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Designer: Andrey Nikolayevich Tupolev. Manufacturer: OKB Tupolev. Length: 47 m. Wingspan: 50.5 m. Height; 12.5 m. Powerplant: 4 Kuznyetsov NK-12MV turboprops rated at 14,795 ehp, each turning 2 eight-blade contra-rotating reversible-pitch 5.6m diameter AV-60N propellers. Max. speed: 925 kph. Cruise speed: 430 kph. Cruise altitude: 12,000 m, Max. altitude: 14,000 m. Range (unrefueled): 13,500 kms. Fuel capacity: 90 tons. Endurance: 20 hours.

 

In the sixties, as part of the modernization plan started by Premier Leonid I. Brezhnev and pushed by its Commander-in-Chief, Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Serghey G. Gorshkov, the Soviet Navy built new airbases in several small towns across the width and breadth of the Soviet Union, in order to base its Naval Aviation regiments. Among these were Kipelovo, near Vologda, 400 kms. north of Moscow; Mongokhto, near Sovyetskaya Gavan’, Far Eastern Siberia; Khorol’, in the Vladivostok area, also in Far Eastern Siberia; Olenyegorsk, 92 kms south of Murmansk; and Kuzomen, 350 kms south of Murmansk, and near  the small town of the same name, both in the Kola Peninsula, Northern Russia.

From these airbases the Bears flew regular reconnaissance patrols down the western European coast, from Murmansk to Ireland, and down the eastern coast of the North American continent, from Canada to Cuba, where they landed at the Fuerza Aérea Revolucionaria Cubana (Cuban Revolutionary Air Force) base at San Antonio de los Baños, province Cienfuegos. Also to other airbases in friendly countries such as Guinea, Angola, Mozambique, Ethiopia, or Vietnam.

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Tu-95-A

Tu-95-D

Tu-95-F

Tu-95-G

Here in Kuzomen was stationed the 364^th Otdyel’nyy Dal’niy Razvedyvatel’nyy Aviatsionnyy Polk, ODRAP in its Cyrillic acronym, or Independent Long-range Reconnaissance Regiment. The 364^th ODRAP received the newly-produced TU-95 RTs Razvedchik Tseleukazatel’ or Reconnaissance and Targeting platform (izdeliye VTs), known as Bear D by NATO, serial № 66MRTs307, Bort № Red 67, flown by Captain Makarov, from Aviation Plant №18 of the Tupolev OKB-156 in the city of Kuibyshev, Russian SFSR, on March 24^th, 1966, being the seventh aircraft from the third batch, and number 37 out of a total production run of 53 which started in 1963 and ended in 1969.

In Kuibyshev the aircraft was equipped with the accoutrements that allowed it to perform the mission for which it was designed as part of the Soviet Navy’s “Uspekh” (Success) naval electronic reconnaissance and submarine-based air-to-air and ground-to-ground guided missile target acquisition and control complex, in coordination with the “Project 651” (NATO Codename: Juliett) and “Project 675” (NATO codename: Echo II) submarines. These submarines carried four and eight V.N. Chelomey-designed P-500/4K80 “Bazal’t” (NATO codename: SS-N-12 Sandbox) nuclear antishipping missiles respectively, controlled by the PRS-1 “Argon” ranging control system operated jointly with the TU-95 RTs.

The TU-95 RTs thirty-two bladed propeller tips, when turning at supersonic speed, produced an incredible noise, heard by NATO pilots while still 3 kms away from the Bear. Closer, at one kilometer away, the pilots said the reverberations of the propellers could be felt in their chests as if they were before a powerful loudspeaker. It was even said that some western jet fighters had difficulty keeping up with the Bear when it accelerated to top speed.

Curiously, despite the long, twelve- and sixteen-hour flights carried out by the Bear crews, none of the TU-95RTs were provided with toilets or similar facilities for the benefit of the seven men cramped in the forward pressurized compartment and the two men in the tail.

Each member of the crew received an stainless steel bottle, to be used for the relief of the corresponding organ. For more serious matters both compartments had a container shaped like a cooking pan, with a resin membrane inside and a hermetically sealing cap. No one, however, ever used it, not even once. Just one look at the device and imagining oneself sitting at it, right on the escape conveyor belt, before the eyes of the rest of the crew, or worse, in the tail, behind the huge observation blisters on both sides of the fuselage, before the eyes of any foreign pilot who happened to fly by, was enough for the total disappearance of all feelings of need.

For years, in all the long range reconnaissance regiments circulated the story of the unfortunate crew that ate something that got some of them sick. The Commander of the crew in question got fed up of the foul smell and of having to look after them, so he lowered the airplane to 2000m, ordered decompression, opened the exit hatch, expelled the offending party to the forward landing gear well, closed the hatch, and did not let them get out until they had bowel movement and poured the whole concoction on the well doors.

