Is it currently used in 144 air transport? Russian aviation. The Landing Speed Myth
- Tu-144S (“004”) - Production aircraft with NK-144A.
- Tu-144D (“004D”) - Production aircraft with RD-36-51A.
- Tu-144LL - Flying laboratory with NK-32-1.
Tu-144 modifications
- Tu-144 (“044”)- prototype (1968)
- Tu-144S (“004”)- Serial aircraft with NK-144A. (1971)
- Tu-144D (“004D”)- Serial aircraft with RD-36-51A. (1974)
- Tu-144DA- project with “61” engines. (late 70's)
- Tu-144P- jammer project. (late 70's)
- Tu-144PR- project of the reconnaissance director. (late 70's)
- Tu-144K
- Tu-144KP- project of an aviation-missile complex. (late 70's)
- DP-2- long-range interceptor project. (late 70's)
- Tu-144LL- Flying laboratory based on Tu-144D with NK-32-1. (1996)
Tu-144 diagram
| Tu-144 | ||
|---|---|---|
| First flight | December 31, 1968 | |
| Crew, people | 4 | |
| Dimensions | ||
| Tu-144 | ||
| Fuselage length, m | 59,4 | |
| Aircraft height, m | 10,5 | |
| Wingspan, m | 27,65 | |
| Wing area, m2 | 438 | 411 |
| Wing extension | 1,74 | |
| Wing sweep along the leading edge | center section | 78^o |
| consoles | 55^o | |
| Masses | ||
| Tu-144 | ||
| Take-off, kg | with 98 passengers | 130000 |
| with 120 passengers | 150000 | |
| maximum | 180000 | |
| Empty, kg | 85000 | 12000 (120) |
| Fuel weight, kg | approx. 70000 (92000) | |
| Power point | ||
| Tu-144 | ||
| Engines | 4 DTRDF NK-144 | |
| Thrust, kG | maximum | 4х 13000 |
| afterburner | 4x 17500 | |
| Thrust-to-weight ratio | 0.44 | |
| Specific fuel consumption in supersonic cruising mode, kg/kgf x h | 2,23 | |
| Flight data | ||
| Tu-144 | ||
| Maximum flight speed at an altitude of 17 km, km/h (M=) | 2430 (2,35) | |
| Cruising speed, km/h (M=) | 2300 | |
| Approach speed, km/h | 290 | |
| Landing speed, km/h | 270 | |
| Practical flight range (supersonic), km | 2920 | |
| Practical ceiling, m | 20000 | |
| Mileage, m | 1500 | |
Passenger supersonic
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Successes in the creation of supersonic combat aircraft, including the heavy class, in the 50s created a favorable environment for studying the possibility of creating a supersonic passenger plane(THX). In the second half of the 50s, first experimental and then serial supersonic heavy military aircraft appeared on both sides of the Iron Curtain, and almost immediately, on their basis, the world's leading aviation companies prepared SPS projects of various aerodynamic and layout designs. A detailed analysis and further development of the proposed SPS projects based on the first supersonic bombers showed that creating an effective competitive SPS by modifying a military prototype is an extremely difficult task (in contrast to the process of creating the first jet passenger aircraft based on subsonic heavy combat aircraft). The first supersonic heavy combat aircraft, in their design solutions, mainly met the requirements of a relatively short-term supersonic flight. For the SPS, it was necessary to ensure long-term cruising flight at speeds corresponding to at least M = 2, plus the specifics of the task of transporting passengers required a significant increase in the reliability of all elements of the aircraft structure, subject to more intensive operation, taking into account the increase in the duration of flights in supersonic modes. Gradually, analyzing all possible options for technical solutions, aviation specialists, both in the USSR and in the West, came to the firm opinion that a cost-effective ATP must be designed as a matter of principle new type aircraft.
The A.N. Tupolev Design Bureau approached the solution to the problem of designing SPS in the early 60s. The first technical proposals of the OKB for SPS were mainly based on projects long-range bombers: primarily on the projects of the Tu-22 family aircraft (“105A” and “106A” - “134”), as well as the project of the strategic attack aircraft “135” - 135P. Later, when work began on the Tu-144, S.M. Yeger proposed a preliminary design of the Tu-144 with NK-144 engines, which in its layout solutions repeated the Tu-135P project. In addition to the OKB of A.N. Tupolev, preliminary work on the topic of SPS in the USSR was carried out by OKB-23 of V.M. Myasishchev. In this OKB at the end of the 50s, based on technical solutions for strategic carrier aircraft M-50/M-52 and M-56/M-57, proposals were prepared for several original projects SPS (M-53, M-55A, M-55B and M-55V).
The beginning of the 60s was marked by the development of practical work on the Anglo-French ATP Concorde (the beginning of research on the topic in 1955-1956) with a cruising supersonic flight speed of more than M = 2 and a flight range with 120-140 passengers on board 6000-6500 km . At the same time, the main US aviation companies, based on their vision of the market for future SPS, began work on designing a much larger SPS than the Concorde, designed to transport 250-300 passengers at a cruising speed of up to M = 3 at a range of 7000-8000 km (projects companies Boeing, Lockheed, Douglas).
Creation
An analysis of the conditions for the existence of the future SPS, carried out in the USSR in relation to the level of domestic aircraft manufacturing and its immediate prospects, as well as the economic capabilities of the country and the needs of the Civil Air Fleet, showed that for the USSR the most preferable way is to create a domestic SPS, in terms of its expected flight performance data, close to the English -French Concorde. During the creation of the Soviet SPS, domestic aviation science and industry were faced with a number of scientific and technical problems that our subsonic passenger or military supersonic aviation have not encountered. First of all, to ensure the required flight technical characteristics SPS (two-mach flight at a range of up to 6500 km with 100-120 passengers, combined with acceptable takeoff and landing data) was required to ensure a significant improvement in the aerodynamic perfection of the aircraft during cruising flights at M = 2-2.2. The aerodynamic quality in these modes had to be increased to 7.5-8.0, which significantly exceeded the values obtained for the aerodynamic designs of domestic heavy supersonic combat aircraft of that period (the calculated value of Kmax for M = 2 for the Tu-22 was 4.4 ; for M-50 - 5.5; for M-52 - 5.6; for Tu-135 and M-56 - 6.4). It was necessary to solve the issues of stability and controllability of a heavy aircraft when flying in subsonic, transonic and supersonic regions, to develop practical methods for balancing the aircraft in all these modes, taking into account minimizing aerodynamic losses. A long flight at speed M=2 was associated with research and ensuring the structural strength of airframe units at elevated temperatures (close to 100-120? C); it was necessary to create heat-resistant structural materials, lubricants, sealants, as well as develop types of structures capable of long-term operation in conditions of cyclic aerodynamic heating. Very high demands were placed on the units power plant: it was necessary to create powerful and economical engines that operate stably in supersonic flight, solve the problems of regulating air intakes operating in a wide range of heights and speeds, ensuring regulation of the required air flow at the inlet with the lowest possible aerodynamic losses. It was most rational to carry out a long supersonic cruising flight at high altitudes; accordingly, the head and unit design bureaus were tasked with developing principles for creating new air conditioning systems, and then specific units and systems that would provide comfortable conditions for passengers and crew at high altitudes (up to 20 km ) and during long flights with significant heating of the airframe structural elements. It was necessary to create a number of new devices and systems that provide automatic flight control, accurate navigation in conditions of long-term supersonic flight and automatic landing. There is a need to study the environmental features of ATP operation associated with the release of large amounts of engine exhaust gases into the atmosphere at high altitudes and their impact on the ozone layer, the effects of noise and sonic boom on people, animals and buildings, the impact of long flights at high altitudes on passengers and crew associated with exposure to solar radiation. When creating the ATP, based on the conditions for its painless implementation into the existing transport system, it was necessary to take into account the features of domestic and international air transportation systems, existing airports and air traffic control when designing the ATP.
All these tasks, involving to a certain extent Western experience, were studied in detail at TsAGI, at the A.N. Tupolev Design Bureau, and at other design bureaus involved in the program for creating the Soviet SPS. The official basis for the start of work on the domestic first-generation SPS (SPS-1), designated Tu-144, was Decree of the USSR Council of Ministers No. 798-271 of July 16, 1963 and MAP Order No. 276 of July 26 of the same year. OKB A.N. Tupolev was asked to design and build an SPS with a cruising flight speed of 2300-2700 km/h, the practical range of a supersonic flight with 80-100 passengers was specified as 4000-4500 km; in the overload version with additional fuel tanks and with 30-50 passengers - 6000-6500 km. Operation from first class airfields with a normal take-off weight of 120-130 tons. It was planned to build 5 copies of the Tu-144 in 1966-1967 (2 copies for strength tests). Considering the technical difficulty of obtaining the maximum flight range of the first domestic SPS, it was decided to carry out work in two stages: at the first stage, the practical flight range achieved was to be 4000-4500 km, at the second stage the Tu-144 was to reach a range of 6500 km. The engines for the Tu-144, in accordance with CIAM recommendations, were specified as dual-circuit turbofans with afterburners. OKB N.D. Kuznetsov, based on the DTRD NK-8 gas generator, undertook to create for the future Soviet SPS DTRDF, designated NK-144, with a take-off thrust of 20,000 kgf and specific fuel consumption in supersonic cruising mode at the level of 1.35-1.45 kg/kgf hour. It should be noted that the success of the Tu-144 project depended to a large extent on the success of the engine builders. The choice for the Tu-144 DTRDF, operating in afterburner in cruising modes, was by no means controversial; it made it possible to obtain for the Tu-144 an engine that is less thermally stressed (and therefore more reliable and less expensive), as well as a more optimized engine for flights in a wider range of altitudes and speeds than in the case of choosing a single-circuit turbojet engine. Great doubts were raised about the possibility of obtaining moderate fuel consumption at cruising modes with this type of engine and, as a consequence, ensuring the required flight range. All this was not a big secret either for the Tupolevites or for the MAP.
