The Heartbreaking Story of Palma, a Faithful Dog Who Waited for Her Owner for Two Years at a Moscow Airport From 1974

In the autumn of 1974, a passenger was boarding an Ilyushin Il-18 flight from Moscow. He was traveling with his German Shepherd, a dog he called Palma. However, upon reaching the steps of the aircraft, the crew refused to let the dog board because the owner lacked the proper veterinary health certificates.

Faced with a choice between missing his flight or leaving his dog, the owner made a heartbreaking decision. He took off Palma’s collar, unleashed her on the tarmac, and walked up the boarding stairs. Palma, thinking it was a game or a temporary separation, ran along the runway after the accelerating aircraft until it disappeared into the sky.

Palma didn’t leave the airport. Instead, she set up a daily routine near the runway, surviving on scraps given to her by sympathetic ground crew and airport staff. What made Palma’s story extraordinary was her memory. She didn’t just wait for any plane; she specifically watched for Ilyushin Il-18 aircraft, the exact model her owner had boarded. Whenever an Il-18 landed, Palma would trot up to the mobile boarding stairs, carefully scanning the faces of the passengers descending to the tarmac.

For two years, through scorching summers and bitter, freezing Moscow winters, she kept this precise vigil. Airport security initially tried to catch or remove her, but she was incredibly clever and elusive. Eventually, the airport staff grew to love and protect her, building her shelter and ensuring she was fed.

In 1976, a journalist named Yuri Rost from the prominent newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda heard about the dog. He visited Vnukovo, witnessed Palma’s routine, and published a moving article titled “A Dog on the Runway.”

The story exploded nationally. The newspaper received thousands of letters from citizens offering to adopt Palma, sending money, or expressing outrage at the anonymous owner. The article also included a plea for the owner to return.

The owner actually did see the article. He wrote a letter back to the editorial office (wishing to remain anonymous due to the immense public shame), explaining that he had been working in the far north and felt too guilty and embarrassed to return for her after so much time had passed. He never came back.

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Mathias Rust, a West German Teenager Who Landed His Cessna in Moscow’s Red Square in 1987

On May 28, 1987, 19-year-old West German amateur pilot Mathias Rust flew a Cessna 172 from Helsinki, Finland, and landed on a bridge near Red Square in Moscow. He bypassed Soviet air defenses, landing in the heart of the Soviet capital to deliver a message of peace, and was subsequently arrested. The incident was a massive embarrassment for the Soviet military and led to the dismissal of hundreds of officers, including the Minister of Defense.

West German teenager Mathias Rust standing next to his Cessna 172 airplane after landing in Red Square, Moscow, Soviet Union, on May 28, 1987.

Rust, with only about 50 hours of flying experience, flew his small plane from Helsinki, navigating through a massive gap in Soviet air defenses. His flight path was tracked, but military officials did not authorize an attack, fearing a potential incident with a civilian aircraft or a potential public relations disaster.

He landed on the Bolshoy Bridge, next to Red Square, rather than on the square itself because it was too crowded. He then taxied his plane to a stop on the square.

Rust stated his mission was to build an “imaginary bridge” for peace between East and West and to deliver a message to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. The stunt was inspired by the failed Reykjavik disarmament summit in 1986.

“I got my private pilot’s license in autumn 1986,” Rust told The Guardian. “I was 19 and very political. I was interested in relations between East and West, particularly the Reykjavik meeting between Gorbachev and Reagan. I realized that the aircraft was the key to peace. I could use it to build an imaginary bridge between East and West. I didn't tell anybody about my plan because I was convinced my family or friends would stop me. I didn’t think much about what would happen afterwards. My main focus was on my mission to get there and land. I believed that something would work out.”

“My plan was to land in Red Square, but there were too many people and I thought I’d cause casualties,” he added. “I had thought about landing in the Kremlin, but there wasn’t enough space. I wanted to choose somewhere public, because I was scared of the KGB. I approached Red Square three times, trying to find somewhere to land, before discovering a wide bridge nearby. I landed there and taxied into Red Square. As it turned out, the day I chose – May 28 – was the holiday of the border patrol. I suspect that’s how I got away with it.”

Rust was arrested, and the Soviet Union’s Supreme Court sentenced him to four years in a labor camp for violating border crossing and air traffic regulations. He served 14 months before being released and returned to West Germany.

“My landing caused plenty of confusion,” he said. “People came up and surrounded the plane and soon the police arrived to take me away. The defense and air defense ministers were both replaced and more than 2,000 officers lost their jobs. I was sentenced to four years in a labour camp, but spent my time in the interrogation prison because the KGB couldn't guarantee my safety.”