From that moment on, it was not unusual for the whole crew to go on their long flights and hold their needs until they returned to base. According to the recommendations of aviation doctors, one has to drink more liquids before a long range flight at high altitude, at least three times more. But because of that, crews drank or ate less. As a result, soon entire crews started to have problems with their teeth and bones.

Another point of contention for Bear crews was the difficulty –almost impossibility–  of jumping out of a TU-95 RTs in flight, especially for the crewmen in the forward compartment of the airplane. Their only two means of egress were the main exit hatch, which could be used only after the nosewheel bay doors had been opened and the nose landing gear lowered. Also the upper exit hatch, located on the roof, behind the cockpit, between the stations of the Flight Engineer and the Radioman, and placed there by the designers in case of forced landing in water.

However, what constituted the biggest danger to the crew was not so much the difficulty of exiting the airplane using either one of these two hatches, but reaching a prudent distance from the airplane alive. If a crewman managed to jump out of the airplane –while still flying at over 350kph– using the lower hatch, he still had to contend with the main radome under the fuselage, which he might or might not hit on his way down and aft as he was carried away by the slipstream, depending on how heavy he was, and how lucky too. If he hit the radome, the consequences to his body were predictable. If he did not, he could consider himself fortunate.

On the other hand, if he managed to reach the outside using the upper exit hatch, the unfortunate jumper then had to contend with not one but two dangers, as he was brusquely grabbed by the strong slipstream: The rudder fin and the tail elevators, which would hit him equally hard whatever side of the fuselage he happened to take on his fall, breaking every bone in the impacted area. That was if he managed to avoid hitting any one of them square on, in which case they would just slice his body like a hot knife through butter, each part of his severed body simply fluttering away in the wake of the airplane. If he was so fortunate that he could escape unharmed, then he could open his parachute and float down to earth. In both of these scenarios the crews considered the chances of the latter happening usually nil.

The only crewmen who were able to leave the airplane in one piece were the ones in the tail, provided the air cylinders used to open the exit hatch on the floor worked as designed, and overcame the external pressure of the slipstream, in which case the hatch also worked as a dam against the fast onrushing air.

When TU-95RTs crews complained to the Soviet Navy about the practical impossibility of leaving the airplane alive, the Navy put together a special demonstration team to show them techniques to jump out of the airplane using parachutes. The demonstrations usually occurred flawlessly, and the team went from air base to air base demonstrating the techniques. Of course, the Navy never told the spectators that the team members were all expert paratroop jumpers with thousands of jumps under their belts.

 

After having it in storage for several months, the Canadian government offered to return the purloined TU-95 naval airplane to the Soviet Union, with the proviso that they had to come pick it up themselves. Since the Soviet government did not even acknowledge the presence of their airplane in Canada or that the event even happened, the offer was ignored. As far as the Soviets was concerned, the plane crashed in deep waters of the Atlantic Ocean, near Newfoundland. After the Soviet rebuff, the Canadian government transferred the airplane to the USAF, which flew it to Edwards AFB for testing. At the end of the tests the airplane was flown for the last time to the Davis-Monthan AFB for storage.

On Thursday August 1^st, 1996, almost twenty years later to the date, after spending several years mothballed in a remote, far away corner of the airframe cemetery at Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, AZ, TU-95RTs Serial № 66MRTs307, Bort № Red 67, was finally scrapped and chopped to pieces by the same giant cutters that had previously cut so many B-47s, B-58s and B-52s, airplanes belonging to the forces opposing its frequent flights over the naval vessels target of its relentless maritime searches.

As of March 1995, all TU-95 RTs were grounded due to cracks on the wings. By 1999, 18 airframes had been chopped and sold for scrap at the Engels AFB, near Saratov, Russia.

The Korshun radar carried by Red 67 was a dismal failure, becoming obsolete even before it reached operational use. The USAF technicians, after seeing the outdated miniature vacuum tubes populating the radar circuitry, could do nothing but stand in amazement at the backwardness of then-current Soviet radar technology. Due to its extreme unreliability, the Soviet Navy soon replaced it with the more advanced Korshun-Kaira or Korshun-K, which was later installed in all its TU-142 (Bear F) antisubmarine warfare airplanes.

 

 

The Tupolev Tu-95  "Bear"

 

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Tu-95-H

The Tu-95 'Bear' first flew in 1954 and entered service little more than a year later. It is a classic post-war aircraft design, with jet-type performance provided by four extremely powerful turboprops, each driving massive contra-rotating propellers and mounted on swept flying surfaces. Powered by four turboprop engines, driving contra-rotating four-blade propellers 18 ft across, the Bear is one of the world's noisiest military aircraft. 'Bears' were initially operated by Long Range Aviation, which was the Soviet strategic air force. The Bear was also use by the Soviet Navy as a long range maritime reconnaissance and ASW aircraft. The successor states of the Soviet Union still operate about 125 Bears in strategic roles. The original 'Bear-A' is a strategic Bomber, with a 20 ton payload of free-fall weapons. 'Bear-Bs' and 'Bear-Gs' are missile carriers, while the latest 'Bear-H' is a dedicated long-range cruise missile carriers, armed with 10 AS-15 'Kent' air launched cruise missiles.

