Tu-160 "White Swan" #2

https://t.me/imperialherald/12517

"When NATO tried to intercept it, the plane simply folded its wings and in the blink of an eye, it was gone. The American F-35 fighters could not catch up merely in terms of speed," he said. wrote:

The missile will catch up with him quickly. The Tu-160 bomber is defenseless in enemy airspace.

Even when flying, the 2M is very easy to intercept for modern air-to-air and SAM missiles

but if they did they could have Su-57 escorts and S-400 coverage quite some distance in. LIKE wrote:

S 400 Coverage?Just not like they protected the A 50U. Russian AD is shooting at VKS for now

Even an SR-71 flying 3.3 M above the USSR 50 years ago could have been intercepted without any major problems. A Tu-160 flying over enemy territory 2M is a very easy target. Of course, it is a platform for carrying ALCM and is intended to fly over Russian territory.

New and modernized Tu-160M ​​strategic bombers

On February 21, 2024, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin visited the Kazan Aviation Plant (KAZ) named after S.P. Gorbunov - a branch of PJSC Tupolev PJSC United Aircraft Corporation (PJSC UAC) in Kazan, where he was shown four modernized Tu-160M ​​strategic bombers - two modernized combat aircraft and two newly built aircraft. Four modernized Tu-160M ​​strategic bombers in the new workshop of the Kazan Aviation Plant (KAZ) named after S.P. Gorbunov - a branch of PJSC Tupolev PJSC United Aircraft Corporation (PJSC UAC). Presented are two combat strategic bombers upgraded to the Tu-160M ​​level with serial numbers 8-01 (tail number “06 red”, registration number RF-94105, name “Ilya Muromets”) and 8-02 (tail number “07 red”, registration number RF-94106, name “Alexander Molodchiy”) and two newly built Tu-160M ​​bombers with serial numbers 9-02 (tail number “22 red”) and 9-03 (tail number “23 red”). Kazan, 02.21.2024 (c) PJSC "United Aircraft Corporation"



Judging by the distributed photo and video materials, as well as statements by the UAC leaders accompanying V. Putin, the President of Russia was shown combat strategic bombers upgraded at KAZ to the Tu-160M ​​level with serial numbers 8-01 (tail number “06 red”, registration number RF -94105, name "Ilya Muromets", made its first flight in 1994) and 8-02 (tail number "07 red", registration number RF-94106, name "Alexander Molodchiy", made its first flight in 2000).

Regarding the program for modernizing already manufactured Tu-160 bombers to the Tu-160M ​​level, we recall that the first prototype of the modernized Tu-160M ​​strategic bomber was converted from a combat bomber with serial number 4-05 and the name “Igor Sikorsky”, which previously had tail number “14” "and registration number RF-94103. The aircraft made its first flight after completion of conversion at the Kazan Aviation Plant on February 2, 2020. Then, new NK-32 series 02 (NK-32-02) engines were installed on the aircraft for testing, the first flight with which was made at the KAZ airfield on November 3, 2020. After completing the flight testing stage, on March 10, 2021, this aircraft flew to continue testing from Kazan to the flight test and development base of Tupolev PJSC in Zhukovsky, where, apparently, it still flies.

The second aircraft upgraded to the Tu-160M ​​level was a bomber with serial number 4-01 and the name “Boris Veremey” (previously it had tail number “09”). This aircraft with a new registration number RF-94444, immediately equipped with new NK-32 series 02 engines (NK-32-02), began flight tests in September 2021.

The third aircraft upgraded to the level of the Tu-160M, apparently, was the aircraft with serial number 8-01 (tail number “06 red”, name “Ilya Muromets”), which made its first flight in Kazan in December 2022. The fourth aircraft that completed modernization to the Tu-160M ​​level with serial number 8-02 (tail number “07 red”, name “Alexander Young”) was rolled out in December 2022 and began flight tests in February 2023.

On February 22, 2024, V. Putin made a 30-minute flight from the KAZ airfield as part of the crew of the modernized Tu-160M ​​bomber with serial number 8-01 (tail number “06 red”, name “Ilya Muromets”).

