The Tu-160 supersonic strategic bomber (NATO reporting name of Blackjack) was manufactured by the Tupolev aircraft research and engineering complex joint stock company of Moscow and the Kazan-Gorbunov Aircraft Production Association in Tatarstan from 1980 to 1992.
The maiden flight of the bomber was completed in December 1981 and it entered service in April 1987. Production has since restarted and a Tu-160 was delivered to the Russian Air Force in May 2000. About 35 aircraft were built of which only 16 are in service in Russia.
Tu-160 strategic bomber
КИНОКОМПАНИЯ ОФИЦЕРЫ ВКС и ВМФ РОССИИ
The Tu-160 was designated as White Swan due to its manoeuvrability and anti-flash white finish. The purpose of the aircraft is the delivery of nuclear and conventional weapons deep in continental theatres of operation. The aircraft has all-weather, day-and-night capability and can operate at all geographical latitudes.
The performance of the Russian Tu-160 is often compared with the US B-1B.
The Tupolev Tu-160 has a general resemblance to the US B-1, though the Tu-160 is a substantially bigger aircraft and has little similarity in detail; nobody at all familiar with aircraft would confuse the two. As mentioned, the Tu-160 has a low-mounted swing wing, with “wing-body blending” between the fuselage and the inner fixed wing glove sections, and a conventional swept tail assembly. Construction is unclear — it appears to be made mostly of aircraft aluminum alloy, with some titanium and some composite assemblies. Source airvectors.net
Image: airvectors.net
US B-1B bomber: Details
Tu-160 bomber upgrades
Kazan Aircraft Production Organisation (KAPO) was awarded a contract to upgrade the Russian Air Force’s 15 Tu-160 bombers. The Tupolev upgrade package includes new targeting systems, upgraded cruise missiles and an electronic warfare suite. The first upgraded aircraft was delivered in July 2006.
In September 2008, two Tu-160 bombers made the first transatlantic flight for the type, from Murmansk to Venezuela, on a training mission.
In June 2010, two Russian Tu-160 bombers completed a record-breaking 23hr patrol covering 18,000km of flight range. The bombers flew by the borders of Russia over the Arctic and Pacific Oceans and finally landed at Engels base in the Volga region.
Tupolev completed bench tests of modernised avionics complex for the Tu-160 bomber in March 2013.
The Russian Defence Ministry awarded a RUB3.4bn ($105m) contract to Tupolev and KAPO for the modernisation of three Tu-160 bombers, in July 2013.
A Tu-160 aircraft with upgraded airborne radar and navigation equipment made first flight on 16 November 2014. It entered service with the Russian Air Force in December 2014.
Tu-160 variants
The Tu-160 has eight variants: Tu-160S, Tu-160V, Tu-160 NK-74, Tu-160M, Tu-160P, Tu-160PP, Tu-160R and Tu-160SK.
Tu-160V is an upgraded version which uses liquid hydrogen as fuel while Tu-160 NK-74 is an advance version powered by NK-74 engines.
Tu-160M can accommodate two additional long-range, hypersonic Kh-90 missiles. Tu-160P, also known as Tu-161, is a long range escort or interceptor aircraft.
Kh-90 GELA ГЭЛА (гиперзвуковой экспериментальный летательный аппарат) AS-X-21
The Kh-90 GELA ГЭЛА (гиперзвуковой экспериментальный летательный аппарат) AS-X-21 was a Soviet Russian Air to Surface cruise missile which was supposed to replace subsonic intermediate range missiles in Soviet inventory. The missile was an ambitious project, as the main objective was to develop it into hypersonic missile.
The missile was designed by Chelomei at NPO Mashinostrenniye and designated as the AS-X-21 . It was equipped with a 1 Mt thermonuclear warhead and used inertial navigation with mid-course update via data link.
Manufacturer: Chelomei. Maximum range: 3,000 km (1,900 mi). Source wikiwand.com
Tu-160SK is an upgraded commercial version principally used to launch satellites within the Burlak system.
gelio.livejournal.com
Maxim Bogodvid
Production of the modernized Tu-160M2 bomber would begin in 2020: Here
Excerpt
The serial production of upgraded Tupolev Tu-160M2 (NATO reporting name: Blackjack) strategic missile carriers will begin from 2022 and a total of 30-50 such aircraft are planned to be produced, President of Russia’s Aircraft-Building Corporation Yuri Slyusar said on Tuesday.
Russia’s Tu-160M2 Bomber More Advanced Than Anything Pentagon Has In Its Arsenal: Here
Excerpt
Russian Aerospace Forces Commander Viktor Bondarev has confirmed that the new Tu-160M2 strategic bomber would take to the skies in March 2018. Military analyst Viktor Tuchkov says that with an estimated combat effectiveness two and a half times greater than its predecessor, the Tu-160M2 is more advanced than anything the US has in its arsenal.
Smart “Swan”: new digital technologies will allow accelerating the modernization of the supersonic “strategist”: Here
Excerpt
In the Soviet time, several thousand designers worked on the design of the world’s largest supersonic bomber Tu-160 for a decade. Today, in order to ensure the reproduction of the aircraft in a new shape, the Unified Information Environment (EIS) is being created in Tupolev company, which provides digital design and production methods.
