The Tupolev Tu-16 (NATO: Badger) is a Soviet twin-engine, swept-wing jet bomber designed as the Tu-88. It first flew on 27 April 1952, entered service in 1954, and 1,509 were built between 1952 and 1962, while China's licence-built Xi'an H-6 was still in production in 2020. Developed by Tupolev.
The Tupolev Tu-16 (NATO: Badger) is a Soviet twin-engine, swept-wing jet bomber designed as the Tu-88. Developed by Tupolev.
See Specifications for full detail.
The Tupolev Tu-16 (NATO: Badger) is a Soviet twin-engine, swept-wing jet bomber designed by Tupolev as the Tu-88, or Aircraft N. It first flew on 27 April 1952, entered service in 1954, and 1,509 were built between 1952 and 1962. [1]
It was built to match American strategic bombing capability, replacing the Tu-4, a reverse-engineered B-29, as the Soviet long-range bomber. The Tu-16 started as a high-altitude free-fall bomber and by the mid-1950s carried early cruise missiles, and China's licence-built H-6 was still in production in 2020. [1]
Work on the Tu-88 began in 1950, with a Mikulin AM-3 turbojet in each wing root. It first flew on 27 April 1952, beat the Ilyushin Il-46 in a competition, and was approved for production in December 1952. [1]
The first production aircraft entered Frontal Aviation service in 1954. Kazan, Kuybyshev and Voronezh built the type, and in 1955 a Tu-16 dropped RDS-37 over Semipalatinsk. The Tu-104 airliner, Tu-124 and Tu-107 were derived from the design. [1]
On 22 November 1955 a Tu-16 dropped RDS-37 over the Semipalatinsk Test Site in Kazakhstan, the world's first air-dropped two-stage thermonuclear test. The weapon used radiation implosion, an approach described as equivalent to the American Teller-Ulam design, and it was nicknamed Sakharov's Third Idea. It was scaled down from a 3-megaton design to a yield of 1.6 megatons and detonated at 1,550 m to limit local fallout. [2]
An inversion layer focused the shock wave downward, a soldier was killed when a trench collapsed on a group of troops, and a young girl died when a building collapsed in Kurchatov, about 65 km away. A commission meeting on 24 November 1955 concluded the design had been tested successfully and became the basis for later Soviet two-stage devices. The United States matched the result with the Cherokee test on 20 May 1956, and the Soviet Union later judged 2.9 megatons excessive for some missions and fielded the 200-kiloton RP-30 and RP-32 bombs. [2]
The Badger-A had a crew of six or seven, a wingspan of 33 m, a maximum speed of 1,050 km/h and a service ceiling of 12,800 m. Two Mikulin AM-3M-500 turbojets gave 93.2 kN each. Defensive armament was six or seven 23 mm AM-23 cannon in dorsal and ventral remote turrets and a manned tail turret. [1]
The bomb bay took 9,000 kg of free-fall weapons, including a single FAB-9000, and the combat radius with nuclear or conventional loads was about 4,800 km. Two underwing hardpoints were available for stores. [1]
The Tu-16KS carried two AS-1 Kennel missiles, with 107 built from 1954 to 1958, and the Tu-16K-10 carried one AS-2 Kipper anti-ship missile, with 216 built from 1958 to 1963. Over 240 aircraft were converted as Tu-16K-26 with two KSR-5 missiles from 1969, and over 440 were capable of carrying the K-11 or K-16 missile complexes from 1962. [1]
Reconnaissance versions included the Tu-16R and the Tu-16RM-1, with 23 converted from K-10 aircraft. The Tu-16T torpedo bomber had 76 built, and the Tu-16N tanker, which supplied Tu-22 and Tu-22M bombers, entered service in 1963. [1]