The Tu-95 BEAR was perhaps the most successful bomber produced by the Soviet aviation, enjoying long service in a variety of roles and configurations. It was the only bomber deployed by any country to use turbo-prop engines, which provided extraordinarily long endurance at speeds only slightly less than comparable turbojet-powered heavy bombers.

Development of the TU-95 intercontinental bomber began in the early 1950s after series production of the medium-range TU-4 started. Initially, several design configurations were considered, including a modification of the TU-4 and production of a new aircraft with piston engines. Prototypes of these aircraft were developed and tested from 1949 through 1951, when it was concluded that bombers with piston engines could not provide adequate performance for the intercontinental attack mission. In March 1951 development of the T-4 intercontinental jet bomber began. However, KB Tupolev did not support the development of a bomber with turbojet engines, believing that the proposed AM-3 jet engines would not provide for the required range of more than 10,000 km. As an alternative, KB Tupolev proposed an aircraft with four turbo-prop engines that would provide a range of more than 13,000 km and speeds of more than 800 km/h at altitudes of 10,000 meters. The aircraft-design was designated as "95".

The design of the wings drew heavily on the experience gathered by Tupolev and the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TSAGI) during the development of the swept wing TU-16. The wings of the "95" were mid-mounted, swept-back, and tapered with blunt tips at an angle of 35 degrees, allowing the placement of a large bomb bay behind of the torsion box of the wings' central unit at the aircraft's center of gravity.

Its engines consist of four turboprops with contra-rotating propellers located on the wings; nacelles extending well beyond the wings’ leading edges. The fuselage of the Bear is tube-shaped with a rounded nose that tapers to the rear. It also has a stepped cockpit and a tail gun compartment. Like the wings, the tail of the aircraft is a fin that is swept-back and tapered with a square tip.

The greatest difficulty in the development of the Tu-95 was engines. After studies on different engine combinations and versions, a final design was made to incorporated four turbo-prop engines with a thrust of about 10,000-shp advocated by Tupolev. In the late 1940s, the most powerful turbo-prop engine available was the BK-2 prototype which had significantly less thrust (4800-shp). By early 1950s OKB-276 N.A. Kuznetsov developed the TV-2 engine and the TV-2F booster engine with a thrust of 6,250-shp., while work on the TV-12 engine with sufficient thrust for the "95" aircraft continued.

After consideration of Tupolev's proposals, on 11 July 1951 the government officially approved the development of the "95" aircraft: Two versions were built, one with eight TV-2F engines coupled through the reduction gearbox in four pusher-tractor tandem pairs, and a second version with four TV-12 engines. N.I. Bazenkov became the chief designer of all subsequent TU-95 versions. When he died in 1975, N.V. Kursanov took over as chief designer, and from the end of the 1980s, D.A. Antonov became head of the program.

In 1952, the first prototype "95/1", equipped with 8 2TV-2F engines, was built at Plant Nr. 156. The reduction gearbox and the four-blade contra-rotating propellers were developed by OKB-120 headed by K.N. Zhdanov. Each pair generated a thrust of 12,000-shp. The first flight of the "95/1" airplane took place on 12 November 1952, but on 11 May 1953 during its' 17th flight the plane crashed and burned due to an engine fire. The second prototype ("95/2"), equipped with TV-12 engines, was completed in June 1954 with a first flight on 16 February 1955. During tests, while carrying a load of 5000 kg, it reached a range of about 15,000 km, a speed of 993 km/h and a ceiling of 11,300 m. Series production of the aircraft -- now designated as TU-95 -- started in January 1956 at Plant Nr. 18 in Kuibyshev, while production tests were still underway.

The first Tu-95 weapon ["lvan"] was a 3 MT nuclear bomb (Product 6SD). Improved 20 MT nuclear bombs appeared by the early 1960s, but they were very large and created some difficulties when they were mounted under the Tu-95 bomber. One Tu-95MA dropped a bomb with a yield of 20 Mt in Sary-Shagan test range in the spring of 1960. September 1979, series production started in 1981. With the reopening of the BEAR production line, the Soviets began producing a new, upgraded variant of the BEAR turboprop bomber, thereby increasing their long-range bomber force. This entirely new variant of the BEAR bomber - the BEAR H - became the launch platform for the long-range Kh-55 [AS-15] air-launched cruise missile. The initial version carried Kh-55 air-to-surface missiles located in the bomb bay on a catapult. This was the first new production of a strike version of the BEAR airframe since the 1960s. With the BEAR H in series production, the decline in the inventory of BEAR aircraft, characteristic of the late 1970s, was reversed. By 1988 BEAR H bombers were regularly observed simulating attacks against North America.

 

Status

Russia, Ukraine and India (Bear F) use the Bear.

When the START-1 treaty was signed in 1991, 147 bombers and missile carriers still served in the Russian forces: 84 TU-MS and 63 TU-95K-22, TU-95K and TU-95M. An additional 11 TU-95U were used for training.

