The first Ilyushin Il-76 plane of Russia’s Aerospace Force with equipment and specialists has departed for Serbia from the Chkalovsky airfield to help the Balkan country fight the novel coronavirus, the Defense Ministry of Russia reported on Friday.

"The plane will deliver a forward group of military medics, virologists and epidemiologists with the modern equipment for epidemiological diagnostics and disinfection measures to the Batajnica aerodrome (20 km northwest of Belgrade)," the ministry said.