Stalin's Bomber; the Remarkable Tupolev Tu-4

[nuuumannn]

Hi Guys, the most recent addition to my warbird site is the 'B-29-ski - Soviet Superfortress' the Tupolev Tu-4. I have added the aeroplane as a focus page examining its history and design aspects, as well as images. The development of the Tu-4 was an incredible story and researching the text, which forms the basis of an article for a magazine, gave me a better appreciation of both the aircraft itself and the B-29 from whence it came. The Boeing bomber really was a big advance over its predecessors, so to the Russians it was positively alien. Many of the tools and techniques employed in the B-29's construction were just not used by the Soviets when they began building the Tu-4. Whilst I was in China I saw two of the last three surviving complete examples of the Tu-4, and I had photographed the only Russian survivor many years ago at Monino, so take a look at these images, then link to the What's New page below.

Monino

Crew positions

Powerplant

Landing gear

Armament

Fuselage

Link to page: Warbirds | Warbirds Walkaround

 

[airminded88]

Cool photographs!
I have always found the story of the Tu-4 very fascinating and would like to learn more about it.

Cheers

 

[Peter Gunn]

Nice pics! Thanks.

Man those are some big time props on that thing, and what engines is it sporting?

 

[Elmas]

View: https://youtu.be/S7Wzs7GLqmk


It is very amusing that the Russian engineers did realize that certain small defects of the plane could have been corrected but, since Stalin had ordered to reproduce the B-29 exactly as it was, they did not dare to do it ...

 

[vikingBerserker]

It is very impressive how they reversed engineered them.

 

[Wurger]

 

[fubar57]

Good stuff. It don't look right the them engines

 

[Gnomey]

Great shots!

 

[nuuumannn]

I have always found the story of the Tu-4 very fascinating and would like to learn more about it.

Click on the link and you can!

and what engines is it sporting?

Ditto re the link.

since Stalin had ordered to reproduce the B-29 exactly as it was, they did not dare to do it

You got it. It's difficult for us in our societies today to fathom that kind of ruthless power.

It don't look right with them engines

Yep, Geo, I've always thought the B-29 was a sexy beast, but those nacelles don't do any good at all to its looks.

 

[Graeme]

Nice photos and story Grant!

Sometimes forgotten is Tupolev built a civil version before the Tu-4 flew....

 

[Graeme]

 

[Airframes]

Great stuff.

 

[parsifal]

amazing

 

[nuuumannn]

Sometimes forgotten is Tupolev built a civil version before the Tu-4 flew

Yes, the Tu-12 or 'Samolyot 70' later Tu-70. Note that it has the B-29 style nose glazing; it actually incorporated components from captured B-29s, including outer wings, engine nacelles, flaps, undercarriage etc; so a lot of B-29 in there. Only the fuselage was new, really. The prototype flew in October 1946, four months before the prototype B-4 (Tu-4), which was the copy, not incorporating B-29 parts. A pure cargo variant was also built, the Tu-75, which had a slightly different fuselage to the Tu-70.

 

[Peter Gunn]

Click on the link and you can!



Ditto re the link.

*SNIP*

Ahh, many thanks, the Mark I Eyeball system I am using apparently suffered a major failure and I missed it.

 

[Wayne Little]

Cool stuff.