Even at the design stage of the Myasishchevsky supersonic strategic carriers M-50/M-52 and M-56, as well as the development of the SPS M-53 and M-55 projects, OKB-23 received calculated results indicating that it was possible to obtain an acceptable supersonic range flying a heavy aircraft is quite possible, provided that engines with specific fuel consumption within 1.2 kg/kgf/hour are used. Such an engine was created in prototypes by the beginning of the 60s in the USSR - it was a single-circuit non-afterburning turbojet engine “16-17” (take-off thrust 18,000 kgf, specific fuel consumption at cruising mode 1.15 k/kgf hour), developed at the Design Bureau -16 P.F. Zubtsa. The Anglo-French, when choosing the type of engine for their Concorde, took an intermediate compromise path, choosing for it a single-circuit turbofan Bristol "Olympus" 593 with a small degree of boost and specific fuel consumption in afterburner of 1.327 kg/kgf hour (take-off thrust in afterburner 17200 kgf) . Unfortunately, work on Myasishchev’s projects for heavy supersonic vehicles was closed, and accordingly, in the early 60s in the USSR, the line of development of powerful, economical, afterburning, single-circuit turbojet engines was temporarily interrupted (0KB-16 was transferred to the theme of solid propellant rocket engines), and, as a result, the design began Tu-144, OKB A.N. Tupolev had to take a technical risk, relying on the DTRDF NK-144. Soon, in 1964, when the design of the Tu-144 with NK-144 was in full swing, it was decided to revive work on economical, powerful afterburning turbojet engines for the SPS: OKB-36, under the leadership of P.A. Kolesov, began designing the single-circuit turbojet engine RD-36- 51 for the Tu-144 with a maximum take-off thrust of 20,000 kgf and an expected specific fuel consumption in cruising supersonic flight mode of 1.23 kg/kgf hour (work on the RD-36-51 proceeded simultaneously with the design of another powerful single-circuit turbojet engine RD-Z6-41 for long-range supersonic strike aircraft T-4 of the P.O. Sukhoi Design Bureau).
Andrei Nikolaevich decided to entrust the design of the Tu-144 to Department “K”, which had previously dealt with unmanned vehicles and had sufficient experience in mastering long-term flight at speeds exceeding M=2 (attack unmanned aircraft Tu-121, unmanned reconnaissance aircraft - serial Tu-123 and experienced Tu-139). Andrei Nikolaevich appointed A.A. Tupolev as the chief designer and head of work on the Tu-144. It was under his leadership, with the involvement of the best forces of domestic aviation science and technology, that the ideology and future appearance of the Tu-144 was born in Department “K”. Subsequently, after the death of A.N. Tupolev and the appointment of A.A. Tupolev as the head of the enterprise, the Tu-144 project was led by Yu.N. Popov and B.A. Gantsevsky. Soon the Tu-144 becomes one of the main and priority topics in the activities of the Design Bureau and the entire MAP for the next 10 years.
The aerodynamic appearance of the Tu-144 was determined mainly by obtaining a long flight range in supersonic cruising mode, subject to obtaining the required stability and controllability characteristics and specified take-off and landing characteristics. Based on the promised specific costs of the NK-144, at the initial design stage the task was set to achieve Kmax = 7 in supersonic cruising flight mode. For overall economic, technological, and weight considerations, the cruising flight Mach number was taken to be 2.2. During the development of the aerodynamic configuration of the Tu-144 at the Design Bureau and TsAGI, several dozen possible options were considered. A “normal” design with horizontal tail surfaces in the rear fuselage was studied, but it was abandoned, since such tail surfaces contributed up to 20% to the overall drag balance of the aircraft. They also abandoned the canard design, having assessed the problem of the influence of the destabilizer on the main wing. Finally, based on the conditions for obtaining the required aerodynamic quality and obtaining minimal focus spreads at subsonic and supersonic speeds, we settled on the design of a low-wing aircraft - “tailless” with a composite triangular wing of an ogive shape (the wing was formed by two triangular surfaces with a sweep angle along the leading edge of 78° - for the front floating parts and 55° for the rear base part), with four turbofan engines located under the wing, with a vertical tail located along the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, and a three-legged retractable landing gear. The airframe's design mainly used traditional aluminum alloys. The wing was formed from symmetrical profiles and had a complex twist in two directions: longitudinal and transverse. This achieved the best flow around the wing surface in supersonic mode, in addition, such a twist helped to improve the longitudinal balancing in this mode. Elevons were located along the entire trailing edge of the wing, consisting of four sections on each half-wing. The wing structure is multi-spar, with a powerful working skin made of solid plates made of aluminum alloys; the central part of the wing and elevons were made of titanium alloys. The elevon sections were driven by two irreversible boosters. The rudder was also deflected using irreversible boosters and consisted of two sections independent of each other. The aerodynamic shape of the fuselage was selected from the conditions for obtaining minimal drag in supersonic mode. To achieve this, they even went to some extent to complicate the design of the aircraft. A characteristic feature of the Tu-144 was its lowering, well-glazed bow fuselage in front of the pilot's cabin, which provided good review at high takeoff and landing angles of attack inherent in an aircraft with a low aspect ratio wing. The lowering and raising of the forward part of the fuselage was carried out using a hydraulic drive. When designing the deviating unsealed part and its units, it was possible to maintain the smoothness of the skin at the junction of the moving part with the sealed cabin and the rest of the fuselage surface.
The shape of the engine nacelles was determined mainly by layout considerations and reliability conditions of the power plant. Four NK-144 DTRDFs were placed close to each other under the wing. Each engine had its own air intake, and two adjacent air intakes were combined into a common block. Underwing air intakes are flat with a horizontal wedge. Flow deceleration at supersonic flight speeds was carried out in three oblique shock waves, a direct closing shock and a subsonic diffuser. The operation of each air intake was ensured by an automatic control system, which changed the position of the wedge panels and the bypass flap depending on the operating mode of the NK-144 engine. The length of the engine nacelles was determined by the size of the engines and the requirements of TsAGI and CIAM to ensure the required length of the air intake channels for normal operation of the engines. It should be noted that in contrast to the design of the air intakes and engines of the Concorde, where this process proceeded as a single whole, the design of the NK-144 and engine nacelles with air intakes proceeded as two largely independent processes, which led to some extent to the oversizing of the engine nacelles and subsequently to many mutual inconsistencies in the operation of engines and the air intake system. It was planned, as on the Concorde, to introduce a landing braking system by reversing the engines; the reverse was planned to be installed on the two outer engines (the reverse system was not completed, as a result, the experimental and production vehicles were operated with a braking parachute).
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The main landing gear was retracted into the wing, the nose gear was retracted into the front part of the fuselage into the space between the two air intake blocks. The low construction height of the wing required a reduction in the size of the wheels; as a result, a twelve-wheeled trolley with wheels of a relatively small diameter was used in the main landing gear. The main fuel supply was located in the wing caisson tanks. The forward wing caisson tanks and the additional keel tank served to balance the aircraft. The main work on the selection of the optimal aerodynamic design of the Tu-144 at the OKB was headed by G.A. Cheremukhin; the issues of optimizing the power plant for the project were dealt with by a division headed by V.M. Bul. On the Tu-144, many fundamental solutions of the remote control system were actually applied, in particular, the steering units for driving the aircraft controls processed signals from the system for improving stability and controllability along the longitudinal and track channels. In some modes, this measure made it possible to fly during static instability. The choice of the ideology of the Tu-144 control system is largely the merit of G.F. Naboishchikov. L.M. Rodnyansky, who previously worked on control systems at the Design Bureau of P.O. Sukhoi and V.M., made a great contribution to the creation and implementation of this fundamentally new control system. Myasishchev, and in the early 60s did a lot to fine-tune the very “crude” control system of the Tu-22. The cockpit was designed taking into account the requirements of modern ergonomics; it was designed as a four-seater cockpit: the two front seats were occupied by the first and co-pilot, the flight engineer was located behind them, the fourth seat on the first prototype was intended for the experimental engineer. In the future, it was planned to limit the crew to three pilots. The decoration and layout of the Tu-144 passenger cabin met international requirements for modern design and comfort; the latest finishing materials were used in their finishing. The flight and navigation equipment of the Tu-144 was equipped with the most advanced systems that domestic avionics could provide at that time: a perfect autopilot and an on-board electronic computer automatically maintained the course; pilots could see on a screen located on the instrument panel where this moment where the plane is and how many kilometers are left to its destination; landing approach was carried out automatically at any time of the day in difficult weather conditions etc. - all this was a serious leap forward for our aviation.
