The establishment of NATO posed the need for the Soviet war machine to create a fast jet bomber capable of reaching targets throughout Western Europe and combatting the carrier task forces with which the US Navy could throw its weight around the world. The basic Tu-16 which first flew in the mid-1950s was developed into nearly 50 versions adopted for various roles, including nuclear-capable bombers, anti-shipping missile strike aircraft, torpedo-bombers and minelayers, numerous reconnaissance and ECM variants, assorted development aircraft for testing new engines, avionics and systems. The Tu-16 even found civil uses as a fast mailplane and a weather research/rainmaking aircraft! The Badger, as the bomber was known to the West, served as the basis for the Soviet Union's first jet airliner, the Tu-104. The nearly 1,500 Tu-16s built in the Soviet Union were an important factor in preventing all-out military confrontation between the East and the West. Since the mid-1950s and until the 1980s the Badger has been a regular picture on the pages of the Western press, snooping around Western naval groups every now and then. The type also had its share of 'hot' wars, getting its baptism of fire in the Six-Day War of 1967. Apart from three factories in the USSR, the Tu-16 was built under license in China as the H-6 and remains in service with the People's Liberation Army Air Force. Other foreign users were Egypt, Indonesia and Iraq. All known versions are described and a full account is given of the Tu-16's operational career in the USSR and abroad during the Cold War and in the days after that when many of the surviving Badgers were used as target drones. The book features many previously unpublished photos and a detailed production list.

Developed to meet a Soviet Ministry of Defense requirement for a fast bomber that would counter the threat posed by NATO, the Tu-16 was a ground-breaking project. It was the first Soviet medium bomber to feature swept wings, and it was built around a pair of turbojets that were the world's most powerful jet engines at the time. First flown in 1952, the Tu-16 filled such roles as nuclear bomb delivery, missile strike, reconnaissance, and Electronic Counter Measures. It also served as the basis for the first Soviet jet airliner, the Tu-104. Nearly 1,500 were built for the Soviet Air Force and the Soviet Navy, and the Tu-16 showed remarkable longevity, the final examples being retired in 1993. The type saw quite a bit of combat--from the Six-Days War of 1967 to the Afghan War. The Tu-16 was also produced in China and remains in Chinese service to this day. All known versions are described, as is the Tu-16's operational career. The book features many hitherto unpublished photos.

This historic Russian aircraft was first delivered to the Soviet Air Force at the height of the Cold War in 1961. It remained in service until replaced by the much modified Tu-22M Backfire which was introduced in the early 1970s and still remains in service. It was the first Soviet supersonic bomber and was used for reconnaissance and bombing, in the latter role carrying either conventional or nuclear bombs. The early aircraft had a range of 1,800 miles but later models had a much increased radius of action through the introduction of in-flight refuelling. This book looks at the design and development of the aircraft up to the introduction of the type M Backfire. Details of construction, weapon systems, photo-reconnaissance and jamming equipment are included to cover the several variant models. Operational use is explained and the text includes many first-hand accounts from Russian aircrew of the period. The book will be superbly illustrated by unique official photographs and manuals.

This popular and highly-acclaimed series includes an abundance of photos, accurate line drawings, fascinating evaluations of aircraft design, and complete histories of aircraft manufacturers.

A History of the Design Bureau and its Aircraft Yefim Gordon & Vladimir Rigmant The origins of the design bureau that was to bear his name can be traced back to the appointment of Andrey Nikolayevich Tupolev as head of the TsAGI's Aviation Department in 1918. Over the years, nearly 300 projects have evolved within the OKB. Nearly 90 reached the prototype construction stage, with more than 40 types put into series production.In the 1930s, the TB-1 (ANT-4) and TB-3 (ANT-6) bombers, the latter being the world's first heavy strategic bomber, paved the way for the long line of large multi-engined aircraft both civil and military for which the OKB is justly famed. Wartime production of the SB and Tu-2 plus the remarkable 'reverse engineering' of the Boeing B-29 that resulted in the Tu-4 led on to the jet Tu-16 and prop Tu-95 bombers. These, in turn were adapted for civil purposes as the Tu-104 and Tu-114 airliners. The supersonic Tu-22 and Tu-22M bombers and the Tu-144 airliner, a move into pilotless aircraft and a host of imaginative but unbuilt projects complete a fascinating work.

With the end of World War II and the dawn of the nuclear age, the world's new superpowers (while allied for the defeat of Germany) entered a period of hostility marked by sharply opposing ideologies, proxy wars and the continuing threat of nuclear confrontation. The so-called Cold War spawned rapid development of dozens of new aircraft whose purpose was to enable one side to mount a devastating nuclear attack on the other, or protect against just such a strike from the opposing side. Russia's Tupolev design bureau was tasked with creating a series of long-range nuclear bombers capable of penetrating U.S. defenses. All of them captured the imagination of those with a professional or personal interest in military aviation-and continue to fascinate, even today. This title offers in-depth profiles of Russia's infamous long-range nuclear bombers, including the Tu-16 'Badger', Tu-95MS 'Bear-H', Tu-142 'Bear-F', Tu-22 'Blinder', Tu-22M 'Backfire', and Tu-160 'Blackjack'. '