Throughout history, man has been drawn to overcome all possible barriers. One of them has long been the speed of sound. On the this moment there are many supersonic aircraft, some of which are actively used by various states, while others, for one reason or another, no longer take to the skies.
In the course of developments that have been going on for many decades, not only supersonic military fighters were designed, but also civilian liners, which for some time carried passengers.
The development of aircraft capable of exceeding it began in the middle of the last century. This was during World War II, when German scientists were hard at work trying to develop a supersonic aircraft that could turn the tide of the war.
However, the war ended, and many of the German scientists who worked on these developments were captured by the Americans. Largely thanks to them, the United States developed a rocket-powered aircraft - the Bell X-1, on which in 1947 Chuck Yeager was the first in the world to exceed the speed of sound.
A year later, the Soviet Union came to a similar result, developing the LA-176, which first caught up with the speed of sound at an altitude of 9000 meters, and a month later, having received improved engines, it exceeded it at an altitude of 7000 meters.
Unfortunately, the project was closed due to the tragic death of O.V. Sokolovsky, one of the pilots of this aircraft. Further, progress in the design of supersonic aircraft slowed down due to some physical obstacles: air liquefaction at too high speed, changes in aerodynamics and streamlining. A serious obstacle was the overheating of aircraft breaking the sound barrier. This phenomenon is called flutter.
Over the next few years, designers worked on streamlining, aerodynamics, hull materials and other improvements.
Military aviation in the 1950s
At the beginning of this decade, the US and the USSR, competing in all areas, developed the F-100 Super Saber and MiG-19. At first, the American F-100 overtook the Soviet MiG, reaching a speed of 1215 kilometers per hour in 1953, but a year later the Soviet MiG was able to get ahead of it, accelerating to 1450 kilometers per hour.
Despite the absence of open military clashes between the US and the USSR, in the local conflicts of the Vietnam and Korean Wars, it was found that the Soviet MiG was in many ways superior to its American competitor.
The MiG-19 was lighter, took to the air faster, outperformed the competitor in dynamic performance, and the radius of its combat use was 200 kilometers higher than the F-100.
Such circumstances led to an increased interest in Soviet developments from the Americans, and after the end of the Korean War, officer No Geum Sok hijacked a MiG-19 from a Soviet air base, providing it to the United States, for which he received a reward of $ 100,000.
Civil supersonic aviation
The technical developments obtained during the war years gave impetus to the rapid development of aviation in the 60s. The main problems caused by breaking the sound barrier were solved, and the designers were able to start designing the first civil supersonic aircraft.
The flight of the first supersonic airliner designed to carry passengers took place in 1961. This aircraft was a Douglas DC-8, flown without passengers, with ballast placed on board to simulate their weight for testing in conditions as close to real as possible. At the time of descent from a height of 15877, a speed of 1262 km / h was developed.
Also, the speed of sound was unplanned by the Boeing 747 when the plane, heading from Taipei to Los Angeles, as a result of a malfunction and incompetence of the crew, entered an uncontrolled dive. Diving from an altitude of 125,000 meters to 2,900 meters, the aircraft exceeded the speed of sound, while receiving damage to the tail section and delivering serious injuries to two passengers. The incident happened in 1985.
In total, two aircraft were built that could truly exceed the speed of sound in regular flights. They were the Soviet Tu-144 and the Anglo-French Aérospatiale-BAC Concorde. Apart from these aircraft, no other passenger aircraft could maintain supersonic cruising speed.
Tu-144 and Concorde
The Tu-144 is rightfully considered the first supersonic passenger aircraft in history, because it was built before the Concorde. These liners were distinguished not only by excellent specifications but also graceful appearance- many consider them the most beautiful aircraft in the history of aviation.
Unfortunately, the Tu-144 was not only the first supersonic passenger aircraft to take to the skies, but also the first airliner of this type to crash. In 1973, during the crash at Le Bourget, 14 people died, which was the first impetus for the cessation of flights on this machine.
The second Tu-144 crash occurred in the Moscow region in 1978 - a fire started on the plane, due to which the landing for two crew members turned into a fatal outcome.
During the inspection, it was established that the cause of the fire was a defect in the fuel system of the new engine, which was being tested at that time, otherwise the aircraft showed excellent performance, as it was able to land in the event of a fire. Despite this, commercial rails on it were discontinued.
Concorde served European aviation much longer - flights on it continued from 1976 to 2003. However, in 2000, this liner also crashed. While taking off in Charles de Gaulle, the plane caught fire and crashed to the ground, killing 113 people.
Concorde in the entire history of flights never began to pay off, and after the disaster, the flow of passengers decreased so much that the project became even more unprofitable, and three years later flights on this supersonic aircraft ceased.
Specifications Tu-144
Many people wonder what was the speed of a supersonic aircraft? Consider the technical characteristics of the aircraft, which has long been the pride of domestic aviation:
- Crew - 4 people;
- Capacity - 150 people;
- The ratio of length and height is 67/12.5 meters;
- Maximum weight - 180 tons;
- Thrust with afterburner - 17500 kg / s;
- Cruising speed -2200 km/h;
- The maximum flight altitude is 18000 meters;
- Flight range - 6500 kilometers.
Tu-144 is a Soviet supersonic aircraft developed by the Tupolev Design Bureau in the 1960s. Along with the Concorde, it is one of only two supersonic airliners ever to be used by airlines for commercial purposes.
In the 60s, aviation circles in the USA, Great Britain, France and the USSR actively discussed projects for the creation of a passenger supersonic aircraft with a maximum speed of 2500-3000 km / h, a flight range of at least 6-8 thousand km. In November 1962, France and Great Britain signed an agreement on the joint development and construction of the Concorde (Consent).