Using the EIS will allow to digitize the design documentation and launch production of the Tu-160M2 in the “digit”. In total, it is planned to attract about 1,500 specialists to participate in the project. Thanks to the EIS, all work is planned to be completed in about four years.
“Tu-160M2 differs from its predecessor in a fundamentally new complex of on-board electronics and a set of weapons,” Deputy Defense Minister of the Russian Federation Yuri Borisov said earlier. – Tu-160 in the M2 variant will be an absolutely new aircraft with a new on-board radio electronic equipment. Its efficiency will increase by 2.5 times in comparison with its predecessor. “
Russia Unveils New Tu-160M2 Strategic Super Bomber Update: Here
First images of the 1st (Soviet legacy airframe №08-04) Tu-160M2 strategic bomber during the rollout ceremony & transfer to the flight testing facility at the S.P. Grobunov Plant in Kazan on 16.11.2017. ©Iskander Asabaev. Source: RussianDefence.com
Excerpt
The Newest Version of the Massive Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack Was Rolled-Out This Week.
Russia has rolled out the latest upgrade of the world’s largest supersonic strategic bomber, the Tupolev Tu-160M2 “White Swan” NATO codename “Blackjack.
While the original version of the Tu-160 first flew in December of 1981, the program was halted with collapse of the Soviet Union. Ukraine acquired several of the aircraft that were subsequently traded back to Russia in a bombers-for-natural gas deal.
Putin Proposes Civilian Version of Russia’s Tu-160 Supersonic Strategic Bomber
pinimg.com
Speaking to officials at the Gorbunov Aviation Factory in Kazan, southwest Russia on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin pondered whether a passenger variant of the Tu-160, the supersonic variable-sweep wing heavy strategic bomber known as the White Swan, might be a viable idea.
Recalling the history of the Tu-144, the USSR’s answer to the British-French Concorde supersonic passenger airliner, Putin noted that that Soviet airliner “was taken out of production because airline tickets must take into consideration average salaries in the country.”
Today, “the situation is different,” the president said. “Big companies have appeared which could have used this aircraft.”
Pointing to the problem of Russia’s vast expanses, and the fact that a resident of Russia’s western region of Kaliningrad can fly faster to New York than he or she could to Vladivostok in the Russian Far East, Putin pondered whether perhaps Russia could make a civilian variant of the Tu-160, the successful supersonic aircraft design developed in the 1980s for the military which continues to be produced and modernized to this day.
The president expressed the idea after watching a test flight of the Pyotr Deynekin, the latest Tu-160 design.
Yuri Slyusar, the head of the United Aircraft Corporation, a company whose holdings include the Gorbunov plant, told Putin that UAC already has a project of a new supersonic passenger liner in the works.
Deputy Prime Minister Dmitri Rogozin, whose portfolio includes aerospace, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov, and Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov accompanied Putin during the plant inspection.
After observing the test flight, Putin praised the new plane’s developers and asked them to thank the test pilots on his behalf.
The Tu-144 was the Soviet Union and Russia’s first and only supersonic passenger airliner, designed by the Tupolev Design Bureau between 1960 and 1968 and produced by the Voronezh Aviation Plant. Tu-144 passenger flights flew along the Moscow-Alma Atta route for a short period in the late 1970s, with tickets priced at 1.5 times more than a flight aboard an ordinary passenger Tu-134. Despite making its first flight two months before the Concorde, the Tu-144 never achieved the same level of commercial success as its Anglo-French cousin. The Concorde, introduced in the mid-70s, continued flights across the Atlantic until the plane was retired from service in 2003. Source sputniknews.com
Tu-160 M2 Blackjack
The Russian bomber Tu-160 Blackjack is a supersonic aircraft, variable-geometry wing heavy strategic bomber. With the main purpose destroy target with precision nuclear and conventional weapons at the enemy at distances up to 10.000 km.
Tu-160 M2 – it is a deeply modernized version of the Tu-160 (M) Blackjack. The main differences concern the cockpit, powerplant, armament warehouses of electronics board and also given great importance to the reduction of Blackjack trace.
1. It has the latest generation of electronic systems(such as: a long range navigation system and other new generation subsystems); 2. Flight refuelling probe, extended; 3. consists of a four crew comprised the pilot, the co-pilot, the navigation officer and the officer weapon system; 4. The structure and or wing, bring specific depths technology “Stealth”; 5. The Blackjack has two weapons bay, with a total capacity of 40.000 kg; 6. Power Plant NK-32 after burning turbofan engines;
The modernized version of Blackjack M2 will join service not before 2023 and will remain in service until 2063.
Armament:
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X-101 (Kh-101)
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X-555 (Kh-555)
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Range: 5000-10.000 km |
Range: 2000-5000 km Cruise speed: 900 km/h Service ceiling: 40-110 m Circle of equal probability (CEP): 5 m Warhead weight (conventional head): 410 kg |
Version:
- Χ-55 («izdelie 120» or RKB-500, AS-15)
- Χ-55-ΟΚ («izdelie 124»)
- Χ-55SM («izdelie 125» or RKB-500B, AS-15b) – long range
- Χ-65 – configuration of Χ-55 with conventional warhead
- Χ-555 – conventionally armed version with an improved guidance system and warhead. In October 1999 he was first tested.