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, one unit of Bear aircraft remained in Ukraine, with twenty three TU-95MS, one TU-95K and one TU-95M aircraft. These aircraft were passed to Ukraine, and were subject to decommissioning under the provisions of the START-1 treaty. A total of 11 strategic bombers and 600 air-launched missiles exchanged by Ukraine to Russia in payment for the gas debt were transferred in mid-February 2000. Two Tu-160 bombers flew from Priluki in the Ukrainian Chernigov region for the Russian air base in Engels. The missiles were sent to Russia by railroad. Three Tu-95MS bombers and six Tu-160 airplanes had already arrived at Engels since October 1999 in fulfillment of the intergovernmental agreements. Before being moved to Russia, 19 Tu-160 airplanes were stationed at the Priluki airfield and 21 Tu-95MS were located in Uzin.

At the time of the breakup of the Soviet Union, thirteen TU-95MS-16 and twenty seven TU- 95MS-6 were based in Kazakhstan. Subsequently, all Bear aircraft located in Kazakhstan were transferred to Russia.

Russian Tu-95 and TU-95MS aircraft are now deployed at two air bases. A total of nineteen TU-95MS16 and two TU-MS6, operating in the 121st heavy bomber air regiment, which forms part of the 22nd Air Division that is headquarteed in Engels Air Base in the Moscow region. At the Ukrainka airbase (73th Heavy Bomber Air Division) at Svobodny, there are 16 TU-95MS16 and 26 TU-95MS6 bombers that were redeployed from the Dolon airbase at Semipalatinsk in Kazakhstan. The TU-95K-22 bombers are subject to decommissioning. In early 1997 five TU-95K-22 were decommissioned and re-equipped in Zngyelse, and five at the Ryazan training center. Eight TU-95 are located at the flight-test institute in at Zhukovskiy [Ramenskoye], and one TU-95K aircraft serves as a static display in Ryazan.

The TU-95MS, constructed in the middle and early 1990s, will be operational until 2010 and 2015. Russia is currently working on a new air-to-surface missile to replace the existing Kh-55.

In late June 1999, two TU-95 Bear bombers flew within striking distance of the United States as part of Moscow's largest military exercise since the end of the Cold War. The bombers were intercepted by four US F-15 fighters and a P-3 patrol plane near Iceland and escorted in a clockwise flight around the island. The Bears, and two Blackjacks, were from the Donbass Red Banner 22nd heavy bomber division based at Engels Air Base east of Moscow. They initially flew across the central Norwegian Sea. When they got about halfway across, the Blackjacks split off from the Bears and flew along the Norwegian coastline.

On 16 September 1999, a pair of Russian Tu-95 Bear bombers were detected by the US Air Force  headed toward the Alaska coast. U.S. fighter jets were sent to intercept the aircraft which had been caught on radar. Air Force officials said both bombers turned before crossing into US airspace and about 90 miles from the approaching fighters. The Soviet Union regularly tested U.S. air defenses by flying toward Alaska during the Cold War, but this was the first time the Air Force had documented such a test as happening since March 1993.

Ten Tu-142s entered Indian service in April 1988 for long-range surface surveillance and anti-submarine warfare. According to the 'Times of India,' on 5 Feb 2006, India held negotiations with Russia and Israel to procure 6 to 8 more Tu-142 aircraft. However these negotiations were called off in 2003. It was likely that the aircraft that would have been procured, would have been refurbished ex-VVS storage stocks. India is making substantial purchases of the Novator 3M-54 Alfa missile to equip Kilo class submarines and its new frigates. It is believed that an air-launched variant will be purchased to arm the Tu-142s currently in service and the six to eight additional aircraft being sought by the Navy. If an air-launched version of the Alfa is procured, it is anticipated that India's Tu-22M3s will eventually be equipped to fire them.

 

 

Tu-95 Variants

 

With the exception of Bear A, all models are equipped with a nose probe for aerial refueling.

 

• BEAR A - TU-95 / TU-95M -- The Bear A is a long-range strategic bomber that is capable of high-altitude precision bombing. The TU-95 and TU-95M bombers were designed to carry 9,000 kg of bombs at their maximum design range. Six radar-controlled turret-mounted AM-23 guns were used for self-defense. The first two fully equipped Tu-95 aircraft were completed in August 1955 and began flight tests in October 1955. Carrying a load of 5,000 kg, it reached a maximum speed of 850 km/h and a service ceiling of 10,200 m with a maximum range of 12,100 km. The second aircraft, designated as TU-95M, had more powerful and more fuel-efficient NK-12M engines allowing for increased take-off weight. During tests in September and October 1957, it reached a maximum speed of 905 km/h, a ceiling of 12,150 m and a range of 13,200 km. Despite falling short of range and speed requirements, deployment began in October 1957. During work on these aircraft, development of a bomber with improved abilities to counter air defenses continued. In 1952 the government ordered a high-altitude strategic bomber with a ceiling of 17,000 m. A prototype equipped with NK-12M engines was used in tests, but development was halted because the increased altitude did not increase the survivability of the bomber. Most 'Bear-As' were subsequently converted to the missile-carrying Bear-B configuration. About a dozen surviving 'Bear-As' were converted to Tu-95U configuration for training duties. The bomb bay was 14.2 m (46.6 ft) long.