The Tu-144 model was first shown in 1965 at the Paris Air Show, where it was announced that the first flight was scheduled for 1968.
Construction of the first prototype Tu-144 (“044”) began in 1965, while a second prototype was being built for static testing. The experimental “044” was initially designed for 98 passengers, later this figure was increased to 120. Accordingly, the estimated take-off weight increased from 130 tons to 150 tons. The prototype machine was built in Moscow in the workshops of the MMZ "Experience", some of the units were manufactured at its branches. In 1967, the assembly of the main elements of the aircraft was completed. At the end of 1967, the experimental “044” was transported to ZhLI and DB, where throughout 1968, finishing work was carried out and the vehicle was equipped with missing systems and units.
Tests
At the same time, flights of an analogue of the MiG-21I (A-144, “21-11”), created on the basis of the MiG-21S fighter, began at the LII airfield. An analogue was created at the A.I. Mikoyan Design Bureau and had a wing geometrically and aerodynamically similar to the wing of the experimental “044”. A total of two “21-11” aircraft were built; many test pilots flew on them, including those who were to test the Tu-144, in particular E.V. Elyan. The analogue aircraft successfully flew at speeds of 2500 km/h, and the materials from these flights served as the basis for the final adjustment of the Tu-144 wing, and also allowed test pilots to prepare for the behavior of an aircraft with such a wing.
At the end of 1968, the experimental “044” (tail number 68001) was ready for its first flight. A crew was assigned to the vehicle, consisting of: the ship's commander, Honored Test Pilot E.V. Elyan (who later received the Hero of the Soviet Union for the Tu-144); co-pilot - Honored Test Pilot Hero of the Soviet Union M.V. Kozlov; leading test engineer V.N. Benderov and flight engineer Yu.T. Seliverstov. Considering the novelty and unusual nature of the new car, the OKB made an extraordinary decision: for the first time, they decided to install ejection crew seats on an experimental passenger car. During the month, engine races, runs, and final ground checks of the systems were carried out. From the beginning of the third decade of December 1968, “044” was in pre-launch readiness, the vehicle and crew were fully prepared for the first flight, during all these ten days there was no weather over the LII airfield and the experienced Tu-144 remained on the ground. Finally, on the last day of the year 1968, 25 seconds after the start, “044” broke away for the first time runway LII airfield and quickly gained altitude. The first flight lasted 37 minutes, during the flight the car was accompanied by an analogue aircraft “21-11”. According to the crew's reviews, the car showed itself to be obedient and “flyable.” The first flight was attended by A.N. Tupolev, A.A. Tupolev, and many heads of OKB departments.
The first flight of the Tu-144 became an event of world significance and an important moment in the history of domestic and world aviation. For the first time, a supersonic passenger aircraft took off and it was an aircraft built in the USSR; the first Concorde would take flight only on March 2, 1969. It has been proven in practice that heavy tailless aircraft have citizenship rights in the USSR (before this flight, everything was limited to big amount heavy tailless projects).
The second flight (50 min) took place on January 8, 1969, and six months later, on June 5, 1969, the prototype aircraft exceeded supersonic speed for the first time at an altitude of 11,000 m; by May 1970, the aircraft was flying at speeds M = 1.25-1.6 at altitudes up to 15,000 m. May 26, 1970 Tu-144 for the first time in history civil aviation reached a speed of 2150 km/h (M=2) at an altitude of 16300 m. On November 12, 1970, in an hour-long flight, “044” flew for half an hour at a speed exceeding 2000 km/h, at an altitude of 16960 m a maximum speed of 2430 km/h was reached. By the fall of 1970, the prototype had flown 100 hours.
The plane was first shown publicly on May 21, 1970 at Sheremetyevo Airport. During testing, the experimental vehicle repeatedly flew outside the USSR; in May-June 1971, “044” took part in the salon in Le Bourget, where it “met” for the first time with the Anglo-French Concorde. Her flight to Bulgaria took only 1 hour: taking off in Moscow at 9 am, he landed in Sofia also at 9 am. The cruising speed at an altitude of 16 km was 2300 km/h. This altitude was reached at a distance of about 350 km in 18 minutes.
Design
The Tu-144 is a tailless low-wing aircraft. The ogive wing with its tip deflected downward has a leading edge sweep angle of 78° in the fuselage parts and 55° throughout the rest. The aircraft wing (extensions 1.74 and tapers 7, multi-spar design) consists of a main and detachable parts and has a caisson structure with a force-loaded skin in the form of milled large panels of a wafer structure made of high-strength aluminum alloys.
The aircraft is controlled using four-section elevons (on each console) and a two-section rudder located on the classic vertical tail. The keel of the aircraft, as well as the wing, is of multi-spar construction and is made integral with the rear part of the fuselage. The internal volume of the keel is used as a fuel caisson tank.
The fuselage has a circular cross-section and has a cockpit nose fairing that slopes downward at an angle of 12° during takeoff and 17° during landing. The prototype's cockpit glazing consists of two front windows as well as side windows. The nose cone is equipped with four longitudinal, extended side windows to provide forward visibility during ascent and during cruising flight. The prototype fuselage was designed to accommodate 100-121 passengers.
The fuselage, consisting of stringers, beams and frames fastened to the skin, is structurally divided into 3 parts: bow, central and tail. The nose section houses the cockpit (with a canopy integrated into the contours of the fuselage) and a deflectable nose fairing made in the form of a multilayer structure made of fiberglass with honeycomb core. The central part, in which the passenger compartments are located, together with the bow part, forms a single sealed compartment. The edgings of portholes, entrance, service and emergency doors are made of milled panels. The rear part of the fuselage, being a fuel caisson tank, is made sealed. Its tip is a drogue parachute container.
The chassis is three-post. The front pillar has twin wheels. In the prototypes, the main struts were equipped with 12-wheel bogies (3 axles) retractable in the wing console. This scheme for retracting the landing gear was due to the fact that, unlike the Concorde, the space under the fuselage was occupied by a package of engines. To accommodate the wheels in the wing, their diameter had to be reduced and their number increased.
The airframe of the aircraft is designed for a service life of 30,000 hours and is made of aluminum and titanium alloys (mainly in the form of monolithic enlarged structures). Titanium alloys are widely used in the design of air intakes, engine nacelles and wings.
Equipment. The aircraft is equipped with modern electronic equipment that provides automatic control during takeoff, flight and landing in difficult weather conditions. For the first time on a domestic passenger aircraft, flight and navigation equipment was made using digital computer technology. Thanks to this, the aircraft crew consists of only three people: two pilots and a flight engineer (the flight route is also controlled by on-board automation). The aircraft is controlled using an electro-hydraulic system with irreversible hydraulic boosters. In the pitch, heading and roll channels, automatic loading of command control levers is used, which operate depending on the angle of their deflection, as well as the speed and altitude of the flight. In addition, an automatic balancing system is used in the pitch channel.
All major aircraft systems have multiple redundancies, which significantly increases reliability. In general, the Tu-144 was created in accordance with international airworthiness standards for passenger aircraft.
Power point.
The prototype aircraft used a power plant consisting of four NK-144 turbofan engines designed by N.D. Kuznetsova. The engines were installed in a package under the fuselage, which reduced the possible turning moment when part of them failed. The nozzle exit is located in a plane lying approximately at half the chord of the elevons. Multi-mode bypass engines with afterburner were supposed to make it possible to operate the Tu-144 on both medium (subsonic flight) and long-range (supersonic) routes.
The first prototype aircraft had two external engines equipped with thrust reversers. Thanks to the large power supply, wing mechanization, braking devices and reverse thrust, the Tu-144 can be operated at all 1st class airfields with concrete runways 3000 m long, designed to accommodate modern subsonic heavy jet aircraft. However, on the aircraft demonstrated in 1971, the thrust reverser was replaced by a braking parachute. Engines are equipped with individual adjustable air intakes rectangular section. The position of the air intakes relative to the fuselage corresponds to the position of oblique shock waves under the wing during flight at cruising speed.
The fuel is placed in wing caisson tanks (about 70,000 kg in experimental aircraft). The aircraft has balancing tanks, which are located in the rear of the fuselage and wing flaps and are designed to change the position of the aircraft's center of gravity during the transition from subsonic to supersonic flight speeds.
Explosion safety of fuel tanks is ensured by double nitriding of the fuel.
State
The “044” was powered by experimental NK-144 engines with a specific fuel consumption in supersonic cruising mode of 2.23 kg/kgf/hour; with such specific consumption during testing, the Tu-144 managed to reach a supersonic flight range of 2920 km, which was significantly less than the required range . In addition, during the test we encountered some design flaws: during flights, increased vibration and heating of the rear fuselage from the quad engine package were observed; even titanium structures did not help. Having completed the test flight program “044” (about 150 flights in total), it remained in one prototype. No more was required of her; she accomplished her task of proving the technical feasibility of creating a supersonic passenger aircraft in the USSR. It was necessary to move forward, improving the design of the aircraft and engines.