The creators of the supersonic aircraft
In the Soviet Union, the design bureau of academician Andrey Tupolev was engaged in the creation of a supersonic aircraft. At a preliminary meeting of the Design Bureau in January 1963, Tupolev stated:
“Thinking about the future of air transportation of people from one continent to another, you come to an unequivocal conclusion: supersonic airliners are undoubtedly needed, and I have no doubt that they will come into life ...”
The son of the academician, Alexei Tupolev, was appointed the lead designer of the project. More than a thousand specialists from other organizations closely cooperated with his design bureau. The creation was preceded by extensive theoretical and experimental work, which included numerous tests in wind tunnels and natural conditions during the flights of an analogue.
Concorde and Tu-144
The developers had to rack their brains to find the optimal machine layout. The speed of the designed liner is of fundamental importance - 2500 or 3000 km/h. The Americans, having learned that the Concorde is designed for 2500 km / h, said that they would release their passenger Boeing 2707, made of steel and titanium, only six months later. Only these materials withstood the heating of the structure in contact with the air flow at speeds of 3000 km/h and above without destructive consequences. However, solid steel and titanium structures still have to undergo serious technological and operational testing. This will take a long time, and Tupolev decides to build a supersonic aircraft from duralumin, based on a speed of 2500 km / h. The American Boeing project was subsequently closed altogether.
In June 1965, the model was shown at the annual Paris Air Show. Concorde and Tu-144 turned out to be strikingly similar to each other. Soviet designers said - nothing surprising: the general shape is determined by the laws of aerodynamics and the requirements for a certain type of machine.
supersonic aircraft wing shape
But what should be the shape of the wing? We settled on a thin triangular wing with an outline of the leading edge in the form of the letter "8". The tailless scheme - inevitable with such a design of the carrier plane - made the supersonic liner stable and well controlled in all flight modes. Four engines were located under the fuselage, closer to the axis. Fuel is placed in caisson wing tanks. Balance tanks, located at the rear of the fuselage and wing bulges, are designed to change the position of the center of gravity during the transition from subsonic flight speed to supersonic. The nose was made sharp and smooth. But how in this case to provide pilots with a forward view? They found a way out - “bowing nose”. The circular fuselage had a cockpit nose cone deflecting downward at an angle of 12 degrees during takeoff and 17 degrees during landing.
Supersonic aircraft takes to the sky
The first supersonic aircraft takes to the skies on the last day of 1968. The machine was driven by test pilot E. Yelyan. As a passenger aircraft, he was the first in the world to overcome the speed of sound in early June 1969, being at an altitude of 11 kilometers. The supersonic aircraft took the second speed of sound (2M) in the middle of 1970, being at an altitude of 16.3 kilometers. The supersonic aircraft incorporated many design and technical innovations. Here I would like to note such a decision as the front horizontal tail. When using the PGO, the flight maneuverability was improved and the speed was extinguished during the landing approach. The domestic supersonic aircraft could be operated from two dozen airports, while the French-English Concorde, having a high landing speed, could land only at a certified airport. The designers of the Tupolev Design Bureau did a tremendous job. Take, for example, field tests of the wing. They took place on a flying laboratory - the MiG-21I, specially converted for testing the design and equipment of the wing of the future supersonic aircraft.
Development and modification
Work on the development of the basic design "044" went in two directions: the creation of a new economical non-afterburning turbojet engine of the RD-36-51 type and a significant improvement in the aerodynamics and design of a supersonic aircraft. The result of this was to meet the requirements for the range of supersonic flight. The decision of the commission of the Council of Ministers of the USSR on the variant of a supersonic aircraft with RD-36-51 was adopted in 1969. At the same time, at the suggestion of the MAP - MGA, a decision is made, until the creation of the RD-36-51 and their installation on a supersonic aircraft, to build six supersonic aircraft with NK-144A with reduced specific fuel consumption. The design of serial supersonic aircraft with the NK-144A was supposed to be significantly modernized, to carry out significant changes in aerodynamics, having received Kmax more than 8 in supersonic cruising mode. series on RD-36-51.
Construction of a modernized supersonic aircraft
The construction of the pre-production modernized Tu-144 ("004") began at the MMZ "Experience" in 1968. According to the calculated data with NK-144 engines (Cp = 2.01), the expected supersonic range should have been 3275 km, and with NK-144A (Cp = 1.91) it should have exceeded 3500 km. In order to improve the aerodynamic characteristics in cruising mode M = 2.2, the wing shape in plan was changed (the sweep of the inflow part along the leading edge was reduced to 76 °, and the base one was increased to 57 °), the wing shape became closer to the "Gothic". Compared to the "044", the wing area has increased, a more intense conical twist of the wing end parts has been introduced. However, the most important innovation in aerodynamics of the wing was the change in the middle part of the wing, which provided self-balancing in cruise mode with minimal loss of quality, taking into account optimization for flight deformations of the wing in this mode. The length of the fuselage was increased, taking into account the accommodation of 150 passengers, the shape of the bow was improved, which also had a positive effect on aerodynamics.
Unlike the 044, each pair of engines in twin engine nacelles with air intakes was moved apart, freeing the lower part of the fuselage from them, unloading it from increased temperature and vibration loads, while changing the lower surface of the wing in the place of the calculated flow compression area, increasing the gap between the lower surface of the wing and the upper surface of the air intake - all this made it possible to more intensively use the effect of preloading the flow at the inlet to the air intakes at Kmax than it was possible to get on "044". The new layout of the engine nacelles required changes in the chassis: the main landing gear was placed under the engine nacelles, with their cleaning inside between the air channels of the engines, they switched to an eight-wheeled bogie, and the cleaning scheme of the nose landing gear also changed. An important difference between “004” and “044” was the introduction of a front multi-section destabilizer wing retractable in flight, which was extended from the fuselage in takeoff and landing modes, and made it possible to provide the required balancing with deflected elevon flaps. Design improvements, an increase in the payload and fuel supply led to an increase in take-off weight, which exceeded 190 tons (for "044" - 150 tons).