   

• BEAR - TU-95V -- The Tu-95V, built in 1956, was intended to carry large hydrogen bombs. Because hydrogen bombs were not operational until the end of the 1950s, this aircraft was used for training purposes. In 1961, overhaul of a TU-95V aircraft took place at the plant Nr. 18 in Kuibyshev. A single Tu-95V bomber was built on the basis of the Tu-95M specially for testing the 100 MT thermonuclear bomb. This bomb, named «Van-ya» (Product 700), was made at Min-sredmash KB-11 (Design Bureau Ns 11 of Medium Machinery industry Ministery). This bomber got a larger bomb bay, which was equipped with a superstrong bomb holder. On 30 October 1961 the bomb drop was performed above Novaya Zemlya firing ground. The yield was estimated at 58-65 Mt only, but it was the most powerful nuclear explosion in the world. This version of the BEAR A was apparently not recognized as a distinct variant by Western intelligence, and did not receive a separate designation.

   

• BEAR - TU-95N -- In 1958 a single aircraft, developed by OKB-256 P.V. Tsibina, was converted into the TU-95N and used to carry the "PS" attack aircraft "RS". This line of development proved unpromising and was soon discontinued. The fact of the existence of this project was apparently not detected at the time by Western intelligence, and this variant did not receive a separate designation in the West.

   

• BEAR B - TU-95K / TU-95KD -- The Bear B carried one Kangaroo (350 nm range) air-to-surface missile partially recessed within the aircraft fuselage. The most visible change from the BEAR A TU-95M is the addition of the broad, flat-bottomed radome under the nose, which housed a 3.3-meter wide low I-band A-336Z Crown Drum scanning antenna for the missile guidance radar. Development of the TU-25K-20 weapon system, consisting of the TU-95K and the supersonic Kk-20 (AS-3) air-to-surface missile, began in March 1955. The "K-20" nomenclature appears to encompass both the aircraft and the missile, and the "Tu-95K-20" nomenclature used by some sources may be in error]. With a range of 350 km, sufficient to overcome air defenses, the air-to-surface missile was located under the fuselage. The first flight of the prototype was on 01 January 1956, and through development continued on the missile launch and guidance system, the aircraft's airframe, and the onboard electronics. Series production of the TU-95K began in the spring of 1958, with operational deployment beginning in September 1959. The additional fuel tanks and the missile of the Tu-95K resulted in an increase of weight and drag that reduced the range of the aircraft. This performance deficit had to be offset by aerial refueling. Work on this "hose-cone" system started in May 1960 and was completed in 1961. The bombers that were outfitted with this air refueling system received the designation Tu-95KD. Some 'Bear-Bs' were relegated to training duties.

   

• BEAR C - TU-95KM -- In the 1960s several TU-95K and TU-95KD bombers received a new radio engineering and navigation system, and their designation changed to TU-95KM [some Western sources claim that the Tu-95KM Bear-C was a new-build aircraft, rather than a conversion]. The Bear C is similar in appearance to the late-series Bear B Tu-95KDs, with the addition of two pairs of reconnaissance radomes located on opposite sides of the aft section of the fuselage. Many Tu-95KMs were upgraded to the 'Bear-G' configuration and none are believed to remain operational in the original configuration.

   

• BEAR D - TU-95RTs -- The Bear D is a variant of Bear A which can also perform ELINT reconnaissance. The TU-95RTS maritime reconnaissance aircraft was developed in the early 1960s, and conducted its' first flight test in September 1962. Series production began in 1963 [some Western sources suggest that the aircraft were converted from surplus Tu-95M 'Bear-As]. The TU-95RTS began flying with naval aviation in 1964 and was introduced into the operational inventory by spring of 1966 with it being first identified by Western intelligence in 1967.

The new variant was distinguished by a new enlarged chin radome, and much larger Big Bulge I-band search radar in place of the former weapons bay. This search radar provided mid-course missile guidance, acquiring targets for ship-, submarine- and air-launched missiles. The Tu-95RTs, although built on the airframe of a heavy bomber, was designed and built as a maritime patrol airplane. The TU-95RTs maritime patrol airplanes were not and have not been used as heavy bombers, nor have they been equipped with air-to-surface weapons or undergone conversion.

Tu-95RTs airplanes have external features distinguishing them from heavy bombers of the Tu-95 type: they have no bomb bays, no external carrier beams to suspend or carry aerial bombs or missiles, and no equipment necessary for control of such weapons. Other differences characteristic of these airplanes are the additional three-dimensional radomes of the surface situation surveillance equipment under the fuselage and on the sides of the airplane.