Egypt used the Tu-16 first in the North Yemen civil war. In the Six-Day War, Israel destroyed 23 of Egypt's 25 Tu-16s on the ground with napalm and cluster munitions, and an Iraqi Tu-16 that bombed Israel crashed into a barracks at Ramat David, killing its crew and 11 to 14 Israeli reservists. Egypt flew Tu-16s again in the Yom Kippur War of 1973 and against Libya. [1]
Iraqi Tu-16s bombed Iranian troops at the siege of Basra and carpet-bombed Tehran during the Iran-Iraq War, and Iraqi H-6s fired C-601 anti-ship missiles in the Tanker War. China began licence production in 1959, flew the first fully domestic H-6 in December 1968, and carried out its first airborne nuclear weapon test with a Tu-16 on 14 May 1965. The Soviet Union had retired the type by 1993, though Russia kept a few for testing until 2001 and 2002, Egypt retired its last aircraft in 2000, and Ukraine retired 121. Preserved aircraft are at Monino, Dyagilevo, Engels, Akhtubinsk, Kyiv, Poltava, Riga, Datangshan and Yogyakarta, and none is airworthy. [1] [3]
On 25 May 1968 a Soviet Tu-16 Badger-F, an electronic intelligence version, made several very low passes over USS Essex in the Norwegian Sea. After the last pass it stalled and crashed into the sea in a large explosion, and all six crew were killed. The pilot was reported as Colonel Andrey Pliyev, and debris was reportedly found about 240 km west of the Norwegian coast. The Soviets classified video filmed from Essex, and it was not shown in Russia until 2008. One source gives the date as 27 May and says a wing clipped the water on the fourth pass. [4][1] On 27 June 1980 a Tu-16 on a Tokyo Express flight crashed in the Sea of Japan near Komatsu with no survivors. [1]
On 28 August 1978 an early Tu-16 crashed on Hopen Island in Svalbard and all seven crew were killed. A four-man Norwegian weather team found the wreck on 30 August, and the Soviet Union refused to admit the loss until the bodies were handed over. The Svalbard Museum describes a Soviet reconnaissance plane that hit Werenskiold Mountain on Hopen and a standoff that followed: the missile cruiser Marshal Timoshenko anchored outside the territorial limit, the Soviet embassy in Oslo demanded that the crew be allowed ashore for the wreckage, and the ambassador said they could land with or without permission, which Norway took as a threat of invasion. The compromise gave the Norwegian investigation board 42 hours on the site before an unarmed Soviet party went ashore. Norway kept the flight recorder and decoded it at its own Defence Research Institute rather than sending it to the United Kingdom, over Soviet objections. [5][6] A modified Tu-16 flying laboratory crashed on 1 February 1971 while testing a new jet engine, killing all five aboard, among them the test pilot Amet-khan Sultan, a double Hero of the Soviet Union with 30 solo and 19 shared victories in the war. The official report said the outer flaps, in the landing position, broke as the aircraft passed 500 km/h and it flipped and broke up, and investigators could not establish why the flaps were set that way. [7]
The Tupolev Tu-16 has a top speed of 565 kn (650 mph / 1,050 km/h).
A total of 1,509 were built.
No, the Tupolev Tu-16 has been retired. It retired in 1993.
The Tupolev Tu-16 first flew on April 27th 1952.
The Tupolev Tu-16 has a range of 4,500 mi (7,200 km); combat radius about 3,000 mi (4,800 km).
Museum aircraft listed in a single source, which describes none as airworthy and gives no serial numbers.
No Soviet-built Tu-16 is airworthy, so none appears on Flightradar24. China's H-6 bombers do not broadcast their positions in public data.