Pre-production Tu-144
The construction of the pre-production supersonic aircraft No. 01-1 (tail number 77101) was completed at the beginning of 1971, on June 1, 1971 it made its first flight. According to the factory test program, the machine completed 231 flights, lasting 338 hours, of which 55 hours flew supersonic. On this machine, complex issues of interaction issues were worked out power plant in various flight modes. On September 20, 1972, the car made a flight along the Moscow-Tashkent route, while the route was completed in 1 hour 50 minutes, cruising speed during the flight reached 2500 km / h. The pre-production machine became the basis for the deployment of mass production at the Voronezh Aviation Plant (VAZ), which, by decision of the government, was entrusted with the development of a supersonic aircraft in a series.
The first flight of the serial Tu-144
The first flight of a serial supersonic aircraft No. 01-2 (tail number 77102) with NK-144A engines took place on March 20, 1972. In the series, according to the results of tests of the pre-production machine, the aerodynamics of the wing was corrected and its area was slightly increased again. The take-off weight in the series reached 195 tons. The specific fuel consumption of NK-144A by the time of operational testing of serial machines was intended to be increased to 1.65-1.67 kg / kgf hour by optimizing the engine nozzle, and later up to 1.57 kg / kgf hour, while the flight range should was to increase to 3855-4250 km and 4550 km respectively. In fact, by 1977, during tests and refinements of the Tu-144 and NK-144A series, Cp = 1.81 kg / kgf hour in supersonic cruising mode of thrust 5000 kgf, Cp = 1.65 kg / kgf hour in takeoff afterburner thrust mode 20,000 kgf, Cp=0.92 kg/kgf hour in cruising subsonic thrust mode of 3000 kgf and in maximum afterburner mode in transonic mode received 11800 kgf. Fragment of a supersonic aircraft.
Flights and tests of supersonic aircraft
First stage of testing
In a short period of time, in strict accordance with the program, 395 flights were performed with a total flight time of 739 hours, including more than 430 hours in supersonic modes.
Second stage of testing
In the second stage of operational testing, in accordance with the joint order of the ministers of the aviation industry and civil aviation dated September 13, 1977 No. 149-223, there was a more active connection of civil aviation facilities and services. A new testing commission was formed, headed by Deputy Minister of Civil Aviation B.D. Rough. By decision of the commission, then confirmed by a joint order of September 30 - October 5, 1977, crews were appointed to conduct operational tests:
- First crew: pilots B.F. Kuznetsov (Moscow Transport Administration of the Civil Aviation), S.T. Agapov (ZhLIiDB), navigator S.P. Khramov (MTU GA), flight engineers Yu.N. Avaev (MTU GA), Yu.T. Seliverstov (ZhLIiDB), lead engineer S.P. Avakimov (ZhLIiDB).
- The second crew: pilots V.P. Voronin (MGU GA), I.K. Vedernikov (ZhLIiDB), navigator A.A. Senyuk (MTU GA), flight engineers E.A. Trebuntsov (MTU GA) and V.V. Solomatin (ZhLIiDB), lead engineer V.V. Isaev (GosNIIGA).
- The third crew: pilots M.S. Kuznetsov (GosNIIGA), G.V. Voronchenko (ZhLIiDB), navigator V.V. Vyazigin (GosNIIGA), flight engineers M.P. Isaev (MTU GA), V.V. Solomatin (ZhLIiDB), leading engineer V.N. Poklad (ZhLIiDB).
- The fourth crew: pilots N.I. Yurskov (GosNIIGA), V.A. Sevankaev (ZhLIiDB), navigator Yu.A. Vasiliev (GosNIIGA), flight engineer V.L. Venediktov (GosNIIGA), leading engineer I.S. Mayboroda (GosNIIGA).
Prior to the start of the tests, a lot of work was done to review all the materials received in order to use them “for offsetting” the fulfillment of specific requirements. However, despite this, some civil aviation experts insisted on the implementation of the "Program of operational tests of a supersonic aircraft", developed at GosNIIGA back in 1975 under the leadership of the lead engineer A.M. Teteryukov. This program required, in fact, the repetition of previously completed flights in the amount of 750 flights (1200 flight hours) on the MGA routes.
The total volume of operational flights and tests for both stages will amount to 445 flights with 835 flight hours, of which 475 hours are in supersonic modes. 128 paired flights were performed on the Moscow-Alma-Ata route.
The final stage
The final stage of testing was not strenuous from a technical point of view. Rhythmic work on schedule was provided without serious failures and major defects. The engineering and technical staff "had fun" assessing household equipment, preparing for passenger transportation. The flight attendants involved in the tests and the relevant specialists of the State Research Institute of Civil Aviation began to conduct ground training to develop the technology of servicing passengers in flight. The so-called. "jokes" and two technical flights with passengers. The "Raffle" was held on October 16, 1977, with a complete simulation of the ticket check-in, baggage check-in, passenger boarding, real-time flight, passenger disembarkation, and baggage check-in at the destination airport. From the "passengers" (the best employees of the Design Bureau, ZhLIiDB, GosNIIGA and other organizations) there was no end. The diet during the "flight" was at the highest level, since it was approved by the first class menu, everyone enjoyed it very much. The "draw" made it possible to clarify many important elements and details of passenger service. On October 20 and 21, 1977, two technical flights were made along the Moscow-Alma-Ata route with passengers. The first passengers were employees of many organizations who were directly involved in the creation and testing of a supersonic aircraft. Today it is even difficult to imagine the atmosphere on board: there was a sense of joy and pride, great hope for development against the backdrop of first-class service, to which technical people are absolutely not accustomed. In the first flights, all the heads of leading institutions and organizations were on board.