As of mid-1991 the Soviet Union had 37 Tu-95RTs airplanes, which were based only at naval air bases. Under the START I Treaty, all Tu-95 variants should be either deployed heavy bombers, non-nuclear heavy bombers, test heavy bombers, training heavy bombers, or former heavy bombers. The START II Twelfth Agreed Statement, however, exempts the 37 existing TU-95RTs (Bear D) maritime patrol airplanes from being considered as former heavy bombers. The proposal complements and amplifies that Agreed Statement by providing information on the Tu-95RTs, as well as the opportunity to verify that information. The 31 July 1991 exchange of letters between Ambassadors Brooks and Nazarkin stipulated that the airplanes are for maritime operations, are not heavy bombers, and have not been equipped with air-to-surface weapons or undergone conversion; it also lists distinguishing features for these airplanes and stipulates that the Soviet Union has 37 such airplanes. The 37 airplanes were not to be based at air bases for heavy bombers or former heavy bombers, heavy bomber flight test centers, or training facilities for heavy bombers. They would not be considered to be former heavy bombers and thus would not be "accountable" under the Treaty limits for heavy bombers equipped for non-nuclear armaments, training heavy bombers, and former heavy bombers. In the event the Soviet Union continued to produce such airplanes, all such new airplanes would be treated as former heavy bombers under the Treaty and subject to inspection to confirm that they are not equipped for air-to-surface weapons. The Parties agreed that not later than 240 days after signature of the Treaty, the Soviet Union is (i) to provide photographs to aid in the identification of such airplanes, (ii) conduct an exhibition of one such airplane, under specified conditions, and (iii) exhibit, upon request of the United States, the other 36 such airplanes under specified conditions. By 1994, about 15 were believed to remain in service.

 

• BEAR E - TU-95U -- The Bear E is a variant of Bear A modified to perform photo-reconnaissance. According to Western sources about 12 were produced for Naval Aviation by conversion of surplus Tu-95Ms. The aircraft features a slightly bulged removable reconnaissance pallet in the former bomb bay, with seven camera windows -- three side-by-side pairs of windows forward with a single window further aft to starboard. Under the START I agreement, the Parties agreed that all airplanes formerly known to the United States of America as Bear E and now known as Bear T, which are designated by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as Tu-95U, were to be considered to be training heavy bombers. Red bands are painted around the rear fuselage for verification purposes.

   

• BEAR F - TU-142 / TU-142M -- The Tupolev Tu-142 'Bear' is the final maritime version of an aircraft originally introduced as a strategic bomber in the early 1950s. It was also one of the most visible, and Soviet Bears flew long patrols across all major oceans. They monitored the US coast from a base in Cuba, and they observed the British Task Force off the Falkland Islands, by flying from Angola. Throughout the 1980s they operated from the former US base at Cam Ranh in Vietnam. The Bear F exists in two major versions with differing numbers of radomes consisting of at least four distinct variants [up to at least the Bear-F Mod IV]. The mission of the Bear F is the detection and destruction of submarines. Development of the Tu-142 maritime reconnaissance aircraft began in the mid-1960s, soon after the initiation of the BEAR D Tu-95RTS. Design changes include a new cockpit and slightly longer nose' along with a new undercarriage (with bulged undercarriage doors) and an extended-chord rudder. The Tu-142 lacks dorsal and ventral gun turrets. This upgraded version of the TU-95RTS, with more powerful NK-12MV engines, began flight tests in the summer of 1968 and was deployed with naval aviation in December 1972. According to Russian sources, series production took place at the plant Nr. 18 in Kuibyshev and from the mid-1970s at Plant Nr. 86 in Taganrog. Western sources report that the production line at Taganrog reopened in 1983 to build the Bear-F and Bear-H. Upgrading of the TU-142 in 1972 resulted in the TU-142M, used for anti-submarine warfare. The first flight of the TU-142M [Bear F Mod 2 ] was on 04 November 1975, and deployment to the Soviet Naval Aviation began in 1980. The Tu-142M2 [Bear-F Mod 3], which entered service around 1982, featured a new MAD in a spike-like tail fairing and a lengthened sonobuoy bay. The Tu-142M3 [Bear-F Mod 4] incorporated a new undernose sensor pacakge. First identified by Western intelligence in 1986, the Bear-F Mod 4 remained in low volume production at the end of the 1990s. The Tu-142 (Bear F) antisubmarine warfare patrol airplanes, although designated by the Soviet Union as a separate type of airplane from the Tu-95, have a design essentially identical to the design of the Tu-95 heavy bomber. Under the START I agreement, all airplanes designated by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as Tu-142, which are known to the United States of America as Bear F or Bear J, depending on how a particular airplane is equipped, were not considered to be former heavy bombers.

   

• BEAR F - TU-142LL -- At least one 'Bear-F' was converted to serve as an engine test bed, with the test engine mounted in a semi-retractable cradle under the center-section.

