The Il-18 military transport aircraft left Chkalovsky Airport in the Moscow Region early on August 5, "carrying the first part of the Russian aviation group personnel," Lt. Col. Vladimir Drik said.
The second batch of 40 service personnel will leave for Sudan on August 8.
The Russian peacekeeping contingent in Sudan comprises 120 personnel and four Mi-8 helicopters equipped to UN and international standards.
The contingent provides transport services for UN military observers in Sudan, including accompanying freight, and also carries out rescue operations.
The first unit of Russian peacekeepers arrived in Sudan in April 2006. They are expected to stay - with regular rotations - for five or six years.
The UN Mission in Sudan was established in 2005 to monitor the peace agreement between the government in Khartoum and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement in southern Sudan, which ended the longest-running civil war in Africa.
The UN presence in Sudan has since been expanded to include peacekeeping operations in Darfur. Since 2003, Chad and Sudan have accused each other of inciting conflict on their common border, which is along the west Sudanese region of Darfur.
According to international estimates, more than 200,000 people have been killed and around 2.5 million displaced in the ongoing conflict in Darfur.
