TU-95. From the history of "Russian bear"
The first attempt to create an intercontinental bomber in the USSR was a deep modernization of the Tu-4. The “80 airplane” (its first flight took place on December 1 1949 of the year) covered the distance 8000 km. However, the Korean War, which began shortly before, convincingly demonstrated the futility of the development of long-range bombers based on piston engines: jet fighters left it less and less chance to break through to protected objects. That is why, despite the possibility of reaching a range of more than 12000 km, further work was stopped on the next Soviet strategic bomber - Tu-85. As a new model, such a machine was supposed to create a bomber with a maximum speed of the order of 900-950 km / h, a payload of up to 20, a range of flight to 14-15, thousand km and an altitude of 13-14, thousand meters.
To ensure such high demands, it was necessary to apply a new aerodynamic configuration and use not only powerful, but also lightweight powerplant, which also has an acceptable fuel consumption. There was practically no other possibility to reach the intercontinental range with all the other parameters. Based on the development of TsAGI on the aerodynamics of the swept wing and the optimization of its design, the aerodynamic scheme of a multi-engined aircraft with a swept wing 35 ° was chosen in the Tupolev design bureau. Ideas embodied in the Tu-85 developed in the layout of its fuselage, crew accommodation, weapon systems and target equipment, but the presence of an arrow-shaped wing made it possible to place a large bomb bay behind the caisson, which was located near the center of gravity of the aircraft.
The most difficult task was the choice of the power plant and the option of its placement on the plane. According to the calculations carried out in the OKB, the required flight performance, especially for the maximum flight range, using the turbojet engines, which the customer insisted on, was impossible to obtain. The real thing that the Tupolev Design Bureau had at that time was the AM-3 TRD with the 8700 kgf bailout and the AL-5 with the 5000 kgf bollard. However, by the end of the forties, the Klimov OKB had developed in a pilot version a VK-2 turboprop engine with 4820 horsepower, with a low specific fuel consumption equal to 326 g / hp. and the specific gravity of 290 g / hp, but the refinement of this engine has so far been limited to bench tests.
Simultaneously, the Design Bureau N. Kuznetsova, relying on the work of interned German specialists, presented for testing TVD TV-2 power 6260 ehp and completed the design of the TV-12, fantastic for those times, with an 12000 power, al.
In Tupolev Design Bureau A, the variants of the aircraft were thoroughly studied with almost all promising aircraft engines developed in the USSR: turbo-jets, turbojet engines in combination with piston engines, in combination with turboprop engines. Studied various layout schemes of the power plant. In particular, a conceptual design was carried out in which six AM-3 TRDs were located on both sides of the fuselage, in pairs one above the other, and two more engines were in the fuselage below, behind the wing. It all looked very exotic, but even in the first estimates it was impossible to achieve the specified LTX.
As a result, it was concluded that the four required turboproads with a total capacity of at least 40000 eHP correspond to the most required aircraft.
New aircraft received in the OKB cipher «95». N. Bazenkov, the chief designer of all the numerous variants of the Tu-95 family, became the head of the work on the topic. In 1976, after his death, N. Kirsanov became the chief designer for all the Tu-95 series aircraft.
According to the decision on the creation of "95", released 11 July 1951, the aircraft was required to produce in duplicate. The first one with twinned motors TV-2 (2TV-2F) and the second one with TV-12. The power in both variants was about 12000 ehp. on every engine.
The take-off weight of the new machine was determined in 150 t, so it was necessary to carefully approach the issues related to the strength of the bomber design. First of all, this applied to the swept wing, which had a large span and elongation, having high aerodynamic properties. The presence on the wing of four extremely powerful motors with screws required the search for new design solutions to ensure its vibration strength. At the same time, Tupolev paid special attention to the observance of the conditions for the all-round compaction of the layout.
The solution to a complex problem fell on OKB K. Zhdanova, who developed a gearbox and coaxial four-bladed propellers, with the opposite direction of rotation. No analogues in the world aviation practice in those years did not exist. As a result, a unique planetary gearbox and propeller with an unusually high efficiency were installed on the Tu-95 in all modes that remained unsurpassed to this day. In September 1951, the Design Bureau began to produce working drawings; in the same month, the production of the first instance began, and a year later the first prototype was ready. The tasks in testing this aircraft were testing in the shortest possible time the correctness of the chosen concept of a strategic intercontinental bomber, testing in real conditions all its systems and equipment. The 95/1 car was purely experimental, preparing the way for the 95/2 with a TV-12 TVD. On a flight with a crew led by test pilot A. Perelet, "95/1" left on November 12, 1952. The car was in the air for 50 minutes.