As for the new Tu-160M ​​aircraft, on February 21 V. Putin was shown the second and third production aircraft of the new production with serial numbers 9-02 (tail number “22 red”) and 9-03 (tail number “23 red”) , already painted. It is known that the aircraft with serial number 9-02 was rolled out to KAZ in December 2022 and made its first flight there in July 2023. During V. Putin’s visit on February 21, the latter proposed that this aircraft be given the name “Mintimer Shaimiev”. As for the aircraft with serial number 9-03, its flight tests apparently have not yet begun.

On January 25, 2018, the Russian Ministry of Defense, in the presence of Russian President V. Putin, signed in Kazan with Tupolev PJSC a contract worth 160 billion rubles for the construction of ten new Tu-160M ​​bombers (also sometimes designated Tu-160M2) by 2027. The first (experimental) Tu-160M ​​bomber built under this contract, with serial number 9-01, was made from stock left over from Soviet times, and made its first flight in Kazan on January 12, 2022, the completion of its factory flight tests was announced in December 2022. In February 2023, it received the name "Valentina Tereshkova" and has the tail number "21 red" and registration number RF-66017. At the beginning of 2024, it remained at KAZ, but was not publicly demonstrated to V. Putin during his visit on February 21.

On February 23, 2024, in his congratulations on the occasion of Defender of the Fatherland Day, V. Putin stated that “literally the other day in Kazan, four Tu-160M ​​missile carriers were transferred to the Armed Forces.” Earlier on December 19, 2023, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu at an extended meeting of the board of the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that “the delivery of four Tu-160M ​​strategic missile carriers to the strategic aviation nuclear forces is being completed.” It can be assumed that the four specified Tu-160M ​​aircraft transferred to the Armed Forces Russia, include two combat bombers, modernized to the Tu-160M ​​level, demonstrated to V. Putin with serial numbers 8-01 (tail number “06 red”, registration number RF-94105, name “Ilya Muromets”) and 8-02 (tail number “ 07 red", registration number RF-94106, name "Alexander Molodchiy"), as well as the first two newly built Tu-160M ​​bombers with serial numbers 9-01 (tail number "21 red", registration number RF-66017, name "Valentina" Tereshkova") and 9-02 (tail number "22 red", planned name "Mintimer Shaimiev").








Four modernized Tu-160M ​​strategic bombers in the new workshop of the Kazan Aviation Plant (KAZ) named after S.P. Gorbunov - a branch of PJSC Tupolev PJSC United Aircraft Corporation (PJSC UAC). Presented are two combat strategic bombers upgraded to the Tu-160M ​​level with serial numbers 8-01 (tail number “06 red”, registration number RF-94105, name “Ilya Muromets”) and 8-02 (tail number “07 red”, registration number RF-94106, name “Alexander Molodchiy”) and two newly built Tu-160M ​​bombers with serial numbers 9-02 (tail number “22 red”) and 9-03 (tail number “23 red”). Kazan, 02.21.2024 (c) PJSC "United Aircraft Corporation", RIA Novosti and MIA "Russia Today"





https://bmpd.livejournal.com/4805475.html

I'm not sure if the Russian air force has changed their roundel design back to the old Red star version



The new roundel is supposed to have an additional blue color

have a question about the speed ranges of the Tu-160. The maximum speed is over 2M. The question is how long can the Tu-160 fly at maximum speed? They say that at a speed of 1.5M its range is 2000km, at 2M it will probably be about 1000km? Of course, it can fly at a speed of 2M longer than any tactical aircraft. Why didn't the Russians optimize this bomber for long-duration cruising supersonic speeds? Like the Tu-144, which can fly 2M for almost the entire flight? In the case of a strategic bomber, are there any significant technical limitations to maintain such a speed for a significant part of the flight? Is it just not worth it? Most Tu-160 flights remain in safe Russian airspace anyway. However, the long supersonic cruising speed allows for faster missile strikes on targets, etc.