Aeroflot Tupolev Tu-144
Aeroflot—at one time the largest airline in the world, with a fleet larger than all American airlines combined—traces its lineage to the establishment of Dobrolet in March 1923. Dobrolet was formed by the Soviet Union’s government in recognition that the Soviet Air Force could not both defend the largest nation in the world’s borders and administer civil aviation at the same time. Dobrolet was, like everything else in the Communist system, wholly owned by the Soviet government, and commenced operations with flights from Moscow to Novgorod in July 1923. In 1932, Dobrolet was merged with two other state airlines based in Ukraine and Georgia, and in 1933 was renamed Aeroflot (“air fleet”).
The Soviet government, under the 1933 Five-Year Plan, made air transportation a priority for the nation, given the gigantic distances necessary to link the USSR. Though the Aeroflot plan also called for the airline to operate primarily Soviet aircraft (which included the gigantic Tupolev ANT-20 and the even larger Maxim Gorky, at the time the largest airliners ever built), the majority of Aeroflot’s aircraft were actually license-built DC-3s.
World War II and the Soviet Union’s struggle for survival after the German invasion of June 1941 led to Aeroflot being nationalized and incorporated into the Soviet Air Force. Aeroflot aircraft and crews were to fly some 1.5 million sorties during the war, namely during the siege of Stalingrad, and paid a heavy price for their efforts. Following war’s end, Aeroflot was returned to civilian control, although all Aeroflot pilots held reserve commissions in the Soviet Air Force and would be called upon for military missions when needed.
By 1956, Aeroflot was carrying 1.6 million passengers a year over a route network that stretched nearly 200,000 miles. Even this was not enough: the Soviet government sought to modernize and expand the airline still further. In that same year, Aeroflot became the first airline to introduce jet passenger service on a regular basis, using the Tupolev Tu-104 (a conversion of the Tu-16 Badger bomber), and operated the world’s largest and longest-ranged airliner for the time, the Tu-114, which was capable of flying nonstop from Murmansk to Havana, Cuba. Besides its extensive passenger and cargo network, Aeroflot aircraft also served to transport Soviet heads of state to foreign nations, oil exploration in Siberia, ice patrol duties, and cropdusting; aircraft with Aeroflot colors were also photographed by Western aircraft engaging in clearly military duties, such as electronic intelligence and cargo missions to client states.
Due to these varied duties, Aeroflot’s fleet would expand to no less than 10,000 aircraft and helicopters by the 1970s. Aeroflot also was the sole Soviet flag carrier, and by the 1970s had expanded international flights to the United States and points in the Western Hemisphere. Its potential was limited by the Soviet aircraft industry’s lack of true wide-bodied aircraft (the Ilyushin Il-62 and Tupolev Tu-134/154 jet airliners could carry only a fraction of the passengers of a Boeing 747) and the limitations of the Cold War: Aeroflot’s operations to the eastern United States had to stage through Shannon Airport in Ireland, as Aeroflot aircraft were not allowed to land at most Western European airports. This worsened after the Soviet shootdown of Korean Air Lines Flight 007 in September 1983: in retaliation, President Ronald Reagan revoked Aeroflot’s rights to fly in and out of American territory.
The breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 was to have a huge impact on Aeroflot. Though the airline remained in operation and became Russia’s flag carrier, it was forced to concentrate mainly on international routes from Moscow, as former Soviet republics declared independence and formed their own airlines, usually taking over former Aeroflot aircraft and using former Aeroflot crews. Aeroflot also gained a reputation for operating noisy, uncomfortable, obsolescent Soviet-era airliners—which other nations no longer under the Soviet yoke quickly got rid of.
With this in mind, in 1994 the Russian government sold off 49 percent of Aeroflot’s stock to private investors, and embarked on a massive modernization and rebranding effort that did away with the austere look of the Soviet era in favor of bright colors incorporating the Russian flag (though efforts to change Aeroflot’s winged hammer-and-sickle corporate logo failed, due to both tradition and the influence of President Vladimir Putin). The Soviet-era aircraft were gradually retired and replaced with a mix of Western aircraft (mainly Airbus A320s and Boeing 767s) and newer Russian designs (the Ilyushin Il-96 and Sukhoi Superjet 100). Today, the airline is regarded as one of the better airlines of Eastern Europe and flies to 62 nations and 116 destinations.
The Tupolev Tu-144 was the Soviet Union's attempt to field a supersonic airliner before the Anglo-French Concorde. While successful in this (it flew two months before the Concorde), the SST idea may have been beyond the technological capabilities of the Soviet Union. The aircraft was remarkably unsafe, with fatigue cracks common in brand-new aircraft, engine failures depressingly common, and various other technical problems. Even if these were overcome, cabin noise from the engines was so loud no one could hear each other. Though kept in service for prestige, Aeroflot only did so under considerable political pressure. Passenger flights only lasted between 1977 and 1978, though cargo flights lasted until 1983. Aside from occasional test flights, the Tu-144 fleet was grounded afterwards.
CCCP-68001 was the Tu-144 prototype, and appears as it did when it was first rolled out in 1970 and exhibited at the Paris Air Show in 1971. It completed the test program and probably flew more hours than any other Tu-144. Sadly, it was scrapped in 1985.