All winter and spring of the next year there were his tests. In the seventeenth flight, an accident happened: the third engine caught fire. Despite all the attempts of the crew, the fire was not eliminated, and A. Perelet gave the command to leave the plane. On board, without stopping attempts to save the car, there were only himself and the flight engineer A. Chernov. While leaving the plane, the navigator Kirichenko and the engineer of the NISO Bolshakov were killed, the rest of the crew remained alive.
In the course of the investigation, it was established that the fire was caused by the destruction of the intermediate gear of the third 2TV-2F engine due to its insufficient strength and was not eliminated due to the insufficient effectiveness of the aircraft fire extinguishing equipment.
The entire team of the Design Bureau experienced a disaster, but the second experimental machine was already in the building, and the task was to take into account all the identified shortcomings and omissions in it, to use the experience of finishing the first Tu-16.
In July, the 1954 of the year, the 95 / 2 aircraft was manufactured and until December of that year stood in anticipation of the TV-12 engines, which were adjusted to standard. In the OKB K. Zhdanov and N. Kuznetsov each node was subjected to verification with special care.
In January, the “doubler” 1955 was taken to an experimental airfield, and on February 16, the crew headed by test pilot M. Nyuhtikov (2 th pilot I. Sukhomlin) made the first takeoff on 95 / 2. His factory tests ended at the start of 1956. By this time, the production of the aircraft at the Kuibyshev plant number XXUMX was already unfolding. The first two 18 serial cars took off in October of the 95, after which state tests were carried out on three aircraft.
At the same time, the following results were obtained on the 95 / 2 aircraft: maximum speed - 882 km / h, range with bomb load 5 t - 15040 km, ceiling - 11 300 m. The speed and the ceiling did not meet the requirements of the customer, therefore new engines were installed on the second production car (NK-12М instead of NK-12), which had take-off power already 15000 e. l with. and less fuel consumption. The aircraft had an increased fuel reserve and take-off mass. In September — October, 1957 reached its maximum speed on it - 905 km / h, the ceiling - 12150 m. Range - 16750 km.
The bomber was accepted for mass production and was produced from 1955, in two versions: Tu-95 and Tu-95М. Soon the first of them began to receive the drill units. In August, 1957 was adopted, and it became the main Soviet strategic deterrent at the height of the Cold War, until the first ballistic intercontinental missiles were put into service in the sixties.
In the mass production of the Tu-95 and Tu-95M were up to 1959 year; several aircraft came out in the version of the strategic intelligence officer Tu-95MR. Two cars were converted to passenger and used for special transportation. On these aircraft in the bomb bay housed the pressure cabinet on the 20-24 person. They received the name Tu-116 and were operated in the Air Force until the end of the eighties.
The Tu-95 bombers were designed to deliver bombing strikes, including nuclear ammunition, at strategic targets located deep in the rear of the enemy. At the time of creation, it was believed that the combination of high-speed flight, altitude and powerful defensive armaments made strategic aircraft virtually invulnerable to the then air defense systems. Small-gun armament (6 X-guns caliber 23 mm) made it possible to carry out almost spherical protection against enemy fighter aircraft. The aft unit was equipped with a Argon radar shooting sight. Bomb load Tu-95 ranged from 5 to 15 t depending on the flight range. The maximum caliber of bombs placed on the inner suspension was 9 t.
The Tu-95 equipment was completed with the most up-to-date systems at that time, which made it possible to fly in adverse weather conditions.
At first, the TU-95 crew included eight people: two pilots, a navigator, a flight engineer, a navigator-operator, a gunner-radio operator (in the front of the pressurized cabin) and two shooters in the stern cabin. A feature of the rescue system on the Tu-95, unlike other jet bombers of the time, was the absence of ejection seats.
During an emergency, the bomber left the forward cabin of the bomber through the open hatch of the nose landing gear using a mobile conveyor, and the stern arrows were ejected through the hatches down.
In March, 1957, the Tu-95 crashed. The failure of one engine should not have led to a catastrophic situation, but in this flight the system of translating the screws into the vane position did not work. Very quickly, in a few months, the NK-12MB engines were launched into the series with automatic and manual feathering.