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DESIGNER
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OKB Tupolev
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COUNTRY
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Russia
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TYPE
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Strategical Bomber
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CREW
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4
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POWER-PLANT
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Four bypass engine ΝΚ-32
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Thrust, kN
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4 x 245.70
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DIMENSIONS
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Length, m
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54,10
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Height, m
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13,10
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Wing span, m
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– minimum
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35,65
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– maximum
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55,70
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Wing area, m2
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360
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WEIGHT
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Maximum take-off, kg
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275.000
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Normal take-off, kg
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267.600
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| Empty, kg | 110.000 |
| Internal fuel, kg | 171.000 |
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PERFORMANCE
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Maximum speed, km/h
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2.200
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| Max speed in low height, km/h | 1.030 |
| Cruising speed, km/h | 850 |
| Rate of climb, m/min | 4.200 |
| Combat radius, km | 6.000-15.000 |
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Service ceiling, m
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13.000
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ARMAMENT
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Warload- 22.500 kg (normal), maximum -40.000 kg.
2 drum with Cruise missiles Kh-55 and Kh-55L (Χ 55 or Χ 55M/SM (X-555 or X-101), with 12x Kh-15 with nuclear and HE warhead, thermonuclear and free fall bomb, mine. |
Tu-160 M2 Blackjack source redstar.gr
Bomber design
The bomber’s airframe has a distinctive appearance, with the wing and fuselage gradually integrated into a single-piece configuration. The airframe structure is based on a titanium beam, all-welded torsion box. Throughout the entire airframe, all the main airframe members are secured to the titanium beam.
The variable geometry outer tapered wings sweep back from 20° to 65° in order to provide high-performance flight characteristics at supersonic and subsonic speeds. The tail surfaces, horizontal and vertical, are one piece and all-moving.
The Tu-160 uses fly-by-wire controls. The aircraft is equipped with three-strut landing gear, a tail wheel and a brake parachute. It can attack strategic targets with nuclear and conventional weapons in continental theatres of operation. For take-off, the aircraft requires a concrete runway of 3,050m.
Nikolai Kuznetsov
Image: redstar.gr
Nikolai Kuznetsov
Tricycle landing gear
Image: paralay.com
Tricycle landing gear is controlled bow rack and two main units located behind the center of mass of the aircraft. Track chassis – 5400mm, chassis base – 17800 mm. The size of the main wheels – 1260h485 mm, bow – 1080h400 mm. The nose landing gear located under the technical compartment in unsealed niche (in which the hatch to enter the plane), is equipped with a two-wheeled cart with an aerodynamic deflector, “the pressing” air jets to the tarmac just “garbage”, preventing it sucked into the air intake (hereinafter aircraft It is equipped with motor protection device against foreign objects using compressed air from the turbofan compressor). The front is removed by turning back on the flight.
Front landing gear with an aerodynamic deflector behind the wheels to prevent debris from entering the engines – Image: redstar.gr
Rear landing gear – Image: paralay.com
The two main landing gear with a six-wheeled trolleys mounted directly on the center and removed back on the flight in special compartments niches. When cleaning rack shortened, that allows you to “fit” in the minimum size of the chassis cover. With the release of the main rack, pushing, shifting to 600 mm to the outside. This increases the track chassis. The chassis design allows operation with existing bomber airfields without additional work on the strengthening of the runway. Translated by google – Source paralay.com
Tu-160 cockpit
КИНОКОМПАНИЯ ОФИЦЕРЫ ВКС и ВМФ РОССИИ
The crew of the Tu-160 comprises a pilot, co-pilot, a navigator and an operator. The four crew are equipped with zero / zero ejection seats, which provide the crew with the option of ejecting safely throughout the entire range of altitudes and air speeds, including when the aircraft is parked.
There are four crew sitting in the pressurized cockpit in a 2×2 arrangement, including pilot (front left seat), co-pilot (front right seat), navigator / offensive systems operator (back left seat), and navigator / defensive countermeasures systems operator (back right seat). All crew sit on Zvezda K-36LM “zero zero (zero altitude zero speed)” ejection seats, which fire upward through doors on the roof of the cockpit. The ejection seats were eventually modified to pneumatically “pulse” to provide a massage, reducing crew weariness on long missions. The pilot and copilot have fighter-like sticks instead of yoke controls; cockpit layout is traditional, based mostly on dial indicators and displays, archaic by Western standards. A small galley and toilet are provided for crew comfort, unusual luxuries by the standards of Soviet-Russian combat aircraft. The crew get into and out of the aircraft through a door in the nose gear wheel well. Source airvectors.net
Possible look & layout of the new Tu-160M2 glass cockpit & workstations
RussianDefence.com
RussianDefence.com
RussianDefence.com
charly015.blogspot.ru
In the cockpit and cabins, all the data is presented on conventional electro-mechanical indicators and monitors, and not head-up displays or cathode ray tube displays.
The Tu-160 has a control stick for flight control as used in a fighter aircraft – rather than control wheels or yokes, which are usually used in large transporter or bomber aircraft.
КИНОКОМПАНИЯ ОФИЦЕРЫ ВКС и ВМФ РОССИИ
Weapons
The Tu-160 can carry nuclear and conventional weapons including long-range nuclear missiles. The missiles are accommodated on multi-station launchers in each of the two weapons bays.
