Tupolev Tu-4 Aircraft Data
The Tupolev Tu-4 (NATO reporting name: Bull) was a piston-engined Soviet strategic bomber that served the Soviet Air Force from the late 1940s to mid-1960s. It was a very succesfully reverse-engineered copy of the American-made Boeing B-29 Superfortress, with only 340 kg (750 lb) more than the B-29, a difference of less than 1% !
Operational history
A total of 847 Tu-4s had been built when production ended in the Soviet Union in 1952, some going to China during the later 1950s. Many experimental variants were built and the valuable experience launched the Soviet strategic bomber program. Tu-4s were withdrawn in the 1960s, being replaced by more advanced aircraft including the Tupolev Tu-16 jet bomber (starting in 1954) and the Tupolev Tu-95 turboprop bomber (starting in 1956). By the beginning of the 1960s, the only Tu-4s still operated by the Soviets were used for transport or airborne laboratory purposes. A Tu-4A was the first Soviet aircraft to drop a nuclear weapon, the RDS-1.
Operational history
A total of 847 Tu-4s had been built when production ended in the Soviet Union in 1952, some going to China during the later 1950s. Many experimental variants were built and the valuable experience launched the Soviet strategic bomber program. Tu-4s were withdrawn in the 1960s, being replaced by more advanced aircraft including the Tupolev Tu-16 jet bomber (starting in 1954) and the Tupolev Tu-95 turboprop bomber (starting in 1956). By the beginning of the 1960s, the only Tu-4s still operated by the Soviets were used for transport or airborne laboratory purposes. A Tu-4A was the first Soviet aircraft to drop a nuclear weapon, the RDS-1.
- Country of Origin: Soviet Union / CIS / Russia
- First Flight: 19 May 1947
- Initial Service Date: 1949
- No. Built: 847
- No. In Service: 0
- No. of Hardpoints: 0
- Crew: 11
Power:
4 × Shvetsov ASh-73TK 18-cyl. air-cooled radial piston engines at 2,400 hp or 4 x AI-20K turboprop engines at 2,700 hp
Weapons:
Guns:
10 × 23 mm Nudelman-Suranov NS-23 aircraft cannon, two cannon in each of the four turrets and two cannon in the tail barbette
Missiles:
2 × KS-1 Komet standoff missiles (Tu-4K only; these anti-ship missiles resembled a scaled-down MiG-15)
Bombs:
6 × 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) bombs
or
1 x RDS-1, RDS-3 or RDS-5 nuclear fission bomb (Tu-4A only)
10 × 23 mm Nudelman-Suranov NS-23 aircraft cannon, two cannon in each of the four turrets and two cannon in the tail barbette
Missiles:
2 × KS-1 Komet standoff missiles (Tu-4K only; these anti-ship missiles resembled a scaled-down MiG-15)
Bombs:
6 × 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) bombs
or
1 x RDS-1, RDS-3 or RDS-5 nuclear fission bomb (Tu-4A only)
Dimensions:
| Length: | 99 ft. |
| Wing Span: | 141 ft. 3 in. |
| Wing Area: | 1,741 sq.ft |
| Height: | 27 ft. 9 in. |
| Empty Weight: | 81,240 lbs |
| Max. Weight: | 140,214 lbs |
Performance:
| Max. Speed: | 347 mph |
| Service Ceiling: | 36,700 ft. |
| Normal Range: | 2,916 nm |
Random great photos of the Tupolev Tu-4:
