The Myasishchev M-55 (

NATO reporting name NATO reporting names are code names for military equipment from Russia, China, and historically, the Eastern Bloc (Soviet Union and other nations of the Warsaw Pact). They provide unambiguous and easily understood English words in a uniform manne ...

: ''Mystic-B'') is a high-altitude

reconnaissance aircraft A reconnaissance aircraft (colloquially, a spy plane) is a military aircraft designed or adapted to perform aerial reconnaissance with roles including collection of imagery intelligence (including using photography), signals intelligence, as ...

developed by OKB Myasishchev in the

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 ...

, similar in mission to the Lockheed ER-2, but with a

twin boom A twin-boom aircraft is characterised by two longitudinal booms (extended nacelle-like bodies). The booms may contain ancillary items such as fuel tanks and/or provide a supporting structure for other items. Typically, twin tailbooms support ...

fuselage and tail surface design. It is a twin-engined development of the Myasishchev M-17 Stratosphera with a higher maximum take-off weight.

Design and development

During the 1950s and 1960s the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

instituted several programs using high-altitude reconnaissance balloons, released over friendly territory to ascend into the jetstream and be transported over the

and

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

.Taylor, Michael J. H. ''Brassey's World Aircraft & Systems Directory 1999–2000'', 2000. , p. 157.

''Subject 34''

To combat these high-altitude balloons, Myasishchev proposed ''Subject 34'' a single-seat turbojet-powered twin-boom high-aspect-ratio aircraft, nicknamed ''Chaika'' ("Seagull" in Russian) due to its anhedral wing design. Armament of the single-seat balloon interceptor was to have been two air-air missiles (AAM) and two

GSh-23 The Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23 ( rus, ГШ-23) is a twin-barreled 23 mm autocannon developed in the Soviet Union, primarily for military aircraft use. It entered service in 1965, replacing the earlier Nudelman-Rikhter NR-23 and Rikhter R-23. ...

cannon with 600rpg in a dorsal turret. Before ''Subject 34'' could be developed into operational hardware, the threat receded due to the success of the ''Keyhole'' reconnaissance satellites of the

Corona program The CORONA program was a series of American strategic reconnaissance satellites produced and operated by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Directorate of Science & Technology with substantial assistance from the U.S. Air Force. The COR ...

and the emergence of the

Lockheed A-12 The Lockheed A-12 is a high-altitude, Mach 3+ reconnaissance aircraft built for the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) by Lockheed's Skunk Works, based on the designs of Clarence "Kelly" Johnson. The aircraft was designate ...

. The first prototype of ''Subject 34'' was completed in secret at the

Kumertau Kumertau (russian: Кумерта́у; ba, Күмертау) is a town in the Republic of Bashkortostan, Russia, located from Ufa and from Sterlitamak. Population: Administrative and municipal status Within the framework of administrative d ...

helicopter plant in Bashkirya, but whilst carrying out taxi tests, in December 1978 piloted by K. V. Chernobrovkin, the prototype ''Chaika'' lifted off to avoid hitting snow banks and was destroyed after hitting a hillside in zero visibility.

M-17 Stratosphera

The design of the ''Chaika'' was adapted as a reconnaissance aircraft and emerged as the Myasishchev M-17 Stratosphera with a revised airframe, including straight tapered wings with 2° 30' anhedral (0° at 1g), shorter fuselage pod and unreheated

Kolesov RD-36-51 The Kolesov RD-36 was a supersonic turbojet engine used on various Soviet aircraft projects. Design and development Developed at OKB-36 (P. A. Kolesov) and produced at the Rybinsk Motor-Building Plant. The RD-36-51A engine was developed for ...

turbojet engine. Flown for the first time on 26 May 1982, the M-17 prototype (regn CCCP 17401) was soon allocated the NATO reporting name Mystic-A and was used for investigating the

Ozone layer The ozone layer or ozone shield is a region of Earth's stratosphere that absorbs most of the Sun's ultraviolet radiation. It contains a high concentration of ozone (O3) in relation to other parts of the atmosphere, although still small in rela ...

over

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...

in 1992. The M-17 also set a total of 12 FAI world records, 5 of which still stand. On 28 March 1990, M-17 ''CCCP 17401'' piloted by Vladimir V. Arkhipenko set an altitude record of in class C-1i (Landplanes: take-off weight 16 000 to 20 000 kg).