Tu-160 Blackjack. © K. Panitsidis
Version:
- Χ-55 («izdelie 120» or RKB-500, AS-15)
- Χ-55-ΟΚ («izdelie 124»)
- Χ-55SM («izdelie 125» or RKB-500B, AS-15b) – long range
- Χ-65 – configuration of Χ-55 with conventional warhead
- Χ-555 – conventionally armed version with an improved guidance system and warhead. In October 1999 he was first tested.
source redstar.gr
Tu-160M to get New Long Range Nuclear Capable Cruise Missile: Here
Raduga Kh-55 (AS-15) subsonic air-launched cruise missiles
The Kh-55 has pop-out wings and fins, and has an INS to get to the target area and terrain-following system for terminal attack. It differs visibly from the Tomahawk in that its entire R95-300 turbofan engine is extended out of the fuselage after launch, not just the air intake.
KH-55 / AS-15 KENT (ESTIMATED SPECIFICATIONS): _____________________ _________________ _______________________ spec metric english _____________________ _________________ _______________________ wingspan 3 meters 10 feet length 6 meters 19 feet 7 inches total weight 1,500 kilograms 3,300 pounds speed subsonic range 2,500 kilometers 1,550 MI / 1,350 NMI _____________________ _________________ _______________________
Source cmano-db.com
КИНОКОМПАНИЯ ОФИЦЕРЫ ВКС и ВМФ РОССИИ
The Tu-160 is capable of carrying the strategic cruise missile Kh-55SM, which is known in the West by the Nato designation and codename AS-15 Kent. Up to 12 Kh-55SM missiles can be carried, six in each bay. The Kh-55SM is propelled by a turbofan engine. The maximum range is 3,000km, and it is armed with a 200kt nuclear warhead.
AS-15 Kent B [Kh-55SM, 200kT Nuclear]
| GENERAL DATA: | |
|---|---|
| Type: Guided Weapon | Weight: 1700 kg |
| Length: 8.9 m | Span: 3.1 m |
| Diameter: 0.77 | Generation: None |
| Properties: Terrain Following, Weapon – TERCOM Navigation, Weapon – Pre-Briefed Target Only, Level Cruise Flight |
| Targets: Land Structure – Soft, Land Structure – Hardened, Runway, Mobile Target – Soft, Mobile Target – Hardened |
| WEAPONS: |
|---|
| AS-15 Kent B [Kh-55SM, 200kT Nuclear] – (1987, Tu-95MS-16) Guided Weapon Land Max: 2963.2 km. |
Source cmano-db.com
Kh-55 series missiles are carried by Bear and Blackjack heavy bombers. The Bear can carry six in an internal rotary launcher. It can also carry more Kh-55s externally, though in an overload flight condition: two are carried on a stores attachment between the fuselage and inboard engine, and three are carried on a stores attachment between the two engines on each wing, for a total of ten missiles. Roughly 1,500 Kh-55s were built into the early 1990s.
* A naval version of the Kh-55SM designated “3K-10 Granat” (NATO codename “SS-N-21 Sampson”) was built in parallel. Sources hint that it was strictly submarine launched. There are sketchy reports of an experimental derivative of the 3K-10 named the “3M-55 (SS-N-27)” that is intended for the antiship role, and has a “warhead” that is actually a solid fuel missile that performs a terminal attack at Mach 2.5 speed.
There was also production of a limited batch of a ground-launched version for the Red Army, the “RK-55” (NATO codename “SSC-X-4 Slingshot”) that was comparable to the US GLCM, but the INF treaty that killed off the GLCM killed off the RK-55 as well.
Source craymond.no-ip.info
Kh-65 anti-ship missile
The Kh-65SE is a derivative of Kh-65 cruise missile intended as a long range, aircraft-launched anti-ship missile. It features an active radar seeker added to the Kh-55/65 navigation system for the terminal phase of the flight engagement.
The Kh-65SE has been designed to perform as a sea-skimming anti-ship missile with terminal active radar homing.
Dimensions
Diameter: 510 millimeter
Length: 6.04 meter (19.8 foot)
Wingspan: 3.10 meter
Performance
CEP: 150 meter
Max Range: 280 kilometer (151 nautical mile)
Speed
Top Speed: 256 mps (922 kph)
Weight
Warhead: 450 kilogram (992 pound)
Weight: 1,250 kilogram
Source deagel.com
Kh-555 – conventionally armed version
The Kh-555 is a conventional variant of the Kh-55. The nuclear warhead has been replaced by a 400 kg unitary HE, penetration HE, or submunitions warhead. Other notable changes include the following:
- Larger conformal fuel tanks (compared to the Kh-55SM).
- Reduced radar cross-section.
- Improved accuracy.
- Increased range, 3,500 km.
Source missilethreat.csis.org
Kh-101 air-launched cruise missile
The Kh-101 is an advanced cruise missile under development to eventually replace the Kh-55 missile onboard the Soviet/Russian strategic bombers such as Tu-160 and Tu-95. The Kh-101 has a 400-kg conventional warhead, stealth features, high subsonic speed and low altitude flight profile. The conventionally-armed Kh-101 has also been referred to as the Russian counterpart to the United States Air Force AGM-129 air launched cruise missile.