Reinforcement of the air defense weapons of the probable enemy demanded that the developers of the aircraft improve its performance characteristics. Back in 1952, the task was given to build a high-altitude strategic bomber with a flight ceiling over an 17 target, thou. M and a range at that altitude up to 9000-10000 km, with a 5 m combat load and a speed of 800-850 km / h. It was supposed to install new engines NK-16, high-altitude and more powerful. The car was named Tu-96. She had several large sizes, new fuselage, bow cabin and the center section design. In 1956, the plane went to factory testing. But by that moment it had already become clear that a high altitude would not have saved the bomber from attacks by supersonic interceptor fighters and anti-aircraft missiles. Work on the Tu-96 was terminated.
The main direction of increasing the effectiveness of attack aviation forces in the middle and in the second half of the fifties was the creation of aviation missile systems using the long range of the carrier and the invulnerability of the projectile launched from the carrier a few hundred or thousand kilometers from the target. Such a combined version was supposed to increase the survivability of the shock system.
The aviation and missile system, which received the name Tu-95K-20, began to develop in March 1955. The aircraft carrier underwent alterations: a new nose section was designed, where radars of target detection and targeting of an aircraft-projectile were installed. The Mikoyan Design Bureau created for the complex an X-20 projectile with a range of 350 km and a flight speed corresponding to 2М. X-20 was in the bomb bay on a special holder, which raised the projectile up before the flight and lowered it before launch.
A prototype carrier, the Tu-95K, was lifted into the air on January 1 of 1956. Started finishing work on the complex. To test the X-20 systems, the OKB specialists converted the serial MiG-19 (CM-20 aircraft), which, in a manned version, worked out the guidance system, suspension and discharge from the carrier aircraft.
Due to the novelty of the test subject and refinement of the complex was delayed, and only in September X-NUMX, the Tu-1959-95 was officially adopted. As a result of alterations Tu-20 deteriorated its aerodynamics, as a result of which the flight range decreased. Refueling in the air could save the day. In the spring of 95, the OKB A. Tupolev was tasked to work out a hose-cone refueling system for the Tu-1960K. One year later, the first Tu-95K was equipped with such a system and received the name Tu-95KD. Both options. “K” and “KD” were mass-produced up to 95, thanks to which the combat capabilities of domestic strategic aviation increased significantly.
In the sixties, radio and navigation equipment was updated on the part of the K-series aircraft, after which the vehicle received the Tu-95КМ index. At the beginning of the next decade, it was decided to convert the Tu-95K and Tu-95CD into air-to-air guided missile carriers, similar to those used on Tu-22 and Tu-22 supersonic bombers. The new complex, the Tu-95K-22, included one or two missiles, hung on underwing pylons or in the cargo compartment.
The prototype Tu-95K-22, developed on the basis of the serial Tu-95K, for the first time broke away from the runway in October 1975 of the year. After completion of the tests in the late seventies, refinement began under the Tu-95K-22 of the flight fleet of the Tu-95K aircraft. From the beginning of the eighties, cars in the new capacity went to the line units.
As you know, in the first half of the sixties, the Soviet Navy began to go out into the ocean. His underwater and surface forces required a means of long-range reconnaissance and target designation. Already in the 1962, the test went Tu-95РЦ. For two years, the entire complex of radar and radiotechnical systems of the new machine was being developed and brought up to standard, and in 1964, its deliveries to the Navy began.
A special place among the modifications of the Tu-95 is occupied by the Tu-126 early-warning aircraft equipped with the Liana radar complex. Work on it was undertaken in 1960 year. The first experienced car was ready in two years. In 1965-1967, eight more Tu-126s were released. All nine aircraft were in operation until the early eighties, until they were replaced by more advanced A-50.
One of the most important components of the American nuclear “triad” since the sixties is the combination of nuclear submarines equipped with submarine-launched ballistic missiles. To combat them, in the USSR, in 1963, they began developing a long-range anti-submarine strike complex based on the Tu-95, capable of detecting and destroying submarines in surface and submerged positions. In the summer of 1968, the experienced Tu-142 made its first takeoff. From the Tu-95 it differed in the target equipment, the new wing design and the reduced composition of the gun-guns. Initially, the Tu-142 had original carts of the main chassis with six wheels, which ensured the possibility of using unpaved runways. The Tu-142 aircraft in December 1972, were in service with naval aviation.
In the seventies, the combat capabilities of nuclear submarine missile carriers increased significantly, which required the modernization of anti-submarine weapons, including aircraft anti-submarine systems. In the OKB named after A.N. Tupolev, under the general supervision of the General Designer A. Tupolev in 1972, initiated work on the modernization of the Tu-142. In the course of them, the Tu-142M aircraft was created, on which the equipment for detecting low-noise submarines was installed, a more accurate inertial navigation system, an updated automated radio communication system, Ladoga magnetometer, and the front cockpit was completely changed. The first flight on the Tu-142M was performed by test pilot I. Vedernikov on November 4, 1975. Since 1980, this machine has been successfully operated in parts. Based on the Tu-142M subsequently for the needs of the underwater fleet developed a Tu-142MR repeater aircraft.
