During this year’s Victory Day parade, Russian media showed a CGI flyover by the Russian Knights and Swifts aerobatic teams, followed by real images of Su-25s painting the Russian flag in the sky.
Russia’s annual Victory Day parade on Moscow’s Red Square took an unusual turn this year when state media broadcasts appeared to replace part of the traditional aerial flypast with computer-generated imagery (CGI). Compared to previous years, this year’s edition of the parade only featured a flypast of a formation composed by the Russian Knights and Swifts aerobatic teams and a Su-25 formation which painted the Russian flag in the sky.
CGI Su-30s and MiG-29s
The controversial sequence was aired few seconds after the diamond formation with five Su-30s and four MiG-29s appeared over Moscow. The live stream then transitioned to an immersive camera view from within the formation, moving closely around the aircraft within the formation.
🤖 What an embarrassment! The aerial part of the parade appears to have been generated by AI
Russian state media showed “footage of the aviation flyover” during the parade, but users quickly noticed something odd: the camera seems to fly right between the jets, while the… pic.twitter.com/bWcJuqgfv8
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) May 9, 2026
Viewers rapidly pointed out multiple anomalies in the footage, including unrealistic aircraft movements and graphical inconsistencies. However, one of the aspects that is fueling the debate on social media is the presence of flags of a number of countries on the aircraft, including NATO countries.
However, what many are missing is that the flags are also present on the real Su-30s of the Russian Knights and have a precise meaning. In fact, these flags symbolize the countries in which the aerobatic team performed throughout its history.
At the end of this video segment, the live streaming transitioned back to real aircraft, with multiple views both from the air and from the ground of the six Su-25s trailing colored smoke to paint the Russian flag in the sky. This time the footage appeared to be completely real, captured with cameras installed on the aircraft as done in previous editions of the parade.
It was CGI, not AI. And there were some things still useful from the overflight footage.
🇷🇺 Su-25UB RF-93616 ’33 RED’
🇷🇺 Su-25BM RF-95159 ’74 RED’
🇷🇺 Su-25BM RF-95161 ’76 RED’ (likely)
🇷🇺 Su-25BM RF-91977 ’88 RED’ (likely)These would’ve all been from 968 IISAP out of Lipetsk. https://t.co/kgSsRwShmb pic.twitter.com/FSY57fddJr
— Evergreen Intel (@vcdgf555) May 9, 2026
It should be noted that this is not the first instance of CGI footage aired instead of the real flypast. A previous instance was in 2021, when, during the parade, the live streaming switched to a CGI video of a formation of Su-57s.
Some commenters even argued if the choice to show CGI footage of the Russian Knights and Swifts aerobatic teams was because of their condition amid the ongoing war and stretched resources. Notably, earlier this year, an armed Su-35 with the Russian Knights’ livery was intercepted by Norwegian F-35s while escorting a Tu-95MS bomber.
Today, two Norwegian F-35s at @NATO mission identified and shadowed two Russian Tu-95 Bear H bombers and two Su-35 Flanker M fighters in international airspace over the Barents Sea – a routine activity, but an important part of monitoring and safeguarding our region #ArcticSentry pic.twitter.com/irnU1cXGN3
— Norwegian Armed Forces | Forsvaret (@Forsvaret_no) February 27, 2026
Many thus argued whether the availability levels of the Russian Aerospace Forces forced the use of the aircraft of the aerobatic team for operational roles. Since then, however, no additional similar episodes have been reported.
Victory Day 2026
The unusual presentation came during what many observers described as a significantly scaled-back Victory Day parade. Unlike previous editions, the 2026 parade did not feature the large procession of tanks and heavy military hardware through the Red Square, as well as the air parade of aircraft and helicopters.
This toned down pared comes amid heightened security concerns and fears of potential Ukrainian drone attacks on Moscow. Security measures around the event were particularly stringent, with reports mentioning the presence of anti-drone units and an increased military and police presence throughout Moscow in the days leading up to the parade.
The risk was further reduced by a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump. In the end, the parade and the celebrations went on without incident.
Russian President Vladimir Putin used the event to reiterate support for what the Kremlin continues to call a “special military operation” in Ukraine. However, he also mentioned that the conflict is coming to an end, while also blaming NATO for the support to Ukraine.
Putin said he would be willing to negotiate with Europe, indicating as his preferred intermediary Germany’s former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder. So far, after multiple rounds, the peace negotiations brokered by the U.S. did not achieve the goal of ending the war, and it is thus unclear how the negotiations with Europe will go.