On December 31, 1968, the experimental supersonic aircraft Tu-144 (tail number USSR-68001) made its first flight. The Tu-144 managed to take off two months earlier than its Anglo-French competitor, the Concorde airliner, which made its first flight on March 2, 1969.
Tu-144 is a supersonic passenger aircraft developed in the 1960s by the design bureau of Andrei Tupolev (now Tupolev OJSC, part of the United Aircraft Corporation).
Research into the development of a supersonic passenger aircraft (SPS) began in the late 1950s in the USA, England and France. In the early 1960s, the first preliminary designs of the SPS already appeared. This was the reason for the development of a similar aircraft in the USSR. On July 16, 1963, a resolution was issued by the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR “On the creation of the A.N. Tupolev Design Bureau SPS Tu-144 with four jet engines and on the construction of a batch of such aircraft.” Alexey Tupolev was appointed lead designer for the aircraft (since 1973 Boris Gantsevsky, since 1979 Valentin Bliznyuk). General management was carried out by Andrey Tupolev. The development of the engine was entrusted to the Nikolai Kuznetsov Design Bureau.
When working on the project, the developers had to face a number of complex technical problems: aerodynamics, kinetic heating, elastic and thermal deformations of the structure, new lubricants and sealing materials, new life support systems for passengers and crew. The development of the design and aerodynamics of the wing required a lot of effort (200 options were studied in the wind tunnel). The use of titanium alloys in construction required the creation of new machines and welding machines. These problems, together with the Andrei Tupolev Design Bureau, were solved by specialists from the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI), the Central Institute of Aviation Engine Engineering (CIAM), the Siberian Scientific Research Institute of Aviation (SibNIA) and other organizations. Since 1965, regular consultations have been held with the designers of the French company Aerospatial, which developed the Concorde SPS. During the preparation of working drawings, more than 1,000 specialists were seconded from the design bureau of Oleg Antonov and Sergei Ilyushin. When designing the aircraft, two analogue aircraft of the MiG-21I were used as a working model (now one of them is stored in the Air Force Museum in Monino).
In July 1965, the preliminary design of the Tu-144 was ready. In the same year, a model of an aircraft with a wingspan of about two meters was exhibited at the air show in Le Bourget (France). On June 22, 1966, a full-size mockup of the aircraft was approved. In parallel with the design, the experimental production of the OKB in Zhukovsky was producing two prototypes (flight and for static tests). The Voronezh and Kuibyshev aircraft factories also participated in their production.
On December 31, 1968, the crew led by test pilot Eduard Elyan took it into the air for the first time. On June 5, 1969, the prototype reached the speed of sound, and on June 26, 1970, it doubled it. For testing the Tu-144, Eduard Elyan was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Simultaneously with the flight tests, research was carried out at 80 ground stands, where all the most important design and layout solutions were worked out. With the help of these stands, for the first time in the USSR, a comprehensive failure assessment system was developed, taking into account their consequences. State tests continued until May 15, 1977. On October 29, 1977, the aircraft received an airworthiness certificate (for the first time in the USSR).
The Tu-144 was first shown at an aviation festival at Sheremetyevo Airport on May 21, 1970. In the summer of 1971, trial operation of the prototype began at Aeroflot. Flights were made from Moscow to Prague (Czechoslovakia, now the Czech Republic), Berlin (GDR, now Germany), Warsaw (Poland), Sofia (Bulgaria). In 1972, the Tu-144 was demonstrated at air shows in Hanover (Germany) and Budapest (Hungary).
The first production Tu-144 was assembled in the spring of 1971 in Zhukovsky. In 1972, production began at the Voronezh Aviation Plant. A total of 16 aircraft were built. Another one remained unfinished. Production aircraft differed from the prototype by having a fuselage length increased by 5.7 meters, a slightly modified wing shape and the presence of retractable front wings. The number of seats for passengers increased from 120 to 140. The first flight of the production aircraft took place on September 20, 1972 on the route Moscow - Tashkent - Moscow. In March 1975, the Moscow-Alma-Ata high-speed airline opened (mail and cargo were transported). On October 20, 1977, the first flight with passengers was carried out.
The Tu-144 is an all-metal low-wing aircraft designed according to the tailless design. The aircraft's wing is triangular, of low aspect ratio, and has a variable sweep angle (76° at the root and 57° at the ends of the wing). The wing skin is made of solid aluminum alloy plates. Along the entire trailing edge there are elevons made of titanium alloys. Elevons and rudders are deflected using irreversible boosters (an auxiliary device to increase the force and speed of the main mechanism).
The aircraft has four turbojet bypass engines with an afterburner NK-144A designed by Nikolai Kuznetsov's OKB (on the Tu-144D - non-afterburning RD-36-51A designed by Peter Kolesov's OKB-36), which are located close to each other under the wing. Each engine has its own separate air intake. The air intakes are grouped in pairs.
The main volume of fuel is located in 18 wing tanks. A balancing tank is installed at the rear of the fuselage. Fuel was pumped into it during flight to shift the center of mass during the transition from subsonic to supersonic speed.
The aircraft has a tricycle landing gear with a nose strut. The main supports have a two-axle eight-wheel bogie. All wheels are equipped with brakes. The supports are retracted forward along the flight into niches between the air intake channels.
The cockpit is integrated into the contours of the fuselage and does not have the usual protruding canopy. Therefore, the forward unsealed part of the fuselage with the radar and antenna systems tilts down during takeoff and landing, opening the cockpit windshields for visual viewing. To improve takeoff and landing characteristics, a retractable front wheel was used. horizontal tail.
To increase the reliability of operation on the aircraft, quadruple redundancy of all major systems was used. An on-board electronic computer was used to control the aircraft. The landing approach could be carried out automatically at any time of the day and in any weather. For the first time in the USSR, an automatic control system was used on the Tu-144. technical condition on-board systems, allowing to reduce the labor intensity of maintenance. Baggage on the plane was placed in containers in the luggage compartments.
Basic technical data of the serial SPS Tu-144D:
The length of the aircraft without PVD is 64.45 m;
Wingspan - 28.8 m;
Aircraft height - 12.5 m;
Wing area with overflow - 506.35 sq. m;
Maximum take-off weight - 207000 kg;
The empty weight of the aircraft for the 150-passenger version is 99,200 kg;
Cruising supersonic speed flight - 2120 km/h;
Practical flight range, with commercial load:
7 tons (70 passengers) - 6200 km;
11-13 tons (110-130 passengers) - 5500-5700 km;
15 tons (150 passengers) - 5330 km.
Crew - 4 people.
The main disadvantages of the Tu-144 aircraft were the high cost of production and operation, increased noise, and it was not economical and consumed a large amount of fuel.
The creation and development of the Tu-144 became the largest and most complex program in the history of Soviet aircraft construction. As a result of long work, it was possible to create aircraft of the highest world class, in its fundamentals flight performance not inferior to the corresponding aircraft created in the West.
However, fate was unfair to the unique car. The first major failure was the crash on June 3, 1973, during a demonstration flight at the Le Bourget air show, in which 14 people were killed - six crew members and eight Frenchmen on the ground - and 25 were injured.
May 23, 1978 - an improved prototype version of the aircraft, the Tu-144D, equipped with improved engines, made an emergency landing near Yegoryevsk near Moscow due to a fire caused by the destruction of one of the fuel lines. Two of the seven crew members on board were killed.
On June 1, 1978, Aeroflot management decided to cancel Tu-144 passenger flights. In addition to the disasters, the fate of the Tu-144 was affected by its commercial unprofitability.
One of the improved Tu-144Ds was used for some time on the Moscow-Khabarovsk line to deliver urgent cargo. In total, the Tu-144 made 102 flights under the Aeroflot flag, 55 of which were passenger flights.
Until the mid-1990s, Tu-144 aircraft were used for various tests, as well as for research into the ozone layer of the Earth’s atmosphere, solar eclipses, focused sonic boom. Cosmonauts undergoing training under the Buran program trained on the Tu-144. In July 1983, the Tu-144D set 13 world aviation records.
From 1995 to 1999, one significantly modified Tu-144D (No. 77114) called Tu-144LL was used by the American space agency NASA for research in the field of high-speed commercial flights in order to develop a plan for the creation of a new, modern supersonic passenger aircraft.
The experience gained during the creation of the Tu-144 was used in the development of heavy supersonic aircraft Tu-22M and Tu-160.
At the request of the Ministry of Science and by decision of the MAP, several aircraft were installed as exhibits on the territory of the Air Force Museum in Monino, the Civil Aviation Museum in Ulyanovsk, and aircraft factories in Voronezh, Kazan and Samara. One aircraft was sold to a private technology museum in Sinheim (Germany).
Several aircraft were melted down in the 1990s.
