Ukrainians sell luggage tags made from downed Russian planes to fund defence

A group of entrepreneurial Ukrainians is selling luggage tags made from downed Russian fighter jets in order to help fund the country’s war efforts.

Fred Roeder and Maria Semykoz, a German-Ukrainian couple, founded Recycle Russia, which asks for donations from supporters of Ukraine and sends each donor a unique baggage tag made from scrap parts of a Russian plane.

“Russia’s fighter jets and helicopters terrorize Ukrainians. They kill with bombs, missiles, and salvos. Ukrainians defend their homeland and turn Russian war machines into scrap,” says the team behind the tags.

“We recycle this scrap into luggage tags. The money we raise goes to support Ukraine’s defenders.”

The requested donation to receive a tag is $399 (£344). It’s also possible to donate smaller amounts of $10, $50 or $100 - though only $399 donors will receive the unusual luggage tag.

Recycle Russia is run entirely by volunteers, with 100 per cent of funds raised going directly towards help for Ukraine.

In the past the organisation has funded thermal cameras, radios, protective vests and helmets to Ukrainian resistance fighters through sibling website Buy4aUkrainian.org.

The project came about after Ukrainian MP Maryan Zablotsky secured 60 of the tags, which had been made by the unit that shot down one Russian jet over Ukranian airspace.

The tags has an image of the type of fighter plane it’s made from, as well as the model name, and the date and time it was shot down.

Recycle Russia says it will use the funds raised by donations to supply “drones and other non-lethal supplies such as warm clothes” to the unit that made the tags.

A Russian Air Force Sukhoi Su-34 fighter jet, one of the planes being reclaimed

(Getty Images)

For a $3,000 donation, Ukraine supporters can name a drone.

“The Ukrainian unit that shot down the Russian SU-34 wanted to put this aggressive plane to good use and hence decided to collect the scrap of the plane and turn it into luggage tags,” Fred Roeder told Airport Technology.

“The donation will be used to purchase non-lethal aid such as surveillance drones and winter clothes for the unit that shot down the plane. Donations are tax-deductible in the US.

“In the future, we plan to provide luggage tags made out of Russian cruise missiles that targeted Kyiv.”

Yesterday, a top adviser to President Zelensky told The Independent that Ukraine’s Western allies must urgently speed up delivery of air defence missiles and drones to protect energy infrastructure - warning that, if not, “our partners will watch us die from cold live on TV”.

Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior Ukrainian adviser and a chief negotiator, said that Russia had one aim: “to destroy the civilian population of Ukraine” by making them freeze to death.