The incident exposed significant weaknesses in the Soviet air defense system, leading to the dismissal of numerous high-ranking military officials.

Mathias Rust next to the plane in the aero club, 1985-1986.

Rust’s rented Reims Cessna F172P (serial #F17202087), registered D-ECJB, was sold to Japan where it was exhibited for several years. In 2008 it was returned to Germany and was placed in the German Museum of Technology in Berlin.

Because Rust’s flight seemed harmful to the authority of the Soviet regime, it was the source of numerous jokes and legends. For a while after the incident, Red Square was referred to jokingly by some Muscovites as Sheremetyevo-3 (Sheremetyevo-1 and -2 being the two terminals at Moscow’s international airport). At the end of 1987, the police radio code used by law enforcement officers in Moscow was allegedly updated to include a code for an aircraft landing.

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40 Retro Photos of a New Year Party in Moscow in the Early 1980s

In 1980s Moscow, Christmas (January 7) was largely overshadowed by New Year’s celebrations, as the Soviet Union had downplayed religious holidays in favor of secular ones.

New Year’s Eve was the main festive occasion, with families gathering for a special dinner, enjoying traditional dishes like Olivier salad, and celebrating with Ded Moroz (Grandfather Frost) and Snegurochka (the Snow Maiden). Christmas itself was quietly observed by some religious families, often with private church services or small home traditions.

Despite the restrictions and censorship of the time, these parties were a rare opportunity to indulge, to be merry, and to briefly escape the rigidities of Soviet life. Here below is a photo set from Alex Razbash that shows a New Year party of a Moscow family in 1983.

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Amazing Vintage Photographs Capture Everyday Life in Moscow in 1954

Henri Cartier-Bresson visited Moscow in 1954 to document daily life under communism. He sought to capture with his camera what he called decisive moments, coincidentally graceful arrangements of people or objects that other observers would have overlooked. He wandered through foreign cities like a libertine on the prowl, poised to take advantage of any opportunity for visual seduction. The taller soldier here, whose lips curl into a raffish smirk as he strides towards a possible conquest, might be a mirror-image of the invisible photographer. You can feel the frisson of sensual anticipation that accompanied the click of the shutter.

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56 Vintage Photos Capture Everyday Life in Moscow in 1965

Constantine Manos (born 1934 in South Carolina) is a Greek-American photographer known for his images of Boston and Greece. His work has been published in Esquire, Life, and Look. He is a member of Magnum Photos.

Manos first began taking photographs while in high school when he joined his school’s camera club. Within a few years, he was working professionally as a photographer. At 19, Manos was hired as the official photographer for the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood. His photographs of the orchestra culminated in 1961 with his first published work, Portrait of a Symphony.

Manos graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1955, majoring in English Literature. He served in the military and then moved to New York City, working for various magazines. From 1961 to 1964, Manos lived in Greece, photographing people and landscapes. This work resulted in A Greek Portfolio, published in 1972, which won awards at Arles and the Leipzig book fair. In 1963, Manos joined Magnum Photos and became a full member in 1965.

In the late summer of 1965, Manos traveled to Moscow on assignment for an American organization whose mission was to take American professionals to the Soviet Union to meet their Russian counterparts. “In the mornings I photographed these meetings,” he said. “After lunch I was free and used this time to photograph people in the streets, mostly Russian tourists from the provinces. ”

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Moscow in the Early 1970s Through Amazing Photos

Life in Moscow during the 1970s was marked by a period of stability and relative prosperity, following the tumultuous years of the Soviet Union's post-Stalinist leadership transition. The Soviet economy experienced a period of sustained growth, and living standards improved for many people.

However, the government maintained strict control over the media and political activities, and dissent was not tolerated. Additionally, the Soviet government’s foreign policy during this time period was marked by the continuation of the Cold War and a focus on maintaining the country's status as a global superpower.

These amazing photos were taken by wilford peloquin that show street scenes of Moscow in 1971.

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Russian Woodstock: Amazing Photographs From the Two Day Moscow Music Peace Festival in 1989

If any single event encapsulated the massiveness of hard rock and heavy metal at the end of the 1980s, it was the Moscow Music Peace Festival, which put six megawatt bands – Skid Row, Cinderella, Mötley Crüe, Ozzy Osbourne, Scorpions and Bon Jovi (along with Russian rockers like Gorky Park and Brigada-S) onstage for two days at Moscow.

Moscow Music Peace Festival cover.