Two aircraft TU-144LL No. 77114, which was used for NASA tests, and TU-144D No. 77115 are stored at the airfield in Zhukovsky. One of them was exhibited at the MAKS air show, most recently in 2013.
The material was prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources
The Tu-144 supersonic passenger airliner was created in the Soviet Union in the late 1970s. It was put into production and was used for commercial passenger transportation for some time. The USSR had great hopes for the Tu-144 - it was supposed to first unite all regions of the huge country, and then go beyond its borders. Unfortunately, this never happened. Today we will look at the history of the creation and characteristics of the Tu-144, why this machine was taken out of service, and its differences from its competitors.
Summary
Undoubtedly, the Tu-144 is a legendary and unique aircraft. He became the first by passenger plane, whose speed exceeded the speed of sound. Simultaneously with the Tu-144, the characteristics of which we will consider below, engineers from England and France jointly created another jet supersonic passenger airliner - the legendary Concorde. It's no secret that the development of these machines was another competition Cold War. From a technical point of view, the project of Soviet designers was not inferior to the project of their competitors, but it lost economically.
The flight was expensive, and there were few people in the Soviet Union who could afford it, so the tickets did not cover all the costs of fuel and maintenance jet plane. The Western passenger was ready to pay for the speed of the flight and a high level of comfort, so the Concordes were considered a successful project, which cannot be said about the Tu-144. Why was this plane taken out of service? One of the most important reasons became economically unfeasible.
The Tu-144 was used as a passenger airliner for less than a year. Then it began to be used for testing and transporting urgent cargo over long distances. During its operation, the aircraft managed to transport only 3,284 passengers. Its main competitor carried a total of 2.4 million passengers. A total of 16 copies of the aircraft were produced. It is worth noting that only 4 more Concords were produced. In 1999, the last flight of the Tu-144 aircraft took place. Despite its dubious reputation, it managed to set 13 world records.
Background
The 1950-1960s of the twentieth century were marked by rapid development jet aviation. It all started with the fact that in 1947, the experimental American aircraft Bell X-1 overcame In the mid-sixties, America began serial production of supersonic fighters. And by the mid-seventies, the technology for creating such machines had already been tested, and engineers were seriously thinking about the prospect of creating supersonic passenger aircraft. At that time it was the call of the times. The use of such machines was beneficial for airlines for at least two reasons: reduction of flight time, no need for intermediate landings for refueling.
Creating passenger supersonic airliners was not so easy. After carefully weighing everything, American designers abandoned this idea, recognizing it as inappropriate. The Europeans nevertheless decided to test the prospects of supersonic passenger technology in practice. The development of such an aircraft was undertaken simultaneously by the French and the British. In 1962 they joined forces. This is how the Concorde aircraft project came about. The Soviet Union was also interested in this idea. And the fact that the Europeans did not hide their developments and actively demonstrated them at international air shows allowed domestic designers to eliminate a number of wrong decisions even before the start of the project.
In the Soviet Union, the creation of a supersonic passenger aircraft was entrusted to the Tupolev Design Bureau. The specialists of this organization were the most experienced in creating. In addition, it was the employees of the Tupolev Design Bureau who were the first in the USSR to create a supersonic aircraft - the Tu-22 bomber.
Development
In 1963, the history of the creation of the Tu-144 began. A resolution of the Council of Ministers of the USSR prescribed the development passenger airliner with the following parameters:
- Flight range - 4000-4500 km.
- Cruising speed - 2300-2700 km/h.
- Passenger capacity - 80-100 people.
The very next year, 1964, the development of a new aircraft began. A year later, a model of the car was presented at the international exhibition in Le Bourget. According to Tupolev, the plane was supposed to take to the skies two months earlier than Concorde. Ultimately, this is what happened.
While working on a fundamentally new aircraft, the designers encountered a number of problems, in particular, the unusual aerodynamics of the body and the heating of its body, followed by deformation at high speeds. The development of a wing of a suitable design took a particularly long time, during which about two hundred options were tested in the wind tunnel.
During the development of Tupolev's aircraft, the MiG-21 became the current model. However, its design was somewhat modified: the horizontal tail was removed, the length of the fuselage was shortened, and the wing span was increased. On December 31, 1968, the Tu-144 took off for the first time. This happened just two months before the first flight of Concorde. The following year, the plane reached the speed of sound, and a year later, it exceeded it twice.
When a supersonic passenger plane appeared in the USSR, the whole world started talking about it. In 1971, the airliner made several test flights, visiting Moscow, Sofia, Berlin and Paris. During the same period, Aeroflot began experimental operation of the Tu-144. Serial production of the car was launched at the Voronezh plant.
Design
The Tu-144 is an all-metal monoplane, which is characterized by a low wing arrangement and is the embodiment of the “tailless” design scheme. Its fuselage is made in the form of a semi-monocoque, the skin of which is supported by stringers and frames. The aircraft is equipped with a tricycle landing gear and a nose gear.
The power plant of the airliner is represented by four engines of the TRD NK-114A or RD-36-51A model, which are arranged in pairs. Each of the engines is equipped with its own air intake. The engine nozzles protrude beyond the edge of the wing.
The fuselage of the aircraft is conventionally divided into nose, central and tail sections. The nose section houses the cockpit, the canopy of which fits into the nose fairing and fuselage contours. The central part is represented by passenger cabins, which form one whole with the bow. In the tail section there is a tank caisson for fuel, and at its tip there is a container for a braking parachute.
The aircraft's wing received a variable sweep. At the root of the wing it was 76 degrees, and at its ends - 57 degrees. The wing received skin made from a special alloy based on aluminum. The elevons located on the rear of the wing are made of titanium alloy.
To improve visibility during takeoff and landing, it could be lowered. Its raising and lowering was carried out thanks to a hydraulic drive. 18 fuel tanks were located in the wings of the aircraft. In addition, a special balancing tank was installed at the rear of the fuselage. It received fuel when the aircraft transitioned from subsonic to supersonic flight. The aircraft's front landing gear had two wheels, and the two main landing gear had four twin bogies.
The aircraft was controlled using an on-board electronic computer. The landing approach could be made at any time of the day, in any meteorological conditions. The automation diagnosed the operation of all on-board systems, which became a real novelty for the domestic aircraft industry. There were three people. Depending on the version of the aircraft, its passenger capacity could vary from 98 to 150 people.
The front horizontal retractable tail surface has become an interesting feature of the Tu-144 aircraft, distinguishing it from other aircraft. It is located immediately behind the cockpit, in the front. Thanks to this tail, the aircraft received increased maneuverability and additional lift. In addition, the horizontal tail allowed the vehicle to reduce speed more quickly during landing and use shorter runways.
First disaster
The most significant and tragic day in the history of the Tu-144 aircraft was June 3, 1973, when the first Tu-144 crashed during a demonstration flight in Le Bourget. About 350 thousand spectators contemplated the tragedy. As a result of the crash, five crew members and residents of the town of Goussainville (France), near which the air show was taking place, were killed. In addition, almost three dozen people were injured.
The crew of the Soviet plane wanted to fly over the runway and gain altitude again. The day before, this maneuver was demonstrated by the Anglo-French Concorde. But it was not possible to implement the plan. Suddenly the plane began to dive, and having dropped to a height of 120 meters, it simply began to fly apart. First, the wing was torn off from the body, and then - tail section. In a matter of seconds, all that was left of the plane was a pile of metal.
The causes of the terrible disaster are still unclear. According to one version, the Tu-144 crew was forced to maneuver sharply in order to avoid colliding with a fighter that was photographing air show participants from the air. There is another version, according to which the airliner’s control system failed. Many years after the tragedy, one of the representatives of the Tupolev Design Bureau told reporters that that version of the Tu-144 had a number of untested blocks. Another version suggests that while performing the maneuver, one of the pilots dropped a movie camera, which blocked the steering column, but the flight recorders did not confirm this.
IN official conclusion it is indicated that the disaster could have been caused by a crew member falling in the cockpit, but no material evidence of this was found. Ultimately, the cause of the disaster was described as undetermined. The dead crew members were buried at the Novodevichy cemetery.
Exploitation
Despite the terrible crash of the Tu-144, Le Bourget saw it twice more, in 1975 and 1977. When Brezhnev went on an official visit to France in 1977, he was shown the latest Concorde. At that time, the Anglo-French aircraft operated international and intercontinental flights. Returning to the USSR, Brezhnev ordered the Tu-144 to be put into commercial operation as quickly as possible.
A little earlier, work began to increase the flight range of the airliner. The Tu-144 was equipped with new, more economical engines of the RD-36-51A model. This modification was named Tu-144D. On December 26, 1975, the passenger Tu-144 made its first flight from Moscow to Alma-Ata. To begin with, he was tasked with transporting mail. The flight was successful, and at the end of 1977 the Passenger Transportation on Tu-144. Control of a supersonic airliner was trusted only to the most experienced pilots. Previously, they underwent special training. In addition, the most beautiful flight attendants were chosen on the Tu-144.