The Kh-101 has a highly accurate navigation system based on the GLONASS satellite navigation system and a highly accurate Inertial Navigation System (INS) as backup with a terminal TV-based seeker for precision-attack missions. The Kh-101 development has been strongly influenced by the successes of US military campaigns in the late 1990s and the emerging role of standoff weapons in modern conflicts. Up to eight (Tu-95) or up to 12 (Tu-160) of these missiles can be carried by a single Russian heavyweight bomber.
The Kh-101 and Kh-102 air launched cruise missile are supposed to be members of the same family of missiles sharing components and overall performance. The main difference between them is their warhead. As of 2006, the Kh-101 was near ready for deployment. Unconfirmed reports suggest that the missile entered service in early 2012 or later in 2013/2014.
Performance
CEP: 6 meter
Max Cruising Flight Altitude: 10,000 meter
Max Range: 5,500 kilometer (2,970 nautical mile)
Min Cruising Flight Altitude: 30 meter
Speed
Cruise Speed: 972 kph (0.81 mach)
Top Speed: 1,236 kph (1.03 mach)
Weight
Warhead: 400 kilogram
Weight: 2,400 kilogram
Source deagel.com
The weapons bays are also fitted with launchers for the Kh-15P, which has the Nato designation and codename AS-16 Kickback. The Kh-15P Kickback has solid rocket fuel propulsion, which gives a range up to 200km. The Kickback can be fitted with a conventional 250kg warhead or a nuclear warhead. The aircraft is also capable of carrying a range of aerial bombs with a total weight up to 40t.
KH-15 (AS-16 KICKBACK)
Even the fast KSR-5 left something to be desired. Storable rocket propellants are corrosive and highly toxic, making them difficult to handle, and the KSR-5’s range and capability were inadequate. In the 1970s, the US Navy developed the Grumman F-14 Tomcat interceptor, which featured long-range Phoenix air-to-air missiles. The Tomcat / Phoenix combination, backed up by the Grumman E-2C Hawkeye carrier-based radar early warning aircraft, presented a clear threat to Soviet bombers operating in the anti-ship role. The Hawkeye could provide long-range “eyes” for the Tomcat, which had long range and endurance, allowing it to fire a Phoenix at a Soviet bomber long before the Red aircraft got within range of a carrier group. If the bomber did manage to take a shot with a cruise missile, the Phoenix might well shoot the missile down.
The Tomcat / Phoenix / Hawkeye threat led the Soviets to develop the low-level launch versions of the Kh-22 and KSR-5 missiles, and also to work on a missile that was much harder to intercept. The Soviets were impressed enough by the Boeing SRAM that Raduga developed an equivalent, the “Kh-15 (AS-16 Kickback)”, which has almost the same external appearance as the SRAM. It was the first Soviet large ASM with solid-fuel rocket propulsion.
The Kh-15 is a simple spike of a missile with three tailfins. The resemblance to SRAM is so close that it is tempting to refer to the Kh-15 as “SRAMski”. Unlike SRAM, however, as with the other large Soviet ASMs, the Kh-15 was designed for both strategic and anti-ship attack. There are three versions: the standard Kh-15 nuclear-armed strategic variant, with inertial guidance only; a conventionally-armed anti-ship variant, the “Kh-15A”, with an active radar terminal seeker; and an antiradar variant, the “Kh-15P”, with a passive radar seeker. An export version of the Kh-15A, the “Kh-15S”, was also built. After launch, the missile climbs to the edge of space and then dives on the target steeply at Mach 5, making it very hard to hit.
Raduga began work on the Kh-15 in the late 1960s and it was accepted for service in the early 1980s. A Tu-22M Backfire bomber can carry six Kh-15s in a revolver launcher in the weapons bay, plus four more under the wings. It is also carried by the Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack bomber. Source craymond.no-ip.info
КИНОКОМПАНИЯ ОФИЦЕРЫ ВКС и ВМФ РОССИИ
The Aviation Thermobaric Bomb of Increased Power (ATBIP), nicknamed the “Father of All Bombs” (FOAB)
“Father of All Bombs” (FOAB) – Image: globalsecurity.org
Probably the most powerful conventional (non-nuclear) weapon in the world today is Russian “Aviation Thermobaric Bomb of Increased Power” (ATBIP, Russian: Авиационная вакуумная бомба повышенной мощности (АВБПМ)), nicknamed “Father of All Bombs” (FOAB) (Отец всех бомб). It is a Russian-made air-delivered / land activated thermobaric vacuum bomb with the same destructive power as a small tactical nuclear weapon.
Image: hightechnologyzone.blogspot.com
FOAB overview
Blast yield of 44 tons of TNT produces just 7.8 tons of a new type of high explosive (explosive that produces supersonic velocity “shock front” and higher temperatures), developed with the use of nanotechnology. The bomb contains a 6,400 kilogram (6.4t) charge of a liquid fuel such as ethylene oxide, mixed with an energetic nanoparticle such as aluminium, surrounding a high explosive burster.
The bomb was successfully field-tested in the late evening of September 11, 2007. In describing the bomb’s destructive power, Russian deputy armed forces chief of staff Alexander Rukshin was quoted as saying, “all that is alive merely evaporates”. According to the Russian military, the new weapon will replace several smaller types of nuclear bombs in its arsenal. Source hightechnologyzone.blogspot.com
The bomb is reportedly four times as powerful as the US military’s GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb (whose official military acronym “MOAB” is often colloquially called the “Mother of All Bombs” as a backronym). This Russian device would therefore be the most powerful conventional (non-nuclear) weapon in the world.