   

• BEAR - TU-95K5 -- In 1976-1977 work began on developing a new Bear modification, the TU-95K-5, that was supposed to carry two KSR-5 [AS-6 KINGFISH] missiles. However, all activities soon halted due to both a decision to produce the TU-95K-22, and the development of the TU-95MS aircraft. The fact of the existence of this design project was not detected at the time by Western intelligence, and this variant did not receive a separate designation in the West, since it did not enter flight tests or production.

   

• BEAR G - TU-95K22 -- In the early 1970s work began on equipping older existing TU-95K and TU-95KD bombers with Kh-22 air-to-surface missiles and the guidance systems that were used on the Backfire bombers. These older BEAR aircraft configured to carry air-to-surface missiles (ASMs) were reconfigured to carry the new supersonic AS-4 missile in place of the subsonic AS-3. These bombers received the designation TU-95K-22 and carried either one Kh-22M missile under the fuselage or two Kh-22H missiles on pylons underneath the wings. The broad flat nose radome differs in detail from that of the Bear-B and Bear-C, and accommodates the antenna for the Down Beat guidance radar for the Kh-22. The comprehensive defensive avionics suite is evidenced by the numerous radomes and fairings on the fuselage, marking a fundamental shift in survivability ideology. The self-defence armament is correspondingly reduced compared to earlier models. An extended tailcone replaced the tail turret and the dorsal turret was removed entirely, leaving only a single ventral gun turret. First flight tests of the TU-95K-22 took place in October 1975 and by the end of the 1970s re-equipment of the TU-95K started. After operation testing, the TU-95K-22 was introduced into the active inventory in 1982. Several of these reconfigurations (BEAR G) had been completed by 1985. By 1998 more than 45 of these reconfigured aircraft were operational.

   

• BEAR - TU-95M-55 -- In the middle of the 1970s work on the Kh-55 long rang air-to-surface missile started. Originally planned for deployment on the new TU-160 supersonic bombers, studies were conducted to outfit the TU-95 with the Kh-55. The tests of TU-95 bombers outfitted with Kh-55 missiles, designated Tu-95M-55, started in 1978. After their completion, the project was rejected and development of a new Tu-95MS aircraft to carry the Kh-55 missiles was initiated. It is unclear whether the fact of the existence of this design project was detected at the time by Western intelligence, and in any event this variant did not receive a separate designation in the West.

   

• BEAR H - TU-95MS -- The Tu-95MS aircraft is based on the Tu-142 and thus differs in a number of details from the TU-95. The nose of the Tu-95MS is similar to that of the Bear-C and Bear-G, but with a deeper, shorter radome, cable ducts running back along both sides of the fuselage. It lacks the 178-cm forward fuselage plug of the maritime Tu-142, and retains the shorter fin and horizontal, undrooped refuelling probe of previous bomber variants. The rear gun turret is a new design, with a single twin-barreled GSh-23L cannon in place of the pair of single-barrel NR-23s carried on earlier models. After carrying out successful tests, the first of which was in September 1979, series production started in 1981. With the reopening of the BEAR production line, the Soviets began producing a new, upgraded variant of the BEAR turboprop bomber, thereby increasing their long-range bomber force. This entirely new variant of the BEAR bomber - the BEAR H - became the launch platform for the long-range Kh-55 [AS-15] air-launched cruise missile. The initial version carried Kh-55 air-to-surface missiles located in the bomb bay on a catapult. This was the first new production of a strike version of the BEAR airframe since the 1960s. With the BEAR H in series production, the decline in the inventory of BEAR aircraft, characteristic of the late 1970s, was reversed. By 1988 BEAR H bombers were regularly observed simulating attacks against North America.

   

• BEAR H6 - TU-95MS6 -- The version designated as TU-95MS6 aircraft carried Kh-55 air-to-surface missiles located in the bomb bay on a rotary launcher.

   

• BEAR H16 - TU-95MS16 -- The TU-95MS16 carried six missiles inside the fuselage and 10 missiles underneath the wings. Three underwing pylons are fitted under each inner wing panel, the outboard pair carrying three missiles and the other two single missiles.

   

• BEAR J - TU-142MR -- The TU-142MR was a further modification of the Tu-142M used for submarine communication relay. This allowed national command authorities and strategic missile-carrying submarines to communicate. The underfuselage search radar has been removed, and the aircraft is equipped with an underfuselage winch pod for a several kilometer long trailing wire antenna. The Tu-142 (Bear J) maritime communications relay airplane, although designated by the Soviet Union as a separate type of airplane from the Tu-95, has a design essentially identical to the design of the Tu-95 heavy bomber. Under the START I agreement, all airplanes designated by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as Tu-142, which are known to the United States of America as Bear F or Bear J, depending on how a particular airplane is equipped, were not considered to be former heavy bombers.