Two aircraft equipped with NK-144A engines flew on the Moscow-Almaty route. Such a power plant allowed the aircraft to fly no more than three thousand kilometers. The fuel supply was barely enough for the aircraft to reach final destination. If in case of any emergency situation the plane could not land at the Almaty airfield or the alternate runway in Tashkent; there was nowhere to land it. Thus, each flight became a real test of strength for the pilots and their superiors. A ticket for a Tu-144 cost 80 rubles, which is 18 rubles more expensive than a ticket for a regular plane.
The Soviet leadership had a serious plan for the Tu-144. They wanted to launch the Tu-144D version on the Moscow - Khabarovsk route, and then open it for it international flights. However, the plan never came true.
Another Tu-144 crash
On May 23, 1978, an experimental Tu-144D aircraft crashed. This time the cause of the accident was the fire of the third engine and smoke in the cabin caused by the destruction of the fuel line. When the malfunction made itself felt, the crew resorted to forced landing. After landing, the pilots hurried to leave the plane, but the two flight engineers did not have time to do this.
At the end of July 1980, another accident occurred with the Tu-144D aircraft, which almost led to tragedy. One of the engines collapsed at supersonic speed. The professional crew managed to land the plane, and the engines were sent for modification. During subsequent tests they performed problematically. When Brezhnev died, the supersonic airliner project was left to chance, as the new government was skeptical about it. Ultimately, the country's leadership decided to close it and continue passenger transportation with simple and economical subsonic aircraft.
For some time, the supersonic Tu-144 was used for test flights and the delivery of urgent cargo. Pilots participating in the Soviet shuttle program Buran trained on it. Soon everyone began to forget about the Tu-144.
Why was the plane taken out of service?
Even for the USSR, where they did not like to count money, the operation of a supersonic airliner became too expensive and, most importantly, pointless. Therefore, the main reason for stopping the development of the project was not the Tu-144 disaster or technical problems, but the lack of economic profitability.
With old power plants, the aircraft's flight range did not exceed 3 thousand kilometers. Considering that the airliner is a supersonic aircraft, this is negligible. To carry out long trips, the aircraft needed to make intermediate landings for refueling, which negated all its strengths. The goal of the project was to carry out fast flights between remote cities without transfers or refueling. The Concorde's flight range, for example, reached 6,500 km. The RD-36-51A engine could allow the Tu-144 to fly over distances of about 5,300 km, but all the problems associated with it were never solved.
In addition, the price of tickets for the Tu-144 was far from the amount necessary to recoup all the costs of flying and maintaining the aircraft. The leadership of the USSR did not want to take more money from citizens for a ticket, and it is unlikely that ordinary people would overpay for flight speed. Therefore, the supersonic passenger airliner went down in history as nothing more than proof high level Soviet aircraft designers. However, the Tu-144 disasters somewhat undermined their reputation.
Research laboratory
In the mid-2000s, the Tu-144 aircraft, the characteristics of which we have already examined, took part in a research program conducted by the Tupolev design bureau together with American aircraft designers. As part of the program, NASA explored the prospects for creating a new generation of supersonic airliners.
The Tu-144LL model, which is a modernized version of the Tu-144D aircraft, took part in the program. The main difference between the updated aircraft and its predecessor was the new power plant of the NK-32-1 model, which replaced the outdated RD-36-51D engine.
American engineers were mainly interested in issues related to flight at supersonic speeds: the temperature of metal parts and skins, engine operation, friction coefficients, aircraft controllability and stability in different flight modes, and much more. In addition, the customer studied such issues as the level of exposure to cosmic radiation on passengers and crew, the characteristics of the atmosphere at high altitudes, as well as methods for soundproofing the cabins and cabins.
Comparison with Concorde
Many unsophisticated aviation enthusiasts note the similarities between the Tu-144 and Concorde aircraft. A comparison of the technical characteristics and appearance of the aircraft shows that there are many differences between them. And certainly, the Soviet airliner does not copy the British-French one. Concorde is less powerful and heavy compared to the Tu-144. The interior of the Tupolev car accommodates more passengers. In addition, from a technical point of view, it has a number of interesting features, for example, the front horizontal tail, allowing the airliner to land on shorter stripes. But what the Concorde excelled at was its flight range.
The history of the British-French supersonic airliner was not much longer than the Tu-144. Why was Concorde taken out of service? For about the same reasons as the Soviet plane. The last straw was the terrible Concorde crash in France in 2000. After the accident it was taken out of production. Thus, passenger transportation on supersonic airliners went down in history as a progressive but dangerous experiment. Most likely, humanity will return to this idea, but it will be at a new stage of scientific and technological development. Today, only a few countries in the world are working on this area.
They say that time heals. Alas, time only erases from memory and destroys. To preserve, and sometimes even return what has been lost, constant hard work is needed. Today's story is about volunteers working at the Museum Air Force in Monino, and about their dream - restoring the original appearance of the Tu-144 aircraft with the number USSR-77106.
2015
Volunteer work at the Air Force Museum began 10 years ago, on June 18, 2005. Then, on the eve of the Flying Legends air show, the museum management allowed volunteers to wash the plane. Almost 50 people gathered, having previously purchased buckets, rags and brushes from a nearby store, were able to wash the fuselage of a thick layer of dirt. 
As usual, the holiday died down, and everything would have returned to normal, if not for the understanding of the value of one of the world's largest aviation Museums and a strong desire to prevent a repeat of the fate of Khodynka.
These noble motives united dozens of people: the newly formed organization of volunteer assistants of the Air Force Museum replenished its ranks with specialists with valuable knowledge and selfless aviation enthusiasts who quickly gained experience in the restoration business. 
These are completely different people - in age, gender, education, profession. For example, it was thanks to the patience and diligence of the fair sex that it was possible to clean tons of dirt from the interiors of the restored exhibits, reupholster the chairs, pack silica gel, and do much more. In short, there was work for everyone, and there was no shortage of enthusiasm.
As authority accumulated in the eyes of the museum administration, volunteer assistants began to be trusted with more and more responsible procedures and, in the end, were allowed to see the exhibits themselves. 
2015
History of the Tu-144 USSR-77106 (No. 04-1) aircraft
Tu-144 No. 04-1 (the first aircraft of the fourth series) was built in Voronezh in 1975. It took off on March 4, the commander of the aircraft was Honored Test Pilot of the USSR, Hero of the Soviet Union A.I. Voblikov. The director's landing approach, automatic control system, autothrottle and other units were tested.
1980
In the winter of the same year, without waiting for the end of state tests, operational flights from Moscow to Alma-Ata began. Mixed crews of MGA, MAP and ZhLIiDB of the Tupolev company, airport workers and air traffic control services learned to operate the new generation of airliners, maintain it and put it into operation.
The leader of the program was USSR-77106, which performed its first flight to Alma-Ata on December 26, 1975. Another similar aircraft subsequently came to his aid. They carried mail, cargo, technical personnel, press representatives and employees of numerous related enterprises. Then regular flights began for ordinary passengers, and on 77106 they continued testing to fine-tune the air conditioning systems, fuel system etc. In total, the aircraft flew 582 hours. He ended his career on February 29, 1980, when G. Voronchenko’s crew drove him to the Air Force Museum in Monino, where he remained forever:
1980
Devastation
Having carried out the first work on the plane on the eve of the air show, enthusiasts did not abandon the “carcass”. Throughout the snowy winter of 2005-2006, the car was cleared of snow. And in the spring we made a difficult but responsible decision - to restore the interior of the cabin and passenger compartment.
Why was the decision difficult? The volunteers saw a spectacle of monstrous devastation. Hunters for non-ferrous metals, and simply vandals, destroyed and stole everything they could. The cabin has lost most of its instruments.
2005
Moreover, almost all the devices were unique and it is not possible to find them now, even on the black market.
The trim was barbarously torn apart in search of what was “needed,” and at first a bunch of wires and plastic hung from the ceiling, making it difficult to even walk through the cabin.
In addition to the man-made disaster, traces of the harmful effects of natural and climatic factors were found everywhere. The glazing has become cloudy over several decades, the foam rubber in the seats has rotted and crumbled. Even worse, pockets of corrosion appeared under the layers of hand-applied paint.
But the eyes are afraid, but the hands do. And thanks to the efforts of volunteers, with the support of industry experts, a number of large companies, and without help from the museum administration, the work began to boil. For a whole year, they raked out garbage from the interior and cabin, washed it, cleared it of snow and restored at least some order. After this, it was time for restoration work.
Documentation
To carry out restoration work professionally, it was necessary to know everything, or almost everything, about the design of the aircraft.
The most valuable technical documentation was found in the museum library. Some of the documents were provided by Aeroflot. 
Letters, communications, contacts
It took almost ten years to clean up what several vandals had done in a matter of days. Of course, if there were at least some financial resources, many works could be carried out on the principle of outsourcing, rather than by a small volunteer team. But for now we can only dream of sufficient funding.
Due to the fact that it was impossible to move forward independently in such a serious and large-scale project as the restoration of a huge jet airliner without professional support and knowledge, a lot of letters were written to organizations directly related to the creation of the Tu-144.
The main partner in Tu-144 77106 was Alexey Nikolaevich Amelyushkin, widely known in narrow circles as the savior and guardian of the last two Tu-144D 77114 and 77115 preserved in Zhukovsky.
