andrews (ADW), which handles US government and senior-official air transport.
Asked about the reports at a briefing on August 25, 2026, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he did not have such information, Russian news agency Interfax reported. Peskov also said no meeting with representatives of the US administration was scheduled at the Kremlin for the week of August 24, 2026.
Tracking data initially treated with caution
The airspace east of the Baltic states is among the areas where regulators have documented persistent satellite navigation interference, which degrades the position data that commercial tracking services depend on.
Flightradar24 nonetheless confirmed the routing, stating on August 25, 2026 that the USAF C-17A had flown from Riga to Moscow Vnukovo Airport.
An unusual visitor to Moscow this morning. 👀
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) August 25, 2026
A US Air Force C-17A Globemaster III flew from Riga to Moscow Vnukovo Airporthttps://t.co/D7vylYesDQ pic.twitter.com/jXbOSj0LXM
Unverified footage said to show the C-17 on approach to Vnukovo circulated on social media.
A U.S. Air Force C-17 landed at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport after flying from Riga, Latvia.
— Clash Report (@clashreport) August 25, 2026
U.S. and Russian officials have not disclosed the purpose of the rare military flight. pic.twitter.com/hsvWZ66kIc
C-17 arrival in Moscow
— George N. (@GeorgeN28581) August 25, 2026
Source: https://t.co/DAAErGqiFL https://t.co/i5gQlKKe7B pic.twitter.com/Kdfn1u3TUQ
US military flights into Russia remain rare
Russia and the United States have barred each other’s civil aircraft from their airspace since March 2022, following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. State aircraft, including military transports, require separate diplomatic clearance, and US military movements into Russian territory have been infrequent.
A USAF aircraft was tracked at Vnukovo in February 2025 during the prisoner exchange that returned Alexander Vinnik to Russia and freed US teacher Marc Fogel. Traffic in the other direction has drawn similar attention, including the Russian government aircraft tracked into Anchorage for the Trump-Putin talks in August 2025.
Those missions have generally used Gulfstream C-37 VIP transports. The C-17A is a strategic airlifter configured for outsize cargo, vehicles, and troop movement.