Tupolev Tu-204-300 of Air Koryo at Vladivostok Airport (1).jpg
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Tupolev (russian: Ту́полев, ), officially Joint Stock Company Tupolev, is a Russian aerospace and defence company headquartered in
Basmanny District Basmanny District (russian: райо́н Басма́нный) is a district of Central Administrative Okrug of the federal city of Moscow, Russia. Population: The district extends northeast from Kitai-gorod, within the radial boundaries of ...
, Moscow. Tupolev is successor to the Soviet Tupolev Design Bureau (
OKB 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. ...
-156, design office prefix ''Tu'') founded in 1922 by aerospace pioneer and engineer Andrei Tupolev, who led the company for 50 years until his death in 1972. Tupolev has designed over 100 models of civilian and military aircraft and produced more than 18,000 aircraft for Russia, the Soviet Union and the
Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...
since its founding, and celebrated its 90th anniversary on 22 October 2012. Tupolev is involved in numerous aerospace and defence sectors including development, manufacturing, and overhaul for both civil and military aerospace products such as aircraft and weapons systems, and also missile and naval aviation technologies. In 2006, Tupolev became a division of the United Aircraft Corporation in a merger with Mikoyan,
Ilyushin The public joint stock company Ilyushin Aviation Complex, operating as Ilyushin (russian: Илью́шин) or as Ilyushin Design Bureau, is a former Soviet and now a Russian aircraft manufacturer and design bureau, founded in 1933 by Sergey Vl ...
, Irkut, Sukhoi, and Yakovlev by decree of the Russian President Vladimir Putin.Russian Aircraft Industry Seeks Revival Through Merger
" '' The New York Times.'' February 22, 2006.


History

Tupolev OKB was founded by Andrei Tupolev in 1922. Its facilities are tailored for
aeronautics Aeronautics is the science or art involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of air flight–capable machines, and the techniques of operating aircraft and rockets within the atmosphere. The British Royal Aeronautical Society identifies ...
research and aircraft design only, manufacturing is handled by other firms. It researched all-metal airplanes during the 1920s, based directly on the pioneering work already done by Hugo Junkers during World War I. Among the notable results during Tupolev's early period were two significant all-metal heavy bombers with corrugated duralumin skins, the ANT-4 twin-engined bomber which first flew in 1925 and the four-engined ANT-6 of 1932, from which such airplanes as the ANT-20 were derived (see Yefim Gordon & Vladimir Rigmant, OKB Tupolev. Hinckley, UK: Midland, 2005. pp. 22–28 & 30–34). Tupolev's design approach in these two airplanes defined for many years the trends of heavy aircraft development, civil and military. During World War II, the twin-engined, all-metal
Tu-2 The Tupolev Tu-2 (development names ANT-58 and 103; NATO reporting name Bat) was a twin-engine Soviet high-speed daylight and frontline (SDB and FB) bomber aircraft of World War II vintage. The Tu-2 was tailored to meet a requirement for a high ...
was one of the best front-line bombers of the Soviets. Several variants of it were produced in large numbers from 1942. During the war it used wooden rear fuselages due to a shortage of metal. This was succeeded by the development of the jet-powered Tu-16 bomber, which used a sweptback wing for good subsonic performance. As turbojets were not fuel efficient enough to provide truly intercontinental range, the Soviets elected to design a new bomber, the Tu-20, more commonly referred to as the Tu-95. It, too, was based on the fuselage and structural design of the Tu-4, but with four colossal Kuznetsov NK-12 turboprop engines providing a unique combination of jet-like speed and long range. It became the definitive Soviet intercontinental bomber, with intercontinental range and jet-like performance. In many respects the Soviet equivalent of the
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...
, it served as a
strategic bomber A strategic bomber is a medium- to long-range penetration bomber aircraft designed to drop large amounts of air-to-ground weaponry onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating the enemy's capacity to wage war. Unlike tactical bombers, ...
and in many alternate roles, including reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare. The Tu-16 was developed into the civil
Tu-104 The Tupolev Tu-104 ( NATO reporting name: Camel) is a retired twinjet, medium-range, narrow-body turbojet The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine which is typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a propelling noz ...
. The Tu-95 became the basis of the unique
Tu-114 The Tupolev Tu-114 Rossiya ( ru , link=no, Tyполев Тy-114 Poccия; NATO reporting name Cleat) was a turboprop-powered long-range airliner designed by the Tupolev design bureau and built in the Soviet Union from May 1955. The aircraft was t ...
medium-to-long-range airliner, the fastest turboprop aircraft ever. One common feature found in many large subsonic Tupolev jet aircraft is large pods extending rearward from the trailing edge of the wings, holding the aircraft's landing gear. These allow the aircraft to have landing gears made up of many large low-pressure tires, which are invaluable for use on the poor quality runways that were common in the Soviet Union at the time. For example, the Tu-154 airliner, the Soviet equivalent of the Boeing 727, has 14 tyres, the same number as Boeing's far larger 777-200. Even before the first flights of the Tu-16 and Tu-20/Tu-95, Tupolev was working on supersonic bombers, culminating in the unsuccessful Tu-98. Although that aircraft never entered service, it became the basis for the prototype Tu-102 (later developed into the Tu-28
interceptor Interceptor may refer to: Vehicles * Interceptor aircraft (or simply "interceptor"), a type of point defense fighter aircraft designed specifically to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft * Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, a police car * ...
) and the Tu-105, which evolved into the supersonic Tu-22 bomber in the mid-1960s. Intended as a counterpart to the Convair B-58 Hustler, the Tu-22 proved rather less capable, although it remained in service much longer than the American aircraft. Meanwhile, the "K" Department was formed in the Design Bureau, with the task of designing unmanned aircraft such as the Tu-139 and the Tu-143 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. In the 1960s A. N. Tupolev's son, A. A. Tupolev, became active with management of the agency. His role included the development of the world's first supersonic airliner, the Tu-144, the popular Tu-154 airliner and the Tupolev Tu-22M
strategic bomber A strategic bomber is a medium- to long-range penetration bomber aircraft designed to drop large amounts of air-to-ground weaponry onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating the enemy's capacity to wage war. Unlike tactical bombers, ...
. All these developments enabled the Soviet Union to achieve strategic military and civil aviation parity with the West. In the 1970s, Tupolev concentrated its efforts on improving the performance of the Tu-22M bombers, whose variants included maritime versions. It is the presence of these bombers in quantity that brought about the
SALT I The Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) were two rounds of bilateral conferences and corresponding international treaties involving the United States and the Soviet Union. The Cold War superpowers dealt with arms control in two rounds of ta ...
and
SALT II The Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) were two rounds of bilateral conferences and corresponding international treaties involving the United States and the Soviet Union. The Cold War superpowers dealt with arms control in two rounds of ta ...
treaties. Also the efficiency and performance of the Tu-154 was improved, culminating in the efficient Tu-154M. In the 1980s the design bureau developed the supersonic Tu-160 strategic bomber. Features include
variable-geometry The wing configuration of a fixed-wing aircraft (including both gliders and powered aeroplanes) is its arrangement of lifting and related surfaces. Aircraft designs are often classified by their wing configuration. For example, the Superma ...
wings.