Work in the United States on the modernization of the B-52 airborne strategic missile systems and arming them with cruise missiles provoked a backlash from the Soviet side. The start of work on the re-equipment of the Tu-95 fleet with new rocket assets can be attributed to the early seventies, when the Tu-95М-5 (Tu-ЭNNXXК-5 complex) was launched as a test, armed with two KSR-26 missiles used on the Tu-5K -16. However, this direction has not been developed.
In the 1976 year, also on a trial basis, one of the serial copies of the Tu-95M was converted into a missile carrier with air-launched cruise missiles, the Tu-95М-55. In the 1978 year, he passed the factory tests, however, and this time the decision to rework the aircraft of the park was not followed.
Simultaneously, on the basis of the Tu-142M, work was underway on a strategic carrier of cruise missiles. The new version, called Tu-95MS, made its first flight in September 1979, and in the early eighties entered service, and to this day is in service with strategic aviation of the Russian Armed Forces.
Tu-95MS has very high defensive capabilities. Crews rated the aircraft literally as unbreakable. The airborne defense complex (BKO) of this vehicle became the most perfect in our country and surpassed the American B-52H complex in a variety of indicators. On "emes" it was possible to successfully solve the problems of electromagnetic compatibility, which spoiled so much blood when creating the Tu-160. In the summer of 1987, on specially conducted tests, his electronics managed to brilliantly thwart all attempts to make attacks of the most modern and electronics-stuffed MiG-31 interceptor. The flight took place at night in simple weather conditions at an altitude of 8000 m. The crew of the thirty-first reported: "I observe the target visually, I can work the gun, the tactical launch can not be done." It is worth noting that the characteristics of the onboard complex MiG-31 significantly exceeded those of the American F-15. As you can see, by the end of the last century, the stern shooter regained its former value.
On these machines again organized combat duty. At the same time, its crews were no longer subjected to such psychological stress as their predecessors, who were flying on bombers, experienced. They did not need to enter the zone of action of a powerful air defense, and besides, they did not know their targets, nor even the launch point. The crew’s task was to bring the strike machine to a certain point, from where it would automatically fly for another hour, after which it would also launch missile launches on its own.
One of the most famous modifications of the Tu-95 bomber was its passenger version - the Tu-114. Work on the aircraft design bureau began in 1955. The prototype lifted into the sky test pilot A. Yakimov, November 10 1957 of the year. In July, the 1960 year ended state tests, in March of the next - operational.
24 On April 1961, the first Tu-114 flight took place with passengers aboard on the Moscow-Khabarovsk route. In total, up to 1965 of the year, the 31 Tu-114 was built at the Kuibyshev aircraft plant, which successfully served on domestic and international lines up to the 1980 year. During this period, more than 6 million passengers were transported. The airliner was produced in the layout of the 170 and 200 seats. And in 1962, a variant was prepared for flights to Cuba: the number of passenger seats was reduced to 120 due to an increase in the stock of fuel. From January 1963, regular flights to Havana began, with one stopover.
On the Tu-114, the 32 world record was set. In addition, in 1958, the airliner was awarded the Grand Prix at the Brussels International Exhibition, and A.N. Tupolev was awarded the FAI Large Gold Medal.
Various flying laboratories were also created, where advanced aircraft engines, equipment and aircraft systems were tested. There were many unfulfilled projects of aircraft carriers for various types of manned and unmanned objects. A glorious and difficult journey, from the moment of birth to the present day, was made by the Tu-95, the only aircraft of this class in the world with theaters.
Sources:
Rigmant V. Tu-95 // Aviation and Cosmonautics. 2001. No.1. C. 17-26.
Rigmant V. Tu-95 // Aviation and Cosmonautics. 2000. No.12. C. 8-14.
Kirsanov N. Rigmant V. Unparalleled // Aviation and Cosmonautics. 1992. No.12. C. 14-17.
Gordon E. Rigmant V. Tu-95. Purpose - America // Aviation and Time. 1996. No.5. C.2-20.
Antonov D. Rigmant V. From the file “Russian bear” // Wings of the Motherland. 1994. No.6. C. 8-10.
Antonov D. Rigmant V. From the file “Russian bear” // Wings of the Motherland. 1994. No.7. C. 1-5.
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