Twitter
He already annoyed Elon Musk: Teenager tracks the private jets of Russian oligarchs
International sanctions hit the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich
© Adam Davy / Picture Alliance
Twitter is a great place to follow the private jets of some of Russia’s richest men. The service comes from a student who has already spied on Elon Musk’s jet.
Jack Sweeney likes to mess with the rich and powerful. The 19-year-old made a name for himself when he programmed a bot that shows the location of Elon Musk’s private jet. On the Twitter account “@ElonJet” everyone can see where the plane is taking off or landing – much to the displeasure of the richest person in the world. The Tesla boss offered Sweeney $5,000 to shut down the account. The teenager refused – and demanded $ 50,000.
Now Sweeney has found new victims. The war in Ukraine also drew his attention, more precisely the Russian oligarchs. Most of these millionaires are staunch supporters of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. With their yachts and jets they move freely through the world and enjoy their life of luxury. Where exactly is documented by the new Twitter channel “Russian Oligarch Jets” that Sweeney runs.
Where are the Russian oligarchs?
Among other things, Sweeney tracks exactly where the luxury machines of Roman Abramovich, the Russian oil and gas tycoon and owner of the English football club Chelsea, are currently located. The first entry on Sunday showed that one of Abramovich’s jets had landed near the Latvian capital Riga. Other oligarchs whose jets Sweeney’s bot captures include Alexander Abramov, Oleg Deripaska, and Leonard Blavatnik. Almost 130,000 users have subscribed to the reports so far.
In addition, Sweeney also tracks the movements of Russian VIP planes that President Vladimir Putin could use. The take-offs and landings of the planes can be seen on the Twitter account “@PutinJet”. Which expressly does not mean that Putin’s travel activities can really be read from them. Interesting movements of the millionaires or billionaires can be traced on the accounts, perhaps even reactions to the international sanctions that also affect the oligarchs. But in the first few days since the bot went online, it became apparent that not all planes and helicopters were assigned to the correct owners, the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” reported.
Swell: “Russian Oligarch Jets” on Twitter / “PutinJet” on Twitter / “Southgerman newspaper”
Watch the video: For days people have been pouring into Poland from Ukraine to flee the war with Russia. stern foreign reporter Jonas Breng meets Ukrainians at the Medyka border crossing in Poland who are going to fight in their home country.