M-55 Geophysica

The M-17 balloon-interceptor-based model was terminated in 1987 and replaced by the M-17RN, later known as the M-55 Geophysica, which was dubbed by

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

''Mystic-B''. First flown on 16 Aug 1988, the M-55 airframe was revised further with a longer fuselage pod, housing two Soloviev D-30-10V un-reheated (non-afterburner) turbofan engines, shorter-span wings and comprehensive sensor payload. The M-55 set a total of 15 FAI world records, all of which still stand today: On 21 September 1993, an M-55 piloted by Victor Vasenkov from the 8th State R&D Institute of the Air Force named after V. P. Chkalov at

Akhtubinsk Akhtubinsk (russian: Ахту́бинск; kk, Ақтөбе, ''Aqtóbe'') is a town and the administrative center of Akhtubinsky District in Astrakhan Oblast, Russia, located on the left bank of the Akhtuba River (a tributary of the Volga), nort ...

reached a class record altitude of in class C-1j (Landplanes: take-off weight ). A dual-control version, the M-55UTS, was developed by adding a second cockpit behind the original, displacing some avionics and/or sensor payload. A number of M-55 Geophysica remain in service, performing in

research Research is "creativity, creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular att ...

roles; one M-55 took part in a study of the

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...

stratosphere The stratosphere () is the second layer of the atmosphere of the Earth, located above the troposphere and below the mesosphere. The stratosphere is an atmospheric layer composed of stratified temperature layers, with the warm layers of air ...

in 1996–1997, with similar experiments performed in

during 1999. An Irish-headquartered company Qucomhaps, with a focus on South East Asia, has entered a 1-billion USD deal to use the M-55 as a

high-altitude platform station Atmospheric satellite (United States usage, abbreviated atmosat) or pseudo-satellite (British usage) is a marketing term for an aircraft that operates in the atmosphere at high altitudes for extended periods of time, in order to provide servic ...

for digital communications.

Variants

;''Subject 34'': The prototype of a high-altitude balloon interceptor, dubbed ''Chaika'' (Gull), was completed in secret at the

helicopter plant in Bashkirya. ;M-17 Stratosphera: A reconnaissance version of ''Subject 34'', given the

''Mystic-A'', powered by a single

turbojet engine. At least two M-17 aircraft were built. ;M-17RN: Initial designation of what was to become the M-55. ;M-55 Geophysica: A refined version of the M-17 powered by two Soloviev D-30-10V unreheated turbofans, carrying a wide variety of sensors for Earth-sciences research. Five M-55 aircraft were built, including one M-55UTS. ;M-55Sh: Proposed ground attack variant. Not built. ;M-55UTS: A dual-control trainer version of the M-55 with a second cockpit directly aft of the forward cockpit, displacing some of the avionic/sensor payload, otherwise identical to the M-55. ;Geophysica 2: a more advanced Earth-sciences research aircraft derived from the M-55, but not proceeded with.

Operators

; *

Soviet Air Force The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...

; *

Russian Air Force " Air March" , mascot = , anniversaries = 12 August , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = , decorations = , bat ...

Specifications (M-55)

References

External links

Manufacturer's Web site

Aviation.ru

Flugzeuginfo.net (M-17/M-55 Specifications)

Photos on russianplanes.net

Photos on airliners.net
{{Myasishchev Myasishchev aircraft 1980s Soviet military reconnaissance aircraft Twinjets Twin-boom aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1988