__NOTOC__ The Chyetverikov MDR-6 was a 1930s

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

flying-boat A flying boat is a type of fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in that a flying boat's fuselage is purpose-designed for floatation and contains a hull, while floatplanes rely on fusela ...

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...

, and the only successful aircraft designed by the

design bureau OKB is a transliteration of the Russian initials of "" – , meaning 'experiment and design bureau'. During the Soviet era, OKBs were closed institutions working on design and prototyping of advanced technology, usually for military applications. ...

led by Igor Chyetverikov.

Development

First flying in July 1937, the MDR-6 was a two-engined high-wing

monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing confi ...

of all-metal

stressed skin In mechanical engineering, stressed skin is a type of rigid construction, intermediate between monocoque and a rigid frame with a non-loaded covering. A stressed skin structure has its compression-taking elements localized and its tension-taking e ...

construction. The

prototype A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototyp ...

was powered by two M-25

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. It resembles a stylized star when viewed from the front, and is ca ...

s. A production run of 20 units powered by M-63 engines were produced in 1940 and 1941. All the aircraft were withdrawn from service in 1942 due to structural problems.Gunston 1995 Several progressively advanced prototypes were built from 1939 to 1945, but no further production ensued.

Variants

; MDR-6 :Initial prototype. One built. ;Chye-2 :Production version powered by M-63 radial engine. 20 built. ; MDR-6A :Redesign with smaller wing and two

Klimov M-105 The Klimov M-105 was a V12 engine, V12 Liquid-cooled engine, liquid-cooled piston aircraft engine used by Soviet Union, Soviet aircraft during World War II.Gunston 1989, p. 90 Development The M-105, designed in 1940, drew heavily on Klimov, Klimo ...

V-12 engines. ; MDR-6B-1 to B-3 :Refined developments of MDR-6A. Three prototypes built. ; MDR-6B-4 to B5 : New, much larger hull, powered by

Klimov VK-107 The Klimov VK-107 was a V-12 liquid-cooled piston aircraft engine used by Soviet Union, Soviet aircraft during World War II. Development The VK-107 was developed from the Klimov M-105, M-105 and Klimov VK-106, VK-106. To achieve a greater power ...

engines. Two prototypes built.

Operators

; *

Soviet Naval Aviation Soviet Naval Aviation (AV-MF, for ''Авиация военно-морского флота'' in Russian, or ''Aviatsiya voyenno-morskogo flota'', literally "aviation of the military maritime fleet") was the naval aviation arm of the Soviet Nav ...

Specifications (MDR-6A)

References

Bibliography

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External links

Chetverikov MDR-6
{{Soviet scout designations MDR-6 1930s Soviet patrol aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1937 Flying boats High-wing aircraft Gull-wing aircraft Twin piston-engined tractor aircraft Twin-tail aircraft