Russian Il-76 arrived in Greece to extinguish fires

ATHENS, 10 Aug The Russian Il-76 plane arrived in Greece to extinguish the fires, RIA Novosti reports. The second Il-76 is expected to land soon, with two crews and maintenance specialists on board. Immediately after the arrival of the aircraft at the airport, the crew will establish contacts with representatives of the emergency services of Greece to establish coordination and resolve organizational issues. The landing of the second Il-76 is expected soon. An-124 is expected later, which will deliver two Mi-8 helicopters. Greece called the situation with fires a disaster of unprecedented scale On Monday, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis appealed to Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, and Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov with a request to provide aircraft equipment for extinguishing fires. Russia immediately responded positively to this request, President Putin, in response to an appeal from Greece, instructed to increase the Russian group. In Greece, forest fires have been raging since the beginning of August. Tens of thousands of hectares of territories were burnt out. The most severe fires in the Attica metropolitan region, on the island of Euboea and on the Peloponnese peninsula. Now the Russian Be-200 is taking part in extinguishing fires in Greece, the Greek side highly appreciated its effectiveness. In Greece, the ban on visiting forests and parks has been extended