Aeroflot provided great assistance. The airline donated a lot of valuable equipment from old decommissioned aircraft to the museum, including much-needed spare parts, interior items for Soviet aircraft, on-board fire extinguishers, tools, etc.
Gangways and stepladders
To carry out even the simplest work on an airplane, you need a set of stepladders. And in order to organize a visit to the salon during the Open Day, real ladders are needed.
The Yakovlev management donated two stepladders to the museum, one of which raised the platform up to 8 meters. Such a stepladder was part of the Tu-144 ground equipment and was intended for access to the upper part of the fuselage. It is from this that you can ensure washing of the “roof” and normal access to the mechanism of the front wings.
Vnukovo and Domodedovo airports provided assistance to the museum by providing two decommissioned, but fully repairable and suitable for further use, self-propelled ramps. 
Over the course of several seasons, I built a concrete pocket for the ladder using my own efforts. 
Now it is possible to provide “civilized” access to the aircraft cabin. 
Chassis
Over the years of exposure, the pressure in the tire tires of the wheels practically disappeared and the plane “sat on the rims.” Rubber for the Tu-144 is unique and has not been produced for a long time, but over time they were able to deliver old used tires removed from the Tu-144LL from Zhukovsky. 
To avoid further deformation of the tires, in 2010 the aircraft was installed on special stands. 
A large channel was laid under the front support, from under which the concrete slab began to “float” to the side after the rains and threatened to warp the plane, and later, with the help of a tractor, the slab was moved into place. 
2012
While the plane is confidently standing in the middle of the slab. It is possible that the procedure will have to be repeated in the future if necessary. 
Not immediately, but enthusiasts managed to return to the previously postponed issue of wheel restoration. The wheels were changed at one time, but they are far from new. Magnesium disks are gradually being eaten away by corrosion.
Therefore, the hearths had to be literally cut down with grinders, the flaws had to be puttied, the discs had to be sanded, and then everything had to be primed with mordant and epoxy primers and prepared for painting.
Now the chassis looks like this: 
2015
2015
We also painted the stand ourselves. 
2015
Landing lights for the front landing gear were provided by Tupolev. 
Portholes
Over 30 years of being parked under the scorching sun, the glazing of the interior and nose has completely lost its transparency, become cloudy and yellowed. Each porthole made of the latest E-2 plexiglass at that time, intended for use under conditions of high temperature and high-speed loads, was sanded and then polished. We worked in full chemical protection, since E-2 glass contains fluorine. Of course, it is no longer possible to restore them to their original form, but now at least it has become clear what is happening inside and outside the liner. 
Cabin
Hunters for non-ferrous metals in the process of robbery destroyed the central control panel. They were too lazy to unscrew it, so they tore out everything valuable “with meat.” The pilot's seats were also in a pitiful state.
The instruments received from partners made it possible to complete approximately 60% of the looted instrument panels in the cockpit. Some of the old stock was found in Zhukovsky from the Tupolevites, but some had to be bought from hucksters for fabulous money. Despite the donations from visitors, 90% of the funds were still invested from the volunteers' personal money.
Green plugs were installed on the remaining pointers, indicators and remote controls. The spectacle was not particularly optimistic. It turned out something like this. 
The bent and dented body of the center console was completely removed, dismantling half the aircraft. Volunteers had to learn the profession of tinsmith and painter. 
However, the result was worth it.
The handle for opening the window in the cabin, which was deformed and could not be restored, was made using a 3D printer. 
One day, when we went into the cabin to check the condition, we discovered the consequences of regular filming on board, which was kindly organized by the museum. An unnamed television vandal played pilot. The button on the steering wheel, in the most visible place, was destroyed. Naturally, there is no replacement.
A similar button was found in a radio parts store, and the engraving was done on a CNC milling machine.
They demanded restoration of the pilot's seat. The paint on them was peeling, the leather upholstery was worn out, the soft parts of the pillow were rotten, and the mechanisms were jammed. It took a whole day to dismantle one chair. 
2010
The old paint was washed off from the chair frame parts. With incredible efforts, all the numerous components were reassembled, and the public was presented with an impressive structure with leather cushions, folding armrests and embossed covers in the manner of sports cars. 
2010
Especially for vandals and looters, I would like to note that all purchased devices do not remain on board. At the end of the holidays, everything valuable is immediately removed and stored under lock and key.
February 2015: 
2015
2015
2015
Salons
At the same time, work was underway on the passenger compartments. Because all huge liner It was impossible to restore it with the help of volunteers; they decided to concentrate on the first luxury salon and the second, small tourist class salon. It was necessary to replace the upholstery, which had been cut by vandals, to repair the curtains on the windows, and to restore the broken remote control for individual passenger service. Something was partially borrowed from the third, largest salon. 
2015
2005. For almost 40 years, the foam rubber inside the seats rotted, crumbling onto the floor into sticky crumbs, the upholstery became dirty and sagging, and the folding tables disappeared. 
2005
The blocks of seats were dismantled one by one and repaired in the hangar, spending almost a fortune from personal funds. 
A set of tables for the “luxury” was found at the Tupolev company, but they promised to make new ones from scratch. 
2015
The original “anti-makasars” (headrest napkins) were provided by Aeroflot. 
2015
Interior lining material suitable for repairing interior panels was found at an automobile plant.
The shabby floors of the passenger cabins were removed with carpet, and excess carpet runners donated by Aeroflot were placed in the aisle between the seats (they are temporarily removed during operation). 
2015
Third salon
The third, largest passenger compartment was generally preserved with the exception of details: the foam rubber of the seats was completely rotted, and most of the numbering consoles were broken. 
Entire panels were used to complete the first and second salons, and the rest were broken out.
One of the small private companies agreed to machine a mold and stamp a batch of parts to replace those broken at cost; the museum paid the bill.
The saga of adjusting and installing new panels dragged on for three years. It was necessary to cut some holes that could not be cast, separate the parts into left and right sides, putty the sinkers, fit them in place, prime them, paint them and assemble them.
Some of the original flight attendant call buttons were lost; they, along with the remote control covers, had to be replaced with new ones. First, everything was thoroughly degreased, then a thin layer of primer for plastic and three layers of two-component paint with intermediate drying of each layer. 
In total, about fifty panels were made.
They turned out as if they were alive. 
2015
The installation of new foam rubber on the seats of the third salon took all of 2014 and the beginning of 2015, and literally a week ago the salon was fully equipped! 
2015
All 120 economy class seats have been restored. Each cover was signed and subsequently the chair stands on its own historical place. Together with the materials and transportation, the restoration of the chairs cost 120 thousand rubles. 
2015
One reclining chair was left in its original form so that we could compare what it looked like before the restoration. 
2015
Bow
From the very beginning of the restoration there was a desire to bring the aircraft into a more spectacular landing configuration with the nose down and wings extended. After lengthy work on washing, lubricating and resuscitating all devices, it was possible to manually lower the nose of the aircraft using a backup mechanism.
Then the electrical system was debugged, and now the front fenders extend and retract, lock, the limit switches are triggered in a timely manner and the motors are turned off. 
2015
The work doesn't stop
From month to month the aircraft is transformed, and the changes are visible everywhere. Totally agree last year The functionality of the air temperature indicator sensors in the cabins has been restored. Work has begun on installing a new power distribution board, through which the aircraft will be supplied with electricity. 
2015
As in the original, the light control will be carried out from the flight attendants' dashboards. 50% and 100% power modes, as well as emergency light, will be implemented. The latter operated from a 28-volt network and will eventually be restored to its original state, while for now approximately half of the light bulbs have been restored. 
2015
Constant care
During heavy snowfalls, the Tu-144 wing, with an area of 500 square meters, is covered with a very heavy snow cap. And during a thaw, saturated with water, a huge mass of snow can disrupt the alignment and put the plane on its hind legs. Therefore, in winter it is especially important to regularly clear snow from the aircraft. A team of three volunteers armed with shovels spends most of the daylight hours cleaning the wing. 
Another problem is dampness. During the restoration work, when removing the ceiling panels, moisture was discovered under the thermal insulation, and the inside of the fuselage skin was soaked with water. Under these conditions, pockets of corrosion inevitably arise, threatening to destroy the liner.
To get rid of the dampness that appears inside the Tu-144 during periods of thaw, several hundred kilograms of silica gel were purchased, which the volunteers themselves packed into cotton bags, carefully sewn by the girls from old sheets and pillowcases. The bags are evenly distributed in the cabin along luggage racks, seat pockets, cabinets and chests.
But initial measures to dry the plane did not solve the problem. Weekly heating of the interior with an MP-85 engine heater, known as “Gorynych,” failed to remove moisture.
Then, at the end of 2013, a project was launched on boomstarter.ru to purchase a special industrial dehumidifier. and the required amount was collected.
In less than a full day of work, the purchased dehumidifiers collected a liter of water. These two liters could sharpen a plane from the inside.