Aeroflot Tupolev Tu-144
Aeroflot—at one time the largest airline in the world, with a fleet larger than all American airlines combined—traces its lineage to the establishment of Dobrolet in March 1923. Dobrolet was formed by the Soviet Union’s government in recognition that the Soviet Air Force could not both defend the largest nation in the world’s borders and administer civil aviation at the same time. Dobrolet was, like everything else in the Communist system, wholly owned by the Soviet government, and commenced operations with flights from Moscow to Novgorod in July 1923. In 1932, Dobrolet was merged with two other state airlines based in Ukraine and Georgia, and in 1933 was renamed Aeroflot (“air fleet”).
The Soviet government, under the 1933 Five-Year Plan, made air transportation a priority for the nation, given the gigantic distances necessary to link the USSR. Though the Aeroflot plan also called for the airline to operate primarily Soviet aircraft (which included the gigantic Tupolev ANT-20 and the even larger Maxim Gorky, at the time the largest airliners ever built), the majority of Aeroflot’s aircraft were actually license-built DC-3s.
World War II and the Soviet Union’s struggle for survival after the German invasion of June 1941 led to Aeroflot being nationalized and incorporated into the Soviet Air Force. Aeroflot aircraft and crews were to fly some 1.5 million sorties during the war, namely during the siege of Stalingrad, and paid a heavy price for their efforts. Following war’s end, Aeroflot was returned to civilian control, although all Aeroflot pilots held reserve commissions in the Soviet Air Force and would be called upon for military missions when needed.
By 1956, Aeroflot was carrying 1.6 million passengers a year over a route network that stretched nearly 200,000 miles. Even this was not enough: the Soviet government sought to modernize and expand the airline still further. In that same year, Aeroflot became the first airline to introduce jet passenger service on a regular basis, using the Tupolev Tu-104 (a conversion of the Tu-16 Badger bomber), and operated the world’s largest and longest-ranged airliner for the time, the Tu-114, which was capable of flying nonstop from Murmansk to Havana, Cuba. Besides its extensive passenger and cargo network, Aeroflot aircraft also served to transport Soviet heads of state to foreign nations, oil exploration in Siberia, ice patrol duties, and cropdusting; aircraft with Aeroflot colors were also photographed by Western aircraft engaging in clearly military duties, such as electronic intelligence and cargo missions to client states.
Due to these varied duties, Aeroflot’s fleet would expand to no less than 10,000 aircraft and helicopters by the 1970s. Aeroflot also was the sole Soviet flag carrier, and by the 1970s had expanded international flights to the United States and points in the Western Hemisphere. Its potential was limited by the Soviet aircraft industry’s lack of true wide-bodied aircraft (the Ilyushin Il-62 and Tupolev Tu-134/154 jet airliners could carry only a fraction of the passengers of a Boeing 747) and the limitations of the Cold War: Aeroflot’s operations to the eastern United States had to stage through Shannon Airport in Ireland, as Aeroflot aircraft were not allowed to land at most Western European airports. This worsened after the Soviet shootdown of Korean Air Lines Flight 007 in September 1983: in retaliation, President Ronald Reagan revoked Aeroflot’s rights to fly in and out of American territory.
The breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 was to have a huge impact on Aeroflot. Though the airline remained in operation and became Russia’s flag carrier, it was forced to concentrate mainly on international routes from Moscow, as former Soviet republics declared independence and formed their own airlines, usually taking over former Aeroflot aircraft and using former Aeroflot crews. Aeroflot also gained a reputation for operating noisy, uncomfortable, obsolescent Soviet-era airliners—which other nations no longer under the Soviet yoke quickly got rid of.
With this in mind, in 1994 the Russian government sold off 49 percent of Aeroflot’s stock to private investors, and embarked on a massive modernization and rebranding effort that did away with the austere look of the Soviet era in favor of bright colors incorporating the Russian flag (though efforts to change Aeroflot’s winged hammer-and-sickle corporate logo failed, due to both tradition and the influence of President Vladimir Putin). The Soviet-era aircraft were gradually retired and replaced with a mix of Western aircraft (mainly Airbus A320s and Boeing 767s) and newer Russian designs (the Ilyushin Il-96 and Sukhoi Superjet 100). Today, the airline is regarded as one of the better airlines of Eastern Europe and flies to 62 nations and 116 destinations.
The Tupolev Tu-144 was the Soviet Union's attempt to field a supersonic airliner before the Anglo-French Concorde. While successful in this (it flew two months before the Concorde), the SST idea may have been beyond the technological capabilities of the Soviet Union. The aircraft was remarkably unsafe, with fatigue cracks common in brand-new aircraft, engine failures depressingly common, and various other technical problems. Even if these were overcome, cabin noise from the engines was so loud no one could hear each other. Though kept in service for prestige, Aeroflot only did so under considerable political pressure. Passenger flights only lasted between 1977 and 1978, though cargo flights lasted until 1983. Aside from occasional test flights, the Tu-144 fleet was grounded afterwards.
CCCP-68001 was the Tu-144 prototype, and appears as it did when it was first rolled out in 1970 and exhibited at the Paris Air Show in 1971. It completed the test program and probably flew more hours than any other Tu-144. Sadly, it was scrapped in 1985.