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Tupolev Supersonic Seaplane

By the mid-1950s it was considered highly probable that the enemy simultaneously could disable a significant part of the airfields of Long-Range Aviation. OKB-156 and OKB-23 under the direction of GM Beriev, AN Tupolev and VM Myasishchev were to develop supersonic seaplane projects as an alternative to land planes. The Beriev and Myasishchev projects are reasonably well attested, but the Tupolev project, if it existed, seems to have vanished.

One of the activities of the team of A. Tupolev in the 1920-30s was the design of seaplanes for naval aviation. The works covered the construction of both float seaplanes - variants of land crafts KB, and the creation of flying boats. Floating seaplanes, in particular variants TB-1 and R-6 (TB-1P, MP-6), were produced serially and for many years successfully served both in the Air Force and in civil aviation. By seaplanes-flying boats KB prepared several original projects, the work on which, for various reasons, did not leave the stage of prototypes or small-scale production.

At the beginning of the 1930s, the Design Bureau released its first experienced long-distance reconnaissance aircraft, the middle-class flying boat ANT-8 (MDR-2), which was successfully tested. He was followed by work on a heavier flying boat ANT-27 (MDR-4, MTB-1). This machine was adopted for serial construction and for several years was in service with naval aviation. Simultaneously, the KB was working on heavy-duty flying boats: in 1929 the Air Force proposed a project for a large ANT-11 single-seater hydroplane (MTBT); in 1934, an experimental two-seater hydroplane ANT-22 (MK-1), which had no analogues in the world its constructive and layout solutions.

On the eve of World War II, the KB designed and tested a four-engine flying boat ANT-44 (MTB-2), flight-tactical data of which were at the level of the best analogous foreign models. However, the outbreak of the world war demanded the concentration of all forces on land planes of various classes and the work on the introduction of the ANT-44 series was canceled.

Following the front-line bombers, the design bureau started transferring long-range bombing aircraft to the reactive thrust, designed to inflict strategic strikes at European and Asian theaters of operations, as well as neutralizing naval activities and shipping of Western countries. To the creation of such a machine, which was supposed to have a range of piston Tu-4 and speed close to 1000 km / h, the KB approached, having completed the whole program of preliminary works.

Firstly, flying the first heavy aircraft in the USSR with a swept wing - an experimental bomber "82". Secondly, in the search for the most optimal layout and selection of the required mass-dimensional parameters, several preliminary projects of long-range jet bomber class aircraft (projects "86", "87", "494" and "495") worked. Together with the engine builders, KB developed the requirements, and then received from them a unique AM-3 engine, which at the beginning of the 50's became the absolute record holder in terms of thrust values.

In the early 50's, the design bureau began to search for supersonic heavy aircraft. The research went in three directions: the creation of a supersonic front bomber for replacement in the Il-28 formation, long-range for the replacement of the Tu-16 and intercontinental for the replacement of the Tu-95 and M-4.

Later on, the KB returned to the projects of seaplanes of various classes several times, but all these projects did not go beyond the stage of initial development.