Show the product face to face
After the flight to Monino in early 1980, for almost 30 years, museum visitors did not have the opportunity to examine the cabin. For the first time, the Tu-144 opened its doors to visitors during the Open Day on May 9, 2009. For both numerous visitors and the volunteers themselves, this day was doubly festive - a victory was won over oblivion and destruction.
The fully equipped cabin greeted visitors with the hum of a fan above the instrument panel, the ticking of an aviation clock and the glow of light bulbs. Guests were able to see the luxury salon and the second salon, where the upholstery on the seats was reupholstered just before the holidays.
There is a desire to create a full-fledged exhibition that would allow one to plunge into the era of large, fast cars and the conquest of “space and spaciousness.” First, we made a poster that attracted the attention of visitors. Almost no one passed by; they looked, read, and were interested.
There are plans to make information boards with the history of the aircraft and the history of the restoration process.
In addition, they are collecting (accepted as a gift or, in extreme cases, purchased at a minimal cost) Aeroflot paraphernalia of the USSR from the Tu-144 era. So, if you have elements of a uniform from the late 1960s - early 1980s, as well as uniform hats, shoulder straps and insignia, buttons, airline tickets, luggage tags, labels, in-flight utensils - they can be given to volunteers to replenish the exhibition. Lifetime photographs of the Tu-144, especially the USSR-77106, will also be useful.
Not all problems can be washed away
Washing the Tu-144 in its current form is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, dirt is washed away. On the other hand, the condition of the paintwork over the years of being parked under open air such that the paint flies off along with the dirt, and in some places traces of corrosion are already visible. 
Unfortunately, the paint on the plane has completely lost its structure, and dirt is absorbed into it like a sponge. You have to pick up mops, buckets of water, washing powder, and scrub with pressure by hand. 
However, this cannot continue indefinitely - the aircraft needs a full-scale restoration of the paintwork.
The aircraft will need to be scaffolded, the old paint completely sanded, a primer applied, then a fresh primer and paint.>
Taking into account the previously carried out work on the cockpit, interiors, chassis and windows, there is every chance to bring the exhibit to a good world level - no worse than in Sinsheim, Germany. However, if previous work was managed to be financed mainly on our own, now the cost of the issue is minimal 3 million rubles, and then in pre-crisis prices.
Help Wanted!
The only driver of all changes for the better is the participation of caring people. Almost all the work was carried out not only by volunteers, but also, to a large extent, at their own expense. Of course, donations from museum visitors also played an important role.
Of course, I would like the funds to be allocated for the work by the owners of the aircraft - the Air Force, or the administration of the Shchelkovsky district, on whose territory the museum is located. However, so far appeals to officials have not brought any results.
Instead of an afterword
Ten years ago, a group of enthusiasts took on a huge task - preserving for history the unique Tu-144 aircraft, stored in Monino, near Moscow, on the territory of the Central Museum of the Air Force. These were difficult years, but a team of like-minded people was able to overcome all the trials and saved the plane.
Today we need to take the next step: to recreate the original appearance of the car and give all aviation enthusiasts the opportunity to see one of the most beautiful and technically advanced airliners of the 20th century.
Everyone can provide all possible assistance to the cause, either through personal participation or a monetary donation. Even a small translation will help restore lost interior details and prevent the development of corrosion.
In order to make a donation, you can use the method most convenient for you:
77106
in LiveJournal, where the progress of work is described in detail. Also, the current state of affairs can be seen on the forum in the corresponding thread.
There is also a group
The Tu-144, which according to NATO codification was called the Charger, is a supersonic Soviet passenger aircraft developed by the Tupolev Design Bureau.
Built in the 1960s, it was the first supersonic airliner to be operated by airlines for commercial air travel.
History of Tu-144
The first flight of the Tu-144 prototype aircraft was carried out on December 31, 1968. During the creation, work was carried out simultaneously in two directions. The first implied the creation of a non-afterburning, economical turbojet engine of the RD-36-51 type, the second was aimed at improving the aerodynamic characteristics of the Tu-144.
As a result, they planned to complete the task of achieving supersonic flight. In 1969, by decision of the USSR Council of Ministers commission, the option of equipping the aircraft with the RD-36-51 power plant was adopted.
In parallel, the MGA organization made a decision to build six Tu-144s with more fuel-efficient NK-144A engines. The modernization with new engines met the requirements for the supersonic flight range of the first stage (4-4.5 thousand km); it was planned to equip production models with RD-36-51 engines.
The first pre-production modernized Tu-144 aircraft began to be assembled in 1968 at the MMZ “Experience”. According to calculated data, NK-144 engines could provide a supersonic flight range of 3275 km, and NK-144A - 3500 km.
To improve the aerodynamic characteristics of the car, the shape of the wing was changed. The degree of sweep was changed: along the leading edge it was 76°, and along the base - 57°. Unlike “044”, the wing area was increased, and intensive conical twist of the end parts of the wing was introduced. But the main thing that improved aerodynamics was the change in the central part of the wing, which ensured self-balancing in cruising speed modes. The changes affected the length of the fuselage, which could accommodate up to 150 passengers. The improvement of aerodynamic data was facilitated by redesigning the shape of the forward fuselage. The twin engines along with the engine nacelles were moved apart, thereby freeing up space in the lower part of the fuselage. This arrangement entailed changes in the chassis system: the main landing gear supports were placed under the engine nacelles, and the retraction took place inside between the air ducts of the engines.
As a result of design improvements, an increase in fuel reserves and payload, the aircraft’s take-off weight increased to 190 tons (in the “044” project this figure was 150 tons).
The first pre-production copy of the Tu-144 was released at the beginning of 1971, and its first flight took place on June 1, 1971. According to the factory test program, 231 flights were carried out, 55 flight hours were completed in supersonic mode.
On September 20, 1972, the plane flew along the route Moscow - Tashkent, which was covered in 1 hour 50 minutes. During the flight, the cruising speed of the vehicle reached 2500 km/h.
Serial production of the Tu-144 airliner was established at the Voronezh Aviation Plant.
The production model, which was equipped with NK-144A engines, was first flown on 03/20/1972. Unlike the pre-production vehicle, the wing area was slightly added, which resulted in an increase in take-off weight to 195 tons.
On June 3, 1973, the first production aircraft crashed in front of 350 thousand spectators. The crew wanted to repeat the feat of the Concorde, which had performed a “fighter” maneuver the day before - to fly over the runway and take off again. However, this could not be done. Starting from an altitude of 1200 m, the plane suddenly began to dive and, only reaching 120 m above the ground, began to slowly rise. The overload far exceeded the permissible level, as a result of which first the left wing fell off, and then the tail section. The aircraft's structure was completely destroyed. The crash occurred near a small French city Goussainville. As a result of the disaster, the entire crew of the liner and 7 local residents, 28 people were injured.
First passenger flight with the participation of Tu-144 took place on October 1, 1977. Until May 1978, the aircraft operated 55 passenger and 47 cargo flights.
A total of 17 copies of the Tu-144 supersonic airliner were produced, 14 of which were produced in Voronezh. The equipment for the passenger compartments was ordered from the GDR. Currently, two Tu-144 aircraft are stored in the aviation museums of Monino and Ulyanovsk.
Design
The Tu-144 is an all-metal low-wing aircraft, which was made according to the “tailless” design. The fuselage of the aircraft is made as a semi-monocoque and has a smooth working skin with stringers and a set of frames. The Tu-144 has a tricycle chassis and a nose strut.
The power plant includes four NK-144A turbojet engines, in the Tu-144D modification - afterburning RD-36-51A. Each of the engines has its own air intake. The air intakes are arranged in pairs. The nose landing gear retracts into the space at the front of the fuselage between the air intakes.
Variable sweep aircraft wing. The wing skin is made of aluminum alloy sheets. Titanium elevons are located on the trailing edge. They, together with the rudders, perform deflection due to irreversible boosters. The cabin is made movable like a “duck” to ensure better review during takeoff and landing of an airplane.
Most of the fuel is stored in 18 wing tanks. A balancing tank was placed at the rear of the fuselage. It receives fuel at the stage of transition from subsonic speed to supersonic. The landing could be carried out at any time of the day and in any weather conditions. A new technical solution was the debut application in the history of Soviet aircraft construction on this aircraft of an automated system for monitoring the performance of on-board systems. This in turn reduced the time and labor intensity of machine maintenance.
Tu-144 aircraft were used not only as airliners. They were used during studies of solar eclipses, the ozone layer, and focused sonic boom. These aircraft became training centers for cosmonauts who trained under the Buran program. In 1983, test pilot S.T. Agapov set thirteen world aviation records on the Tu-144D, which have not been broken to this day.
Tu-144 characteristics:
aircraft length without PVD - 64.45 m;
wingspan - 28.8 m;
aircraft height - 12.5 m;
wing area with influx - 506.35 m2;
maximum take-off weight - 207000 kg;
empty weight of the aircraft for the 150-passenger version - 99200 kg;
cruising supersonic flight speed - 2120 km/h;
practical flight range, with commercial load:
7 tons (70 passengers) - 6200 km;
11-13 tons (110-130 passengers) - 5500-5700 km;
15 tons (150 passengers) - 5330 km.
Tu-144 video
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