The road for passenger traffic is open
The technical flights passed without serious remarks and showed the full readiness of the supersonic aircraft and all ground services for regular transportation. On October 25, 1977, the Minister of Civil Aviation of the USSR B.P. Bugaev and Minister of Aviation Industry of the USSR V.A. Kazakov approved the main document: "Act on the results of operational tests of a supersonic aircraft with NK-144 engines" with a positive conclusion and conclusions.
Based on the presented tables of Tu-144 compliance with the requirements of the Interim Airworthiness Standards for civilian Tu-144s of the USSR, the full amount of evidence presented, including acts on state and operational tests, on October 29, 1977, the chairman of the State Aviation Register of the USSR I.K. Mulkidzhanov approved the conclusion and signed the USSR's first airworthiness certificate type No. 03-144 for a supersonic aircraft with NK-144A engines.
The road for passenger traffic was open.
The supersonic aircraft could land and take off at 18 airports in the USSR, while Concorde, whose takeoff and landing speed was 15% faster, required a separate landing certificate for each airport. According to some experts, if the Concorde engines were placed in the same way as those of the Tu-144, then the accident on July 25, 2000 would not have happened.
According to experts, the design of the Tu-144 airframe was perfect, but the flaws concerned engines and various systems.
The second serial copy of the supersonic aircraft
In June 1973, the 30th International Paris Air Show took place in France. The interest caused by the Soviet liner Tu-144, the world's first supersonic aircraft, was enormous. On June 2, thousands of visitors to the air show in the suburbs of Paris, Le Bourget, watched the second serial copy of the supersonic aircraft take to the runway. The roar of four engines, a powerful takeoff - and now the car is in the air. The sharp nose of the liner straightened and aimed at the sky. The supersonic Tu, piloted by Captain Kozlov, made its first demonstration flight over Paris: having gained the necessary height, the car went beyond the horizon, then returned and made a circle over the airfield. The flight took place in normal mode, no technical problems were noted.
The next day, the Soviet crew decided to show everything that the new one was capable of.
Disaster during demonstration
The sunny morning of June 3 did not seem to portend trouble. At first, everything went according to plan, - the audience, raising their heads, applauded in unison. The supersonic aircraft, having shown the "highest class", went down. At that moment, a French Mirage fighter appeared in the air (as it turned out later, he was filming an air show). A collision seemed inevitable. In order not to crash into the airfield and the spectators, the crew commander decided to climb higher and pulled the steering wheel towards himself. However, the height was already lost, large loads were created on the structure; as a result, the right wing cracked and fell off. A fire started there, and a few seconds later, a blazing supersonic aircraft rushed to the ground. A terrible landing occurred on one of the streets of the Parisian suburb of Goosenville. The giant machine, destroying everything in its path, crashed to the ground and exploded. The entire crew - six people - and eight Frenchmen on the ground were killed. Goosenville also suffered - several buildings were destroyed. What led to the tragedy? According to most experts, the cause of the disaster was an attempt by the crew of a supersonic aircraft to avoid a collision with the Mirage. When landing, the Tu got into a wake from the French Mirage fighter.
Video: Tu-144 crash in 1973: how it was
This version is given in Gene Alexander's book "Russian Aircraft Since 1944" and in a June 11, 1973 article in Aviation Week and Space Technology magazine, written in fresh pursuit. The authors believe that pilot Mikhail Kozlov landed on the wrong runway - either by mistake of the flight director, or by the inattention of the pilots. The controller noticed the mistake in time and warned the Soviet pilots. But instead of going to the second circle, Kozlov laid a sharp turn - and ended up right in front of the nose of the French Air Force fighter. The co-pilot at that time was filming a story about the crew of the Tu for French television with a movie camera and therefore was not wearing a seat belt. During the maneuver, he fell on the center console, and by the time he returned to his place, he had already lost altitude. Kozlov sharply pulled the steering wheel towards himself - overload: the right wing could not stand it. Here is another explanation terrible tragedy. Kozlov was ordered to squeeze the maximum out of the car. Even during takeoff, at low speed, he took almost a vertical angle. For a liner with such a configuration, this is fraught with huge overloads. As a result, one of the external nodes could not stand it and fell off.
According to A.N. Tupolev Design Bureau employees, the cause of the disaster was the connection of an ill-adjusted analog control system unit, which led to a destructive overload.
The spy version belongs to the writer James Ahlberg. In short, it is. The Soviets tried to "furnish" the Concorde. Group N.D. Kuznetsova created good engines, but they could not work at low temperatures, unlike the Concorde ones. Then the Soviet intelligence officers got involved. Penkovsky, through his agent Greville Wine, got hold of some of the Concorde blueprints and sent them to Moscow through an East German sales representative. British counterintelligence thus established the leak, but instead of arresting the spy, they decided to let misinformation into Moscow through his own channels. As a result, the Tu-144 was born, very similar to the Concorde. It is difficult to establish the truth, since the "black boxes" did not clarify anything. One was found in Bourges, at the crash site, however, judging by reports, damaged. The second was never found. There is an opinion that the "black box" of the supersonic aircraft has become the subject of contention between the KGB and the GRU.
According to the pilots, emergency situations occurred in almost every flight. On May 23, 1978, the second crash of a supersonic aircraft occurred. An improved experimental version of the liner, Tu-144D (No. 77111), after a fuel fire in the area of the engine nacelle of the 3rd power plant due to the destruction of the fuel line, smoke in the cabin and the shutdown of two engines by the crew, made an emergency landing in a field near the village of Ilyinsky Pogost, not far from the city Yegoryevsk.