   

• BEAR T - TU-95U -- About a dozen surviving 'Bear-As' were converted to Tu-95U configuration, with sealed bomb bays and a broad red band painted around the rear fuselage. Under the START I agreement, the Parties agreed that all airplanes formerly known to the United States of America as Bear E and now known as Bear T, which are designated by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as Tu-95U, were to be considered to be training heavy bombers. Most served with the Long-Range Aviation training center at Ryazan, and most were withdrawn from use during 1991 and 1992
•  

Russia, Ukraine and India (Bear F) use the Bear.

When the START-1 treaty was signed in 1991, 147 bombers and missile carriers still served in the Russian forces: 84 TU-MS and 63 TU-95K-22, TU-95K and TU-95M. An additional 11 TU-95U were used for training.

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, one unit of Bear aircraft remained in Ukraine, with twenty three TU-95MS, one TU-95K and one TU-95M aircraft. These aircraft were passed to Ukraine, and were subject to decommissioning under the provisions of the START-1 treaty. A total of 11 strategic bombers and 600 air-launched missiles exchanged by Ukraine to Russia in payment for the gas debt were transferred in mid-February 2000. Two Tu-160 bombers flew from Priluki in the Ukrainian Chernigov region for the Russian air base in Engels. The missiles were sent to Russia by railroad. Three Tu-95MS bombers and six Tu-160 airplanes had already arrived at Engels since October 1999 in fulfillment of the intergovernmental agreements. Before being moved to Russia, 19 Tu-160 airplanes were stationed at the Priluki airfield and 21 Tu-95MS were located in Uzin.

At the time of the breakup of the Soviet Union, thirteen TU-95MS-16 and twenty seven TU- 95MS-6 were based in Kazakhstan. Subsequently, all Bear aircraft located in Kazakhstan were transferred to Russia.

Russian Tu-95 and TU-95MS aircraft are now deployed at two air bases. A total of nineteen TU-95MS16 and two TU-MS6, operating in the 121st heavy bomber air regiment, which forms part of the 22nd Air Division that is headquarteed in Engels Air Base in the Moscow region. At the Ukrainka airbase (73th Heavy Bomber Air Division) at Svobodny, there are 16 TU-95MS16 and 26 TU-95MS6 bombers that were redeployed from the Dolon airbase at Semipalatinsk in Kazakhstan. The TU-95K-22 bombers are subject to decommissioning. In early 1997 five TU-95K-22 were decommissioned and re-equipped in Zngyelse, and five at the Ryazan training center. Eight TU-95 are located at the flight-test institute in at Zhukovskiy [Ramenskoye], and one TU-95K aircraft serves as a static display in Ryazan.

The TU-95MS, constructed in in the middle and early 1990s, will be operational until 2010 and 2015. Russia is currently working on a new air-to-surface missile to replace the existing Kh-55.

In late June 1999, two TU-95 Bear bombers flew within striking distance of the United States as part of Moscow's largest military exercise since the end of the Cold War. The bombers were intercepted by four US F-15 fighters and a P-3 patrol plane near Iceland and escorted in a clockwise flight around the island. The Bears, and two Blackjacks, were from the Donbass Red Banner 22nd heavy bomber division based at Engels Air Base east of Moscow. They initially flew across the central Norwegian Sea. When they got about halfway across, the Blackjacks split off from the Bears and flew along the Norwegian coastline.

On 16 September 1999, a pair of Russian Tu-95 Bear bombers were detected by the US Air Force headed toward the Alaska coast. U.S. fighter jets were sent to intercept the aircraft which had been caught on radar. Air Force officials said both bombers turned before crossing into US airspace and about 90 miles from the approaching fighters. The Soviet Union regularly tested U.S. air defenses by flying toward Alaska during the Cold War, but this was the first time the Air Force had documented it happening since March 1993.

Ten Tu-142 entered Indian service in April 1988 for long-range surface surveillance and anti-submarine warfare negotiations are currently going on with Russia to procure 6 to 8 more Tu-142 aircraft. The aircraft will be probably from refurbished ex-VVS storage stocks. India is making substantial purchases of the Novator 3M-54 Alfa missile to equip Kilo class submarines and its new frigates. It is believed that an air-launched variant will be purchased to arm the Tu-142s currently in service and the six to eight additional aircraft being sought by the Navy. If an air-launched version of the Alfa is procured, it is anticipated that India's Tu-22M3s will eventually be equipped to fire them.

 

References

• Russian Strategic Nuclear Weapons, Pavel Podvig, ed., IzdAT, Moscow, 1998, 492 pp. (in Russian). Authors: Oleg Bukharin, Timur Kadyshev, Eugene Miasnikov, Pavel Podvig, Igor Sutiagin, Maxim Tarasenko, Boris Zhelesov
• Tu-142 Tupolev 'Bear' by Alexandre Savine
• Tupolev Tu-95/142 'Bear' @ Encyclopedia of World Military Aircraft
• Tupolev Tu-95/142 'Bear'
• "A History of Strategic Arms Competition 1945-1972" (U), Volume 3, A Handbook Of Selected Soviet Weapon and Space Systems, United States Air Force, June 1976. pgs 40-46

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