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TU-85 BARGE - Program

On January 9, 1951 a crew consisting of test pilot crew commander A.D.Perelet, flight Navigator S.Kirichenko, flight engineer A.Chernoff. However, within a little over a month, it became clear that the TU-85 was yesterday's project. In fact, the new machine was an easy target for anti-aircraft likely enemy. In fact, rather quickly, it turned out that the company's great mistake in the centering plane of the made it too back. In the end had to add nose weights as centering aids.

On February 28, 1951 Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force Zhigarev reported to Stalin: "The experience of air battles in Korea Jet MiG-15 aircraft with US B-29 shows that this type of bomber aircraft with modern jet fighters with high speed flight, become relatively defenseless. Captured American pilots from the plane b-29 flight staff say the American bomber manages to keep his movable guns for attacking his MiG-15 and keep them. This greatly facilitated the MiG-15 aircraft to attack on the b-29 bombers, due to the relatively low flight speeds past and as a result of the air battles between these aircraft runs out, usually in favor of MiG-15. In five air battles with numerically superior enemy MiG-15 shot down ten American B-29 aircraft and one F-80.

"The above circumstances are disturbing, that our domestic bomber Tu-4, which has roughly the same flight data, like the B-29, including a maximum cruising speed of up to 560 km/h, in a time of war when the enemy aircraft are protected by modern jet fighters, can be a relatively defenseless. It was also alarming that the ongoing test flights of the new Quad-engine bomber design of Tupolev, with a range of 12,000 km and a maximum speed of flight up to 600 km/h and will have approximately the same shortcomings as the Tu-4."

State tests of the second vehicle were scheduled to finish by October 1951, but by the end of August, it had not begun. By Council of Ministers resolution of 28 November 1950, Zavod No. 18 was ordered to serial production of TU-85 in July 1952.

Thus, in 1951 the Soviet Union created an intercontinental bomber, prepared for serial production. At the same time, Tupolev, knowing full well that the era of aircraft piston engines in the past, began development of the bomber "95". In February 1951, he wrote to Stalin, that " ... the resulting dimension of a plane (TU-95, Editor's note.), close to built us far 4-engine bomber aircraft "-85" with four m-253K orami mod v. Dobrynina, flight tests now underway. Use as base structures of an "85" provides an opportunity to partially maintain constructive form and use a number of assemblies, structural elements and nodes. At the same time it allows to save a huge number of suppliers and vendors that participated in the construction of an "85"."

In February 1951, AN Tupolev wrote to Stalin: "... the resulting dimension of the aircraft (project" 95 ") is close to our long-range 4-engine bomber-85 aircraft with four M-253K Dobrynin engines passing now flight tests ... Use as a base for the design of the aircraft "85" makes it possible to partially preserve the structural forms and use a number of units, structural elements and assemblies. At the same time, this allows to save a huge number of subcontractors participating in the construction of the aircraft "85"." February 28, 1951, the Air Force Commander P. Zhigarev, reported to I. Stalin: "It is alarming that the new four-engine bomber of T. Tupolev's design, with a range of 12,000 km and a maximum flight speed of up to 600 km / h, currently undergoing flight tests, will be have the same drawbacks as the Tu-4 airplane ... "

The leadership of the aviation industry had a different opinion. On 30 August 1951, Dementyev reported Bulganin: "Because of the need for big finishing works on aircraft TU-85 in process (...) testing, as well as an inability to maintain the tests of TU-85 without removing the Tu-4 and to reduce the release of these aircraft at factory No. 18, I consider it appropriate:

1. Up to the end of State testing TU-85 production at plant No. 18 pause. Custom snap-in tool and mothball and store at the plant together with the technical documentation.
2. The question of the continuation of the serial production and launch of TU-85, as well as to reduce the production of Tu-4 to decide after the governmental testing TU-85 and taking it into service.
3. Tu-85 tests continue to study the design, production, and flight characteristics of aircraft grade heavy long-range bombers and experience".

The Report on the results of the manufacturer's testing guide was approved on December 14, 1951, although the machine never entered the State tests. Tupolev in the midst of work on the TU-85 laid the foundations for the TU-95. After the collapse of the plane "85", in January 1952, he also suggested using both machines as flying laboratories. So much so that it was supposed to install similar equipment, including long-range navigation system "mainland", radar scopes "Rubidium-MM" and "Argon" and much more. In the same year the TU-85 tested the most powerful domestic fragmentation bombs Fab-9000.