Leaked documents show inside Vladimir Putin's luxurious 'ghost' train
A recently released series of photos revealed the interiors of Russian President Vladimir Putin's luxury armored train. The photos were made public by Dossier Center, a website that keeps tabs on people with ties to the Kremlin (Russian Government). The pictures showed a personal beauty salon, a medical suite, and even a gym with cutting-edge apparatus including a step platform and a hyperextension machine.
Features of the train
Russia's impenetrable, fully armored train passes silently, carrying a passenger whose safety cannot be jeopardized. The 20-car locomotive known as the "ghost train" is shrouded in secrecy and is in charge of transporting Putin throughout the nation ensuring his utmost comfort. The train also features anti-aging machines, a ventilator, a defibrillator, and a patient monitor designed to assess pulse, temperature, and other parameters.
The train is used for secrecy
The train, made in 2018, helps the president to travel with high security. An unknown source close to the presidential administration was earlier cited by The Dossier Center as saying that Mr. Putin has started using trains more frequently since 2021 since they can't be traced the same way as planes. He has been using the train more now amidst the war with Ukraine.
Safety features
Putin's safety took top priority during the construction of the locomotive. The train is equipped with communications systems to ensure that Putin remains aware of the outside world even while en route. Furthermore, the doors and windows of the vehicle are built with bulletproof material and life-saving medical equipment is always on board. Reportedly, about $74 million was incurred in train production.
A meeting was held in 2018 to discuss its features
Per the exposed records, a meeting was held in November 2018 to evaluate the work still needed on the gym car. The meeting had 10 other individuals who were responsible for the train's development in addition to the executives from Zircon Service and Russian Railways. These officials were from the Federal Security Service (FSO) the organization in charge of protecting the Russian president.
Workers were always on call
Former engineer and captain in the FSO, Gleb Karakulov in an interview with Dossier Center, shared that crew members/workers were always on call. "Our employees were in quarantine specifically for this special train," the Dossier Center quoted Karakulov as saying. "Since the beginning of the war, guys said that they left to somewhere in the direction of Valdai for 40 or even 45 days."
'Spotted a ghost train'
Besides these findings, some trainspotters also noticed the train. "There is a ghost train on the railways of our country," a trainspotter wrote beside an image on the website rutrain.com. "It is not in the timetables or in the Russian Railways systems," the trainspotter added. The train was partly identified as Putin's, through its use of locomotives and a white dome on the top.
Kremlin denied the findings
Letters connecting the outfitting of the rail cars, including the gym car, to officials at the highest levels of Putin's administration are among the materials the Dossier Center received. The Dossier Center's findings are categorically refuted by the Kremlin, which told CNN, "President Putin does not have such a car in his use or in his ownership."