Post-Soviet Era

With the end of the
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, research work was concentrated on subsonic civil aircraft, mainly on operating economics and alternative fuels. The developments include fly-by-wire, use of efficient high-bypass turbofans and advanced aerodynamic layouts for the 21st century transport aircraft such as the
Tu-204 The Tupolev Tu-204 (russian: Туполев Ту-204) is a twin-engined medium- range narrow-body jet airliner capable of carrying 210 passengers, designed by Tupolev and produced by Aviastar-SP and Kazan Aircraft Production Association. Fir ...
/
Tu-214 The Tupolev Tu-204 (russian: Туполев Ту-204) is a twin-engined medium-range narrow-body jet airliner capable of carrying 210 passengers, designed by Tupolev and produced by Aviastar-SP and Kazan Aircraft Production Association. First ...
, Tu-330 and Tu-334. Among Tupolev projects from the 1990s to the 2000s: *further development of Tu-204/214 and TU-334 aircraft family *development of cargo aircraft Tu-330, regional and executive Tu-324 aircraft *research on practical aspects of aircraft operation using alternative fuels *modernization of Russian Naval Aviation and Air Force At the MAKS-2003 airshow, Tupolev revealed the Tu-444 supersonic business jet concept; development was intended to start in the first half of 2004, however nothing further came of the program. On 19 August 2009, Tupolev announced that it had a contract with the Russian Defense Ministry to develop a new-generation strategic bomber
PAK DA The Tupolev PAK DA or PAK DA (russian: ПАК ДА, russian: label=short for, Перспективный авиационный комплекс дальней авиации, Perspektivnyi aviatsionnyi kompleks dal'ney aviatsii, 'Prospective avi ...
which "will be a conceptually new plane based on the most advanced technologies".


Directors

* Andrei Nikolayevich Tupolev was a leading designer at the Moscow-based Central Aero-Hydrodynamic Institute ( TsAGI) from 1929 until his death in 1972. This design bureau produced mostly bombers and
airliner An airliner is a type of aircraft for transporting passengers and air cargo. Such aircraft are most often operated by airlines. Although the definition of an airliner can vary from country to country, an airliner is typically defined as an ...
s. * Alexei Andreyevich Tupolev, son of Andrei Tupolev, was also a famous aircraft designer. His most famous design was the supersonic airliner Tupolev Tu-144. He managed Tupolev until his death in 2001. * Igor Sergeevich Shevchuk was named the Director of OAO Tupolev in 1997, later the Chairman of the Board of Directors, and in 2001 the President and General Designer. He died unexpectedly in 2011. * Alexandr Vladimirovich Koniukhov was a director general in 2016–2020. * Ronis Nakipovich Sharipov appointed a director general in May 2020. In September 2021,
Rustam Minnikhanov Rustam Nurgaliyevich Minnikhanov (russian: Руста́м Нургали́евич Минниха́нов, tt-Cyrl, Рөстәм Нургали улы Миңнеханов; born 1 March 1957) is a Russian politician who has served as ...
,
President of Tatarstan The president of the Republic of Tatarstan (russian: Президент Республики Татарстан; tt, Татарстан Республикасы Президенты) is the regional head of Tatarstan, Russia. The office was est ...
was elected chairman of the board of directors of Tupolev.


See also

*
List of Tupolev aircraft This is a list of aircraft produced by Tupolev, a Russian aircraft manufacturer. Tupolev aircraft Early aircraft *Tupolev ANT-1, ANT-1: The first aircraft by A.N.T. and the first Soviet-built aircraft. Mixed materials design. The work started in ...
* List of military aircraft of the Soviet Union and the CIS


References

{{Authority control United Aircraft Corporation Aircraft manufacturers of Russia Aircraft manufacturers of the Soviet Union Companies based in Moscow Russian brands Design bureaus