At the same time there is a nonlinear relationship between the power of the bomb and the area damaged. The Russian bomb area 20 is larger and the combustion temperature is a factor of 2 higher. The picture of destruction by explosion AVBPM follows:
- 90 meters from the epicenter – the complete destruction of even the most hardened structures.
- 200 meters from the epicenter – the complete destruction of unfortified structures and the almost complete destruction of concrete structures.
- 300 meters from the epicenter – the almost complete destruction of unfortified structures (houses). Reinforced structure partially destroyed.
- 450 meters from the epicenter – partial destruction unfortified designs.
- 1100 meters from the epicenter – the shock wave breaks the glass.
- 2300 meters from the epicenter – the shock wave can knock a person down.
Source globalsecurity.org
Tu-160 avionics
КИНОКОМПАНИЯ ОФИЦЕРЫ ВКС и ВМФ РОССИИ
The aircraft is highly computerised, and the avionics systems include an integrated aiming, navigation and flight control system, with a navigation and attack radar, an electronic countermeasures system, and automatic controls.
The nose of the aircraft contains the Obzor-K (Survey) radar, which is used for both ground and air observation. It also contains another radar, the Sopka (Hill), which is used for terrain following when flying at low altitude. The upper center part in front of the windscreen contains the retractable inflight refuelling probe. Under the front fuselage there is a forward looking OPB-15T optical bombing sight and video. Behind the sight, there is the nose gear. The four man crew enters the cabin through the front gear bay. The pressurized cabin has four fighterjet-like K-36LM ejection seats. There are two control sticks for commander pilot (front left) and co-pilot (front right). The Tu-160 has a conventional flight deck, which is divided by a central console with the thrust and flap selection levers for the co-pilot. Behind the pilots there is the navigator/offensive weapons operator (left) and the navigator/electronic warfare and communications operator (right). Behind the crew there is corridor leading to a galley and a toilet.
The Tu-160 houses a Baykal self-defence systems of which most systems are located in the ‘carrot’ tail cone. These systems include a Mak (Poppy) infra-red missile launch sensor, radar warning receiver, electronic jammer and a battery of APP-50 chaff/flare dispensers. The underside of the tailcone houses the brake chutes. Directional control is provided by an all moving fin. Source milavia.net
Obzor-K radar
Leninetz Obzor-MS clam pipe navigation and attack pulse-doppler radar (pictured here on a Tu-95) – Image: ausairpower.net
Obzor-K is an updated version of Obzor designed for the Tu-160 (Aircraft K). Linked to Sopka TFR. Range is around 300km.
A modernised Obzor radar is being developed for upgrading remaining Tu-160 and some Tu-95MS with LPI (Low Probability of Interception) and SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) modes. Source aerospace.boopidoo.com
Retractable inflight refuelling probe
КИНОКОМПАНИЯ ОФИЦЕРЫ ВКС и ВМФ РОССИИ
OPB-15T optical bombing sight and video
OPB-15T optical bombing sight and video under the nose of Tu-160 – Image: redstar.gr
Astrovizir AB-1 SM astro-navigation system
Image: militaryrussia.ru
In the mid 80-ies in the CDB “Arsenal” it was developed and produced in series astro-navigation system AV-1cm to determine (with inertial gyroscopic system and on-board computing device) aircraft position coordinates (strategic missile carrier Tu-160) at the lengthy duration of the flight. With its small size and weight, this asthma rovizir able to measure the angular coordinates of the stars to the 4th magnitude against the backdrop of the daytime sky with an accuracy of less than 0.01 arc. Translated by google – source tinlib.ru
Baykal self-defence systems
Image: redstar.gr
APP-50 chaff/flare dispensers
The APP-50 passive jamming automatic units (decoy dispensers) are designed to protect aircraft from engagement in flight by airborne missile systems and air defence missile/artillery systems by dispensing radar/IR interference rounds. The dispensers are installed onboard aircraft, and can be controlled manually (from the control panel) or automatically. The APP-50 dispensers can be delivered in two variants: APP-50P for autonomous operation; APP-50A for integration into onboard electronic support systems. The dispenser can launch rounds (up to three types) in continuous, salvo, combined and emergency modes. Launch time intervals, number of salvos and number of rounds in one salvo (from 1 to 4) are set by operator or by the electronic support system.
Developer and manufacturer: Gorizont JSC
Performance:
| Launch altitude envelope, m | 0 – 30, 000 |
| Launch time intervals, sec | 0,1 – 8,0 |
| Round types | PRP-50, PPI-50 |
| Caliber, mm | 50 |
| Number of rounds | 24 |
| Dispenser weight (loaded), kg | 53 – 56,5 |
| Launch modes | continuous,
salvo, by series |
Source ktrv.ru
Image: redstar.gr
Tu-160M2 to Have New Avionics That Will Increase Its Effectiveness Twofold
In addition to a new engine, Russia’s elite Tupolev Tu-160M2 strategic bomber (“White Swan”) is capable of carrying cruise and nuclear missiles and will receive cutting-edge avionics, said Vladimir Mikheev, the adviser of the deputy head of Russia’s Radio-Electronic Technologies Concern (RETC), according to Rossiyskaya Gazeta.