After landing, the crew commander V.D. Popov, co-pilot E.V. Elyan and navigator V.V. Vyazigin left the liner through the cockpit window. Engineers V. M. Kulesh, V. A. Isaev, V. N. Stolpovsky, who were in the cabin, left the liner through the front entrance door. Flight engineers O. A. Nikolaev and V. L. Venediktov were caught in the workplace by structures deformed during landing and died. (The deflected nose cone touched the ground first, worked like a bulldozer knife, gaining ground, and turned under the belly, entering the fuselage.) On June 1, 1978, Aeroflot permanently stopped supersonic passenger flights.
Improvement of the supersonic aircraft
Work on improving the supersonic aircraft continued for several more years. Five serial aircraft produced; five more were under construction. A new modification has been developed - Tu-144D (long-range). However, the choice of a new engine (more economical), RD-36-51, required a significant redesign of the aircraft, especially the power plant. Serious design gaps in this area led to a delay in the release of the new liner. Only in November 1974 did the serial Tu-144D (tail number 77105) take off, and nine (!) years after its first flight, on November 1, 1977, the supersonic aircraft received an airworthiness certificate. On the same day, passenger flights were opened. During their short operation, the liners carried 3194 passengers. On May 31, 1978, flights were stopped: a fire broke out on one of the serial Tu-144Ds, and the liner crashed, crashing during an emergency landing.
The catastrophes in Paris and Yegorievsk led to the fact that the state's interest in the project decreased. From 1977 to 1978, 600 problems were identified. As a result, already in the 80s, it was decided to remove the supersonic aircraft, explaining this by "bad effects on people's health when crossing the sound barrier." Nevertheless, four of the five Tu-144Ds that were in production were nevertheless completed. Later they were based in Zhukovsky and took to the air as flying laboratories. In total, 16 supersonic aircraft were built (including long-range modifications), which made a total of 2556 sorties. By the mid-90s, ten of them had survived: four in museums (Monino, Kazan, Kuibyshev, Ulyanovsk); one remained at the plant in Voronezh, where it was built; another was in Zhukovsky along with four Tu-144Ds.
Subsequently, the Tu-144D was used only for freight traffic between Moscow and Khabarovsk. In total, the supersonic aircraft made 102 flights under the flag of Aeroflot, of which 55 were passenger flights (3,194 passengers were carried).
Later, supersonic aircraft made only test flights and a few flights with the goal of setting world records.
On the Tu-144LL, NK-32 engines were installed due to the lack of serviceable NK-144 or RD-36-51, similar to those used on the Tu-160, various sensors and test control and recording equipment.
A total of 16 Tu-144 liners were built, which made a total of 2,556 sorties and flew 4,110 hours (among them, 77144 flew the most, 432 hours). The construction of four more liners was never completed.
What happened to the planes
A total of 16 were built - boards 68001, 77101, 77102, 77105, 77106, 77107, 77108, 77109, 77110, 77111, 77112, 77113, 77114, 77115, 77116 and 77144.
Those remaining in flying condition do not currently exist. The sides of Tu-144LL No. 77114 and Tu-144D No. 77115 are almost fully equipped with parts and can be restored to flight condition.
TU-144LL No. 77114, which was used for NASA tests, is stored in a recoverable state at the airfield in Zhukovsky.
TU-144D No. 77115 is also stored at the airfield in Zhukovsky. In 2007, both liners were repainted and put on public display at the MAKS-2007 air show.
No. 77114 and No. 77115 will most likely be installed as monuments or exhibited at the airfield in Zhukovsky. In 2004-2005, some deals were made with them to sell them for scrap, but the protests of the aviation community led to their preservation. The danger of selling them for scrap has not been completely eliminated. Questions about whose ownership they will pass are not finally resolved.
The signature of the first cosmonaut who landed on the moon Neil Armstrong, pilot cosmonaut Georgy Timofeevich Beregovoy and all the dead crew members is on the photo. Supersonic aircraft No. 77102 crashed during a demonstration flight at the Le Bourget air show. All 6 crew members (Honoured Test Pilot Hero of the Soviet Union M.V. Kozlov, Test Pilot V.M. Molchanov, Navigator G.N. Bazhenov, Deputy Chief Designer, Engineer Major General V.N. Benderov, Leading Engineer B.A. Pervukhin and flight engineer A.I. Dralin) died.
From left to right. Six crew members onboard supersonic aircraft No. 77102: Honored Test Pilot Hero of the Soviet Union M.V. Kozlov, Test Pilot V.M. Molchanov, Navigator G.N. Bazhenov, Deputy Chief Designer, Engineer Major General V.N. Benderov, lead engineer B.A. Pervukhin and flight engineer A.I. Next, the pilot-cosmonaut, twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Major General Georgy Timofeevich Beregovoy, behind him on the left Lavrov Vladimir Alexandrovich, then the first American cosmonaut who landed on the moon Neil Armstrong, then (standing behind the Nile) - Stepan Gavrilovich Korneev (head of the UVS from the department of external relations Presidium of the Academy of Sciences), in the center Tupolev Andrei Nikolaevich - Soviet aircraft designer, academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Colonel General, three times Hero of Socialist Labor, Hero of Labor of the RSFSR, then Alexander Alexandrovich Arkhangelsky, chief designer of the plant, Soviet aircraft designer, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Honored Scientist and technicians of the RSFSR, Hero of Socialist Labor. Tupolev Aleksey Andreevich (son of A.N. Tupolev) on the far right is a Russian aircraft designer, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences since 1984, Hero of Socialist Labor. The picture was taken in 1970. Signatures on the photo of G.T. Beregovoy and Neil Armstrong.
Concord
Concord accident.
Currently, the liner is not in operation due to the disaster on July 25, 2000. On April 10, 2003, British Airways and Air France announced their decision to cease commercial operation of their fleet of Conchords. The last flights took place on 24 October. The last flight of the Concorde took place on November 26, 2003, the G-BOAF (the last aircraft built) took off from Heathrow, flew over the Bay of Biscay, made a pass over Bristol, and landed at Filton Airport.