The Moscow Music Peace Festival was a rock concert that took place in the USSR on 12 and August 13, 1989 at Central Lenin Stadium (now called Luzhniki Stadium) in Moscow. Occurring during the glasnost era, it marked the first time hard rock and heavy metal acts from abroad were granted permission to perform in the capital city.

Modeled as a “Russian Woodstock” the concert was a joint production by Russian musician Stas Namin and American music manager Doc McGhee. Over 100,000 people attended and it was broadcast live to 59 nations including MTV in the United States. The event promoted understanding between the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc during the Cold War and also raised money to help those addicted to drugs and alcohol. The concert featured six bands from abroad and three Russian bands. The concert ended with the various band members participating in jam session. An album and documentary were released.

In an interview taken from Rolling Stone magazine, Ernie Hudson (then a guitar tech for American band Cinderella) remembered being completely taken aback by people standing in lines for products that were so commonplace in the US:

“We see people queueing, we’d say, ‘What are people queueing for?’ They’d say, ‘Oh, this is a queue to get toilet paper.’ Two blocks down, a mile, ‘What are these people queueing for?’ ‘Oh, they’re queueing to get milk.’ It was just really backwards, compared to anything we were used to, going to the grocery store and getting toilet paper and milk.”

Yet perhaps what drew the most incredulity from the guests, were the people themselves. Through perpetuated stereotypes and political tensions, the United States have long viewed the USSR as enemy territory, a hive of KGB agents ready to congregate and take over American soil. However, as they quickly came to realize, this was pure political hyperbole. Yes, the military and the KGB were present, and they were diligent in keeping an eye on the westerners during their stay, but they also seemed very thankful for their presence, as it was mentioned by then Skid Row drummer Rob Affuso:

“Later in the evening, I went up to watch Bon Jovi from the stands, way up in the back. I was sitting there, and this group of soldiers approached me. Obviously, I got really nervous. I didn’t know what was about to happen. And they came up to me and put their guns down. They sat next to me and they said, “We want to thank you so much for coming to our country to bring us rock & roll. We don’t have rock & roll in our country. Thank you, thank you.” And they were crying. It was a really incredibly emotional moment.”

It inspired the 1990 song “Wind of Change” by Scorpions, one of the bands that performed at the concert. The song became one of the best selling singles of all time.

The Moscow Music Peace Festival held on August 12-13, 1989.

The Moscow Music Peace Festival - rock festival held in the USSR, August 12-13, 1989 at the stadium  Luzhniki.

Fans at the Moscow Music Peace Festival.

Fans at the Moscow Music Peace Festival.

Fans at the Moscow Music Peace Festival.

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Moscow in 1950 Through Amazing Color Photos

During the postwar years, there was a serious housing crisis, solved by the invention of high-rise apartments. There are about 13,000 of these standardized and prefabricated apartment block, housing the majority of Moscow’s population.

Apartments were built and partly furnished in the factory before being raised and stacked into tall columns. The popular Soviet-era comic film Irony of Fate parodies this construction method. These rare and amazing color photos from Pussreboots captured street scenes of Moscow in 1950.

"Kievskaya" Metro Station, Moscow, 1950

Evening lights, Moscow, 1950

Gorky Street (now Tverskaya Street), Moscow, 1950

Kalinin Prospekt, Moscow, 1950

Mayakovsky Square (now Triumfalnaya Square), Moscow, 1950

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Fascinating Black and White Capture Life in Moscow During the Winter of 1959

In winter, Moscow's scenery looks awe-inspiring. Covered in a dusting of snow and sparkling with frost for most of the season, the capital is described by many as a magical city and a real gem to discover.

Take a look at life in Moscow in the winter of 1959 through these 23 fascinating black and white photos taken by Philippe Le Tellier:

People crossing the street.

Mother and son buying milk from a vendor.

People gathering to watch and feed the pigeons.

Two people pushing pram side by side at a park.

Silhouette of Saint Basil's Cathedral on the Red Square.

A woman sweeping a broom at a park.

Warmly-dressed children playing in a public garden.

A traffic policeman in the center of a wide cobbled avenue.

A man walking on the platform of Lenin's mausoleum.

Men playing chess in a courtyard.

Four men installing a model of Sputnik 1 on an abstract sculpture in a public garden.

A boy playing with a toy gun.

Line of people at a market.

A young bookseller at her stall.

Warmly-dressed children in a public garden.

Trams.

A traffic policeman preparing to open the front trunk of a car.

A man sharpening his knife.

Elderly people in a public garden.

Two boys in uniform smiling on the sidewalk.

A young boy dressed in cold clothes and carrying his satchel.

A man wiping a child's face on Pushkin Square.

Red Square.