The new avionics and electronic warfare system of the Tu-160, codenamed Blackjack by NATO military experts, will begin this year. Construction of the design materials and documentation of battle performance characteristics and technical specifications are currently underway, Mikheev informed.
“There will be nothing left from the earlier version of Tu-160, only the platform. Much more advanced hardware will be installed on it,” Mikheev said, as cited by Rossiyskaya Gazeta.
The new avionics system is currently being tested on the Sukhoi PAK FA Tu-50, Russia’s fifth-generation fighter. After that, military engineers will take best elements tested on the Tu-50 and use them to create an aircraft with fundamentally new capabilities, the official representative of RETC said.
The new strategic bomber will also be equipped with an advanced radio-electronic system, highly effective against anti-aircraft missiles.
The revival of the production of this bomber was announced by the Russian Defense Minister in April 2015.
The Tu-160M2’s advanced equipment will make it possible to increase its effectiveness by more than two-fold as compared to the old version.
Turbofan engines
The aircraft propulsion system consists of four Samara NK-321 turbofan engines, each of which provide a maximum thrust of 25,000kg. The engines are installed in two pods under the shoulders of the wing. The air intake incorporates an adjustable vertical wedge.
Air intake incorporates an adjustable vertical wedge – Image: paralay.com
The bomber has an in-flight refuelling system. In the inoperative position, the refuelling probe is retracted into the nose of the fuselage in front of the pilot’s cabin. The aircraft fuel capacity is 160,000kg.
Russian will receive the first delivery of the renewed NK-32 engines for the Tu-160M2 bombers: Here
Excerpt
The renewed Tu-160M2 will be able to fly at an altitude level of 60,000 feet, where no existing anti-aircraft or missile defense system can reach it.
At the end of 2016 the Russian Defense Ministry will receive the first delivery of the renewed NK-32 engines for the Tu-160M2 strategic missile-carrying bombers.
According to the developers, the new engine will help the plane fly up to the stratosphere at an altitude of 60,000 feet.
“The new NK-32 version can work not only as a reactive plane engine but also as a rocket engine. Thanks to this the Tu-160M2 will be able to cruise at a height where no enemy anti-aircraft system can strike it,” said a source at the Russian defense industry.
Kuznetsov to test Tu-160M2’s NК-32-02 turbofans on the modernised test stand: Here
Excerpt
The aircraft test stand No. 1 of the Samara PJSC Kuznetsov (part of the United Engine Building Corporation) after a large-scale reconstruction was certified for the new NK-32 series 02 engines for the Tu-160 bomber-bomber.
The commissioning of this facility is a significant step in the production of the NK-32 series 02 engine for the Tu-160 series. It is here that new and repair engines of this type will be tested.
NK-32 engine
NK-32 is a three-shaft turbofan engine with 3-stage. fan, 5-stage. střednětlakým compressor with discharge of compressed air to further letounové systems 7-trans. a high pressure compressor (the compressor blades are made of titanium, steel, and in the steps of high pressure from nickel alloys). The engine has an annular combustion chamber with two lighters 1-trans. high pressure turbine blades monocrystalline, 1-trans. with medium and two-stage. high pressure turbine. The mixer currents afterburner chamber with a reduced infrared radiation and limited dýmením. Restrictions dýmení probably so true for Take-off with afterburner. Takeoff Tu-160 is in fact accompanied by a distinctive orange smoke nicknamed “foxtail”. This coloring is caused by the use of nitride fuels and a high proportion of nitrogen oxides in flue gas. Even so, the NK-32 one of the first engine on which were applied some approaches to reduce radar visibility and reduce infrared radiation. Output nozzle is a convergent-divergent having an outer diameter of 970-1760 mm.
Image: redstar.gr
Current status of NK-32
Status after production
Serial production of engines NK-32 finished sometime in 1992-1994 (eg. Baranova OKB in 1994 ceased production of some components of the engine). In the following years many race only carried out repairs and inspections. And in a very limited capacity – at best, while only worked on one engine, others did not order any. This corresponded to a stagnation of the entire Russian Air Force.
Modernization
According to sources [Tomsk] had already done before 1996 modernization of the Tu-160 (marked by some media aircraft Tu-160M). Something started to happen but in the new millennium
In 2004-2006, based on government procurement carried out modernization of NK-32: Kuznetsov plant produced (or modified?) Several engines, which has been greatly increased resurs compared to the original types. This contract coincided with the beginning of an initiative on the modernization of the Russian long-range aviation. The first modified aircraft, the aircraft was No.02-02 “Valentin Bliznjuk” into service in the Air Force back filed July 5, 2006.
However, although the Russian Air Force plans its modernization in 2015, agency contract to modernize the entire fleet of NK-32 at that time received. Until mid-2007, at a meeting of representatives of the office Tupolev and OKB Kuznetsova confirmed the need for further operation and modernization of engines NK-32nd
The development office planned in 2008 to create documentation for the conversion of existing engines NK-32 phase I to release the NK-32 Phase II and from 2009 onwards to implement these modifications to increase the reliability and economical operation of power units of airplanes Tu-160th The changes should apply to the core engine, it should implement some structural and technological elements applied by ground gas turbine NK-37th One of the sources already in 2006 indicates that NK-32 engines Stage II have been tested on a test stand. Necessity to accelerate repairs and modernization of NK-32 is gaining prominence mainly because the Russian Air Force currently stepping up its activities.