Why supersonic aircraft are no longer operated
Tupolev's supersonic aircraft is often referred to as the "lost generation". Intercontinental flights are recognized as uneconomical: in an hour of flight, a supersonic aircraft burned eight times more fuel than a conventional passenger one. For the same reason, long-distance flights to Khabarovsk and Vladivostok did not justify themselves. It is impractical to use the supersonic "Tu" as a transport liner due to its small carrying capacity. True, passenger transportation on it nevertheless became a prestigious and profitable business for Aeroflot, although tickets were considered very expensive at that time. Even after the official closure of the project, in August 1984, the head of the Zhukovsky flight test base, Klimov, the head of the design department, Pukhov, and the deputy chief designer, Popov, with the support of supersonic flight enthusiasts, restored and commissioned two aircraft, and in 1985 obtained permission to fly for setting world records. The crews of Aganov and Veremey set more than 18 world records in the class of supersonic aircraft - in speed, rate of climb and range with a load.
On March 16, 1996, a series of Tu-144LL research flights began in Zhukovsky, which marked the beginning of the development of the second generation of supersonic passenger liners.
95-99 years. The supersonic aircraft with tail number 77114 was used by the American NASA as a flying laboratory. Received the name Tu-144LL. The main purpose is research and testing of American developments to create our own modern supersonic aircraft for passenger transportation.
avia-su.ru
The twin-engine fighter aircraft manufactured by the Sukhoi Design Bureau was adopted by the USSR Air Force in 1985, although it made its first flight as early as May 1977.
This aircraft can reach a maximum supersonic speed of Mach 2.35 (2500 km/h), which is more than twice the speed of sound.
The Su-27 earned a reputation as one of the most combat-ready units of its time, and some models are still in use in the armies of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.
www.f-16.net
Tactical strike aircraft developed in the 1960s by General Dynamics. Designed for two crew members, the first aircraft entered service with the US Air Force in 1967, and was used for strategic bombing, reconnaissance and electronic warfare. The F-111 was able to reach Mach 2.5 (2655 km/h), or 2.5 times the speed of sound.
letsgoflying.wordpress.com
Twin-engine tactical fighter developed by McDonnell Douglas in 1967. The all-weather aircraft is designed to capture and maintain air superiority over enemy forces during air combat. The F-15 Eagle first flew in July 1972 and officially entered service with the US Air Force in 1976.
The F-15 is capable of flying at speeds in excess of Mach 2.5 (2,655 km/h) and is considered one of the most successful aircraft ever built. The F-15 Eagle is expected to be in US Air Force service until 2025. The fighter is currently being exported to a number of foreign countries including Japan, Israel and Saudi Arabia.
airforce.ru
A large, twin-engine supersonic aircraft manufactured by Mikoyan Design Bureau is designed to intercept foreign aircraft at high speeds. The aircraft made its first flight in September 1975, and was adopted by the Air Force in 1982.
The MiG-31 reaches Mach 2.83 (3,000 km/h) and was capable of flying at supersonic speeds even at low altitudes. The MiG-31 is still in service with the Air Forces of Russia and Kazakhstan.
XB-70 newspaceandaircraft.com
The six-engined XB-70 Valkyrie aircraft was developed by North American Aviation in the late 1950s. The aircraft was built as a prototype for a strategic bomber with nuclear bombs.
The XB-70 Valkyrie reached its design speed on October 14, 1965, when it reached Mach 3.02 (3219 km/h) at an altitude of 21300 m over Edwards Air Force Base in California.
Two XB-70s were built and used in test flights from 1964 to 1969. One of the prototypes crashed in 1966 after a mid-air collision, and another XB-70 is on display in National Museum US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio.
Bell X-2 Starbuster
X-2 wikipedia.org
Rocket-powered aircraft - a joint development of the Bell Aircraft Corporation, the US Air Force and the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NASA's predecessor) in 1945. The aircraft was built to study aerodynamic properties during supersonic flight in the Mach 2 and Mach 3 ranges.
The X-2, nicknamed Starbuster, first flew in November 1955. The following year, in September 1956, Captain Milburn at the helm was able to reach a speed of Mach 3.2 (3370 km / h) at an altitude of 19800 m.
Shortly after reaching this maximum speed, the aircraft became uncontrollable and crashed. This tragic incident put an end to the X-2 program.
airforce.ru
The Mikoyan-Gurevich aircraft was designed to intercept enemy aircraft at supersonic speeds and collect intelligence data. The MiG-25 is one of the fastest military aircraft put into service. The MiG-25 first flew in 1964 and was first used by the Soviet Air Force in 1970.
The MiG-25 has an incredible top speed of Mach 3.2 (3524 km/h). The aircraft is still in service with the Russian Air Force and is also used by a number of other countries, including the Algerian Air Force and the Syrian Air Force.
wikipedia.org
An aircraft prototype developed by Lockheed Corporation in the late 50s and early 60s. The aircraft was built to intercept enemy aircraft at Mach 3.
Testing of the YF-12 took place at Area 51, a top-secret US Air Force training ground that ufologists have attributed to aliens. The YF-12 first flew in 1963 and reached a top speed of Mach 3.2 (3,330 km/h) at 24,400 m. NASA. The aircraft finally stopped flying in 1978.
On February 6, 1950, during the next test, the Soviet jet fighter MiG-17 in level flight exceeded the speed of sound, accelerating to almost 1070 km / h. This made it the first mass-produced supersonic aircraft. Developers Mikoyan and Gurevich were clearly proud of their brainchild.
For combat flights, the MiG-17 was considered near-sounding, since its cruising speed did not exceed 861 km / h. But this did not prevent the fighter from becoming one of the most common in the world. V different time it was in service with Germany, China, Korea, Poland, Pakistan and dozens of other countries. This monster even took part in the fighting in the Vietnam War.
