MOSCOW, April 6. /TASS/. The first joint ground and air rehearsal of the May 9 V-Day parade, to be held in Moscow’s Red Square, has been conducted in Alabino, near Moscow, a military source has said.
"In Alabino, there has been the first joint ground and air rehearsal of the parade. Seventy five aircraft - 55 planes and 20 helicopters - were involved," the source said.
There has been no official commentary from the Defense Ministry so far.
The source said all required precautions were being taken to prevent the participants in the parade from the coronavirus infection.
Earlier, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that there had been no decisions to change the plans for the May 9 V-Day parade in Moscow in view of the coronavirus risks, but the situation continues to be monitored closely. A final decision whether to hold the festive events on the occasion of the 75th V-Day anniversary has not been made yet, he said. The Kremlin will thoroughly examine all circumstances. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov, too, said earlier that preparations for the parade proceeded as expected and there had been no decisions to change the date or agenda.
A parade on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War is due to be held in Moscow’s Red Square on May 9. On April 1, the crews of 30 vintage World War II T-34 tanks began rehearsals at the Alabino proving ground. The group traditionally opens the show of military vehicles in V-Day parades.
Coronavirus situation
So far, a total of 6,343 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 406 patients having recovered from the virus. Most cases of the infection have occurred in Moscow (4,484) The country’s latest data indicates 47 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.