КИНОКОМПАНИЯ ОФИЦЕРЫ ВКС и ВМФ РОССИИ
| – | NK-32/321 | RD-36-51 | RD-36-51 | |
| Thrust – maximal | kp | 14000 | 20000 | |
| – Full afterburner | kp | 25000 | 20000 | |
| – Supersonic cruise mode | kp | 5100 | 5100 | |
| – Subsonic cruising mode | kp | |||
| – To overcome M = 1 adj. He slept. | kp | |||
| – idle | kp | |||
| SFC – maximum thrust | kg.kp -1.h -1 | |||
| – Full afterburner | kg.kp -1.h -1 | |||
| – Supersonic cruise mode | kg.kp -1.h -1 | 1.26 | 1.26 | |
| – Subsonic cruising mode | ||||
| Airflow | kg.s -1 | 365 (?) | ||
| pass ratio | 1.36 | |||
| Compressibility blower | ||||
| The total compression of the compressor | – | 28.2 | ||
| Maximum temperature before turbine | C | 1357 | ||
| The total length of the engine | mm | 7453 | 5228 | |
| The maximum diameter of the engine | mm | 1700 8) | 1415 | |
| diameter blowers | mm | |||
| Dry weight engine | kg | 3650 | 4125 | |
| The full weight of the engine | kg | |||
| Acceleration from idle to max. Draft | with | |||
| Acceleration from idle to full adj. He slept. | with | |||
| Source | – | [Dvig] | [SST] |
Source leteckemotory.cz
NK-32 based engine developed for PAK DA
The prototype engine for the PAK DA on a test bench of “Kuznetsov”, the publication of 13.11.2014 ( http://www.tupolev.ru/ ).
Four engines are installed in pairs in nacelles at the bottom of the fuselage. TA-12 APU is used as a stand-alone power unit. Source tupolev.ru
TA-12A APU
TA12-60 is a single-shaft auxiliary gas-turbine engine with the equivalent power of 360 kWt. This engine is designed for aircraft and helicopter APUs. It is used for air turbine start of the helicopter and aircraft mid-flight engines, AC electric power of 115/200 V, power up to 60 kWA and providing air conditioning for cockpit and cabins.
High overall efficiency of the engine is based on the use of a 4-stage axial compressor. An annular reverse-flow combustion chamber of evaporative type provides 0,99 burning and low content of hydrocarbons in the exhaust gases. The engine contains a 3-stage axial turbine. Driving units, including alternator, are installed on the engine’s gearbox.
The noise level of the TA12-60 engine, when installed on the craft, does not exceed 90 dB.
The engine complies with the Norms of Aircraft Airworthiness (NLGS-3); this is confirmed by a type certificate No 101-VD issued by the Aviation Register of the IAC.
Since 2005 the TA 12-60 APU has been operated under the second strategy. The TA 12-60 APU is operated subject to the technical condition till the specified life time of the principle components is terminated (4,000 hr/starts).
The TA12-60 engine has been in serial production since 1996.
APPLICATION: Tu-204, Tu-214, Tu-334, Be-200, An-70, Yak-42.
Technical features:
| Absorbed electric power of AC, kVA | 60 |
| Bleed air consumption, kgf | 1,6 |
| Bleed air pressure, kgf/sm2 | 4,9 |
| Bleed air temperature, °С | 250 |
| Start and operation altitude, m | 7000/9000 |
| Environmental temperature, °С | ± 60 |
| Weight (without generator), kg | 297 |
| Specified number of operating hours/starts | 2000/4000 |
| Overall dimensions, mm | 1588х682х718 |
Source aerosila.ru
T24
Performance
The Tu-160 can climb at a rate of 70m per second. The maximum and cruise speeds of the bomber are 2,220km per hour and 960km per hour, respectively. The range of the aircraft is 12,300km. Its combat radius is 7,300km.
The service ceiling is 16,000m. The Tu-160 has a flight endurance of 15 hours.
The aircraft weighs around 110,000kg and its maximum take-off weight is 275,000kg.
Main material source airforce-technology.com
Revised Apr 11, 2017
Updated Jun 03, 2018
Performance characteristics of Tu-160
Crew: 4 persons
Dimensions TU-160
Length: 54.1 m; Wingspan: 55.7 / 50.7 / 35.6 m; Height: 13.1 m; Wing area: 232 m²
Empty weight: 110 000 kg
Normal takeoff weight: 267,600 kg
Maximum takeoff weight: 275,000 kg
Engines: 4 × turbofans NK-32
Thrust max: 4 × 18 000 kg
thrust in afterburner 4 × 25 000 kg
fuel Weight: 148 000 kg
Maximum speed: at a height – 2,200 km / h (M = 1.6); In land – 1030 km / h (M = 0.84)
Cruising speed: 850 km / h (M = 0.69)
Maximum range without refueling 18 950 km
Practical range without refueling 12 300 km
combat radius of 6,000 km
Length flight: 25 hours
Practical ceiling: 22 000 m
Rate of climb: 4,400 m / min,
the run / Running distance: 900 m
thrust-to-weight ratio: at maximum take-off weight, 0.37; at normal takeoff weight-0.36
Source kollektsiya.ru
Image: combataircraft.com
Image ausairpower.net
Thai Military and Asian Region 