The MiG-17 is far from the only representative of the supersonic aircraft genre. We will talk about a dozen more air liners that also got ahead of the sound wave and became famous all over the world.
Bell X-1
The US Air Force specially equipped the Bell X-1 with a rocket engine, as they wanted to use it to study problems supersonic flight. On October 14, 1947, the device accelerated to 1541 km / h (Mach number 1.26), overcame a given barrier and turned into a star in the sky. Today, the record-breaking model rests in the Smithsonian Museum in the States.
Source: NASA
North American X-15
The North American X-15 is also equipped with rocket engines. But, unlike its American counterpart Bell X-1, this aircraft reached a speed of 6167 km / h (Mach number 5.58), turning into the first and for 40 years the only manned hypersonic aircraft in the history of mankind (since 1959). who performed suborbital manned space flights. With its help, even the reaction of the atmosphere to the entry of winged bodies into it was studied. In total, three units of X-15 type rocket planes were produced.
Source: NASA
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
It is a sin not to use supersonic aircraft for military purposes. Therefore, the US Air Force designed the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, a strategic reconnaissance aircraft with a maximum speed of 3,700 km/h (Mach 3.5). The main advantages are fast acceleration and high maneuverability, which allowed him to evade missiles. Also, the SR-71 was the first aircraft to be equipped with technologies to reduce radar visibility.
Only 32 units built, 12 of which crashed. Removed from service in 1998.
Source: af.mil
MiG-25
We cannot but recall the domestic MiG-25 - a 3rd generation supersonic high-altitude fighter-interceptor with a maximum speed of 3000 km / h (Mach number 2.83). The plane was so cool that even the Japanese coveted it. Therefore, on September 6, 1976, Soviet pilot Viktor Belenko had to hijack a MiG-25. After that, for many years in many parts of the Union, the aircraft began to fill up not to the end. The goal is to prevent them from flying to the nearest foreign airport.
Source: Alexey Beltyukov
MiG-31
Soviet scientists did not stop working for the aerial good of the fatherland. Therefore, in 1968, the design of the MiG-31 began. And on September 16, 1975, he first flew into the sky. This two-seat, supersonic, all-weather, long-range fighter-interceptor accelerated to a speed of 2,500 km/h (Mach 2.35) and became the first fourth-generation Soviet combat aircraft.
The MiG-31 is designed to intercept and destroy air targets at extremely low, low, medium and high altitudes, day and night, in simple and difficult weather conditions, with active and passive radar interference, as well as false thermal targets. Four MiG-31s can control air space up to 900 kilometers long. This is not a plane, but the pride of the Union, which is still in service with Russia and Kazakhstan.
Source: Vitaly Kuzmin
Lockheed/Boeing F-22 Raptor
The most expensive supersonic aircraft was built by the Americans. They modeled a fifth-generation multirole fighter, which became the most expensive among their peers. The Lockheed/Boeing F-22 Raptor is the only fifth-generation fighter in service today and the first production fighter with a supersonic cruising speed of 1,890 km/h (Mach 1.78). The maximum speed is 2570 km / h (Mach 2.42). Until now, no one has surpassed him in the air.
Source: af.mil
Su-100/T-4
The Su-100/T-4 ("weave") was developed as an aircraft carrier fighter. But the engineers of the Sukhoi Design Bureau managed not only to achieve their goal, but to model a cool attack and reconnaissance bomber-missile carrier, which they later wanted to use even as a passenger aircraft and booster for the Spiral aerospace system. The maximum speed of the T-4 is 3200 km/h (Mach 3).
Consider building a supersonic passenger aircraft. In his opinion, the liner could be built on the basis of the Tu-160 military strategic bomber.
At the beginning of 2018, Putin already proposed to return to the construction of such aircraft in Russia. However, at that time, experts were skeptical about the president's idea, considering the project too expensive. Later in the Tupolev company that the new aircraft could make its first flight no earlier than 2027. The cost of all work on the creation of a serial aircraft in the company was estimated at 105 billion rubles.
Info24 I spoke with aviation experts and found out whether Russia still needs a new supersonic passenger aircraft.
Bad experience
In the history of world aircraft construction, there were two supersonic passenger liners: the Franco-British Concorde and the Soviet Tu-144. These aircraft could reach speeds of more than 2.4 thousand km / h, while the maximum speed of the Airbus A320 is 840 km / h. At the same time, the cost of a flight, for example, from Europe to the USA reached 7 thousand dollars. The flights were popular with businessmen.
The Tu-144 was developed at the Tupolev Design Bureau in the 1960s. It began to be used in passenger traffic in 1977, however, after several accidents, the management of the design bureau decided to freeze the project.
Supersonic passenger aircraft TU-144. Photo: RIA Novosti, wikimedia.org
Around the same time, the French company Aérospatiale and the British BAC developed a joint project called "Concorde". In total, 20 supersonic aircraft were produced, which were divided between British Airways and Air France. Over 3 million passengers have used supersonic flights in 27 years of scheduled and charter flights.
On July 5, 2000, one of the Concorde aircraft crashed on takeoff at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. Then 113 people died. After that, flights of supersonic aircraft were suspended for a year and a half. They were completely discontinued in 2003 due to high prices for fuel.
Since then, the world no longer uses passenger supersonic aircraft.
"Not economy, but prestige"
Maxim Pyadushkin, Managing Director of the Air Transport Review magazine, told Info24 that the production of supersonic airliners faces not only technical, but also other obstacles.
“The same Concorde was operated at supersonic speed only over Atlantic Ocean, because, for example, in the USA, due to the shock wave, it is forbidden to fly over land at supersonic speeds. These aircraft have had very limited use and the problem is still unresolved. The last "Concordes" were supplied almost for nothing, for a symbolic price, there the conversation was not about the economy, but about prestige. But they were no longer used shortly after the accident in Paris,” said Pyadushkin.
