The Myasishchev VM-T ''Atlant'' (
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
: ''Мясищев ВМ-Т «Атлант»'' (
"Atlas"), with the "VM-T" ("BM-T") standing for
Vladimir MyasishchevTransport) was a variant of
Myasishchev
V. M. Myasishchev Experimental Design Bureau (Экспериментальный Машиностроительный Завод им. В. М. Мясищева) or OKB-23, founded in 1951 by MGB UdSSR Vladimir Myasishchev, was ...
's
M-4 ''Molot'' bomber (the "3M"), re-purposed as a
strategic-airlift airplane
An airplane or aeroplane (informally plane) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and wing configurations. The broad spe ...
. The VM-T was modified to carry
rocket boosters and the
Soviet space shuttles of the
''Buran'' program. It is also known as the 3M-T.
Design and development
The design was conceived in 1978 when Myasishchev was asked to solve the problem of transporting rockets and other large space vehicles to the
Baikonur Cosmodrome
The Baikonur Cosmodrome ( kk, Байқоңыр ғарыш айлағы, translit=Baiqoñyr ğaryş ailağy, ; russian: Космодром Байконур, translit=Kosmodrom Baykonur, ) is a spaceport in an area of southern Kazakhstan leased to R ...
. Engineers used an old 3M (a modified M-4 bomber) and replaced the
empennage with
dihedralled horizontal stabilizer
A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabiliser, is a small lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters and gyroplan ...
s with large, rectangular end-plate
tailfins to accommodate payloads measuring as large as twice the diameter of the aircraft's
fuselage. A large, aerodynamically optimized cargo container, placed on top of the aircraft, would contain the freight. In addition, a new control system was added to the plane to compensate for the added weight.
The ''Atlant'' first flew in 1981 and made its first flight with cargo in January 1982.
[History and details about the VM-T Atlant]
/ref> Its main task was to ferry Energia
Energia or Energiya may refer to:
* Energia (corporation), or S. P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation Energia, a Russian design bureau and manufacturer
** Energia (rocket), a Soviet rocket designed by the company
*Energia (company), a company th ...
rocket boosters from their development plant to the Baikonur Cosmodrome. On several occasions, the then-incomplete Soviet space shuttle '' Buran'' was piggybacked to the Cosmodrome as well.[
Two ''Atlant''s were built. They were replaced in 1989 by Antonov's An-225 ''Mriya''. One ''Atlant'' (RF-01502) is kept at the Zhukovsky International Airport in Russia owned by TsAGI and Gromov Flight Research Institute, the other one (RA-01402) at Dyagilevo (air base) in Ryazan.
0GT was the Buran spaceplane without tailplane and equipment, 1GT was the hydrogen tank of the Energia rocket, 2GT was the engine frame and front aerodynamic cover of Energia and 3GT was yhe oxygen tank of Energia. All configurations were equipped with aerodynamic cover to decrease the drag. ]
Specifications (VM-T)
See also
References
External links
History and details about the VM-T Atlant
Aviation.ru
VM-T stored at Dyagilevo AFB (google maps)
VM-T stored at Zhukovsky International Airport (google maps)
Specifications
{{Outsized cargo aircraft
Myasishchev aircraft
1980s Soviet cargo aircraft
Quadjets
Aircraft first flown in 1981
Aircraft related to spaceflight