A six-hour aerial hide-and-seek gripped global trackers on Thursday. The real aircraft carrying Vladimir Putin became clear only after touchdown in Delhi.This Thursday (December 4) felt like a thrilling chase sequence for global aviation watchers. Everyone was looking for just one thing in the sky: Russian President Vladimir Putin's "Flying Kremlin".

Two identical Russian planes were heading towards India, and both were playing a game that filled almost the entire world with excitement. At times, one aircraft's transponder would switch on, revealing exact coordinates, while the others would switch off.

After some time, the roles of both planes would reverse. This hide-and-seek continued for nearly six and a half hours, mysterious enough to keep thousands of people tracking the planes nonstop.

Late in the evening, Putin's "Flying Kremlin" landed at Delhi Airport, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself welcomed President Vladimir Putin. After this, flight-tracking site Flightradar24 revealed the secret and declared Putin's aircraft the world's "most tracked flight".

Why did this mysterious game continue?

Putin is one of the most protected leaders in the world. His foreign trips always involve multi-layered security protocols. A key part of this protocol is the decoy aircraft strategy. Its purpose is to hide the Russian President from global observers and ensure that no one -- including adversaries -- can identify the plane carrying Vladimir Putin.

The same thing happened on Thursday. Putin's special presidential aircraft, the IL-96-300PU -- known globally as the Flying Kremlin -- created suspense in the air along with its clone aircraft, making it almost impossible to track the real one.

Transponders switching on and off kept the suspense alive

Putin's IL-96 Flying Kremlin maintained suspense for about six and a half hours. In this game, the transponders of both planes played a crucial role. Sometimes one plane's transponder would switch off, and sometimes the other's. Sometimes both appeared in the sky together.

These aircraft, equipped with secure encrypted communication systems, special anti-missile technology, extended range, high-level electronic protection and a secret command centre, kept the entire world curious.

Suspense ended only after landing in Delhi

Late in the evening, Russian President Vladimir Putin's IL-96 Flying Kremlin landed at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, ending the hours-long suspense. As soon as the aircraft stopped in front of the red carpet, it became clear which plane carried President Putin.

After a short wait, the plane doors opened and President Putin stepped out, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally welcomed him.