Franco-British supersonic airliner Concorde of British Airways. Photo: Les Chatfield, Flickr Why is the state
Aleksey Sinitsky, editor-in-chief of the Air Transport Review magazine, believes that by developing its own supersonic aircraft, Russia can stimulate the development of other industries.
“In the production of such liners there are a large number of issues that remain unresolved or unresolved. Of course, work on these issues is important, necessary and interesting for the creation of a new generation of highly efficient engines, so work needs to be done. But, in my opinion, this is not the main and not the strategic direction of civil aviation. There are much more mundane issues that, although they sound less romantic, still need to be addressed. But it is a completely different matter if we consider civil aviation as an opportunity to stimulate the development of the economy.
the development of aircraft construction entails improvements in other industries. therefore, it is strategically important for Russia, especially if it is not limited to import substitution, but, for example, to find its own areas of specialization and choose areas where it would be possible to act with competitive products on a global scale.
This does not necessarily apply to the whole aircraft, but, for example, to some assembly that we would do better than anyone else in the world,” Sinitsky said in a conversation with Info24.
Although the Concorde aircraft were sold to airlines at a ridiculous price, the expert does not believe that the money was lost: there were serious studies, the industry gained knowledge and technology. In addition, it was one of the first experiences of international cooperation, which subsequently led to a unified system of European aircraft construction.
Unprofitable and inconvenient
At the same time, Sinitsky does not deny that it is extremely difficult to make flights on supersonic liners pay off.
“If the country's leadership needs to improve transport accessibility, then this is one thing. But at the same time, world experience shows that efficiency wins over speed. The same Concorde program proved that in many respects economical flights turned out to be much more in demand, while supersonic flight is by definition uneconomical due to the generation of a compression wave under the aircraft. There are many questions about the economy of supersonic transportation, including how convenient it will be for passengers. For example, flying from Vladivostok to Moscow will be inconvenient in time due to the change in time zones - you will either need to fly out at an inconvenient time or arrive at an inconvenient time. In addition, if you have some comfort in a conventional aircraft, then it will be more crowded in a supersonic one, ”the expert said.
Illustration: Info24 The expert of the portal Avia.ru Vladimir Karnozov, however, is sure that it is possible to make flights profitable. True, for this it is “critically important” for them to fly not only across the Atlantic, but also through Pacific Ocean- for example, from Japan, China and Australia to the USA and Canada.
“It is believed that Concorde was unprofitable, but this is not entirely true. The project turned out to be unprofitable due to strong US opposition [on environmental regulations], which turned out to be effective, among other things, because the income from the commercial operation of the Concorde was formed mainly from ticket sales for flights to airports in New York and other large American metropolitan areas. . The Concorde flew with stopovers from France to Latin America and from England to the Middle East and beyond. South East Asia, but these routes brought significantly less revenue. As a result of US opposition, Western European industry produced fewer aircraft than planned, and the program was canceled ahead of schedule,” the aviation expert said.
For those who talk about free deliveries of Concorde to airlines and build on this argument about the insolvency of the liners, Karnozov offers to compare the cost of the first aircraft and the prices for subsonic airliners of that era. According to him, this is a huge amount of money that the airlines planned to return through many years of operation on flights from Europe to the United States, where the machine worked profitably.
Supersonic aircraft Concorde. Photo: nara.getarchive.net “If you open foreign aviation publications, then for the last 7-10 years this topic (the creation of supersonic passenger aircraft - approx. Info24) is constantly discussed, mainly in relation to business aircraft. But the problems in the development of such aircraft are not related to technology. Just under the influence of the United States, the aviation authorities of countries Western world put forward excessive requirements for the environmental parameters of "supersonics" (supersonic aircraft, from the English supersonic - supersonic - approx. Info24), in particular, the noise level in the area and the magnitude of the sonic boom. There are no opportunities to influence the States, and certification requirements are put forward for the next generation of "supersonics" at their suggestion. If a solution is not found at the political level, then none of the idea to create a supersonic passenger aircraft will work. And if the requirements are softened, then a very interesting project will turn out, ”said Karnozov.
He added that the cost of creating such an aircraft is highly dependent on what requirements it will be created for. According to the expert, if the requirements are "reasonable", then the cost of the project will be several billion dollars, but if the creation of a supersonic liner is "customized" to the requirements of the United States, then "a budget of tens or even hundreds of billions of dollars will be insufficient."
Who can fly these planes
Flights on supersonic liners are extremely expensive - for example, the journey from London to New York can cost 7 thousand dollars. All experts agree that if such flights are in demand, then only among businessmen.
“If we are talking about the business transportation segment, then there may be a demand for speed here. But the fuel consumption in such aircraft will be very high, which is why even for wealthy people the cost can be quite high, ”said Info24 Fyodor Borisov, Leading Research Fellow at the Institute of Transport and Transport Policy, National Research University Higher School of Economics.
Illustration: Info24 Vladimir Karnozov agrees with him. According to the expert, supersonic aircraft are needed for "the upper segment, those who fly business class and first class today."
Attempts to create a new "supersonic"
Maxim Pyadushkin said that there are people and companies that are trying to enter the supersonic aircraft market, but they are focusing on business aviation, and a very limited circle of people will buy their aircraft.
Illustration: Info24 “Such projects started as startups, enthusiasts gathered and made blueprints. But no startup can build an airplane alone. For example, Aerion, which was supported by Boeing and other major manufacturers. This project has moved, perhaps, the furthest. This gives hope that since large manufacturers believe in it, the aircraft will be able to bring it to testing, a prototype and, in fact, a flight,” the aviation expert said.