| Performance | |
| Max Speed | 565 kn (650 mph / 1,050 km/h) |
|---|---|
| RangeRange — How far an aircraft can fly without refuelling. Quoted figures vary with payload, speed and reserves - see also ferry range and combat radius. Glossary → | 4,500 mi; combat radius about 3,000 mi |
| Service CeilingService Ceiling — The highest altitude at which an aircraft can still climb at a useful rate (typically 100 ft/min). Above it, the air is too thin to keep climbing meaningfully. Glossary → | 42,000 ft |
| Airframe & Weight | |
| Wingspan | 108 ft 3 in |
| Length | 114 ft 2 in |
| Height | 34 ft 0 in |
| WeightMTOW — Maximum Take-Off Weight - the heaviest an aircraft is certified to be at the start of its take-off run, including fuel, crew, payload and the aircraft itself. Glossary → | empty: 82,012 lb; MTOW: 174,165 lb |
| Power & Payload | |
| Engines | 2 x Mikulin AM-3M-500 turbojets, 21,000 lbf (93.2 kN) each, one in each wing root |
| ArmamentArmament — The weapons an aircraft can carry: guns, missiles, bombs and rockets, whether mounted internally, on wing hardpoints, or in bomb bays. Glossary → | 6 to 7 x 23 mm AM-23 cannon in dorsal and ventral remote turrets and a manned tail turret, sometimes with a fixed nose gun; up to 20,000 lb of free-fall bombs including a single FAB-9000 |
| Crew | 6 to 7 |
| CapacityPayload — Everything an aircraft is carrying that isn't the aircraft or its fuel: passengers, cargo, or weapons. Payload and fuel usually trade off against each other. Glossary → | Up to 20,000 lb of bombs |
| Program & Service | |
| Manufacturer | Tupolev |
| Origin | Russia |
| First Flight | April 27th 1952 |
| Service Entry | 1954 |
| Retired | 1993 |
| Number Built | 1,509 |
| Unit Cost | Not publicly disclosed - no flyaway price for the Tu-16 has been published |
6 notable events involving the Tu-16 Badger, 1963 to 1980. 18 deaths are recorded across the 3 of these with a figure listed. Curated rather than exhaustive.
An Indonesian Tu-16 bombed Tawau, Malaysia, twice during the confrontation with Malaysia. Most of the campaign was intimidation, including pamphlet drops over Malaysia.
In the Six-Day War, Israel destroyed 23 of Egypt's 25 Tu-16s on the ground. An Iraqi Tu-16 that bombed Israel crashed into a barracks at Ramat David, killing its crew and 11 to 14 Israeli reservists.
A Soviet Tu-16 Badger-F made several very low passes over USS Essex in the Norwegian Sea and crashed into the sea after the last one. All six crew were killed. Another source gives 27 May as the date and says a wing clipped the water on the fourth pass.
A modified Tu-16 flying laboratory crashed during new engine testing. All five aboard were killed, including the test pilot Amet-khan Sultan. The report blamed outer flaps that broke in the landing position above 500 km/h.
An early Tu-16 crashed on Hopen Island, Svalbard, and all seven crew were killed. A Norwegian weather team found the wreck on 30 August. The Soviet Union refused to admit the loss until the bodies were handed over, and Norway decoded the flight recorder over Soviet objections.
A Soviet Tu-16 on a Tokyo Express flight crashed in the Sea of Japan near Komatsu, with no survivors. A Japanese ship recovered the remains of three crew.
| Tu-16 / Tu-16A (Badger-A) | The basic bomber, which entered Frontal Aviation service in 1954. The Tu-16A was the nuclear-capable version, and 453 were built. Both carried a free-fall bomb load of up to 9,000 kg and a defensive armament of six or seven 23 mm AM-23 cannon in remote turrets and a manned tail turret. |
| Tu-16KS (Badger-B) | The first missile carrier, armed with two AS-1 Kennel (KS-1 Komet) missiles. 107 were built from 1954 to 1958. Indonesia flew the Tu-16KS-1, and Egypt bought Tu-16KS aircraft before the Six-Day War of 1967, in which most of its fleet was destroyed on the ground. A Tu-16KS is preserved in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. |
| Tu-16K-10 (Badger-C) | The anti-ship version with one AS-2 Kipper (K-10S) missile and a nose radar, with 216 built from 1958 to 1963. Later missile conversions included the Tu-16K-26 with two KSR-5 missiles, used from 1969 with over 240 converted, and the Tu-16K-11-16 for the K-16 and K-11 missile complexes, used from 1962 with over 440 capable. |
| Tu-16R / RM-1 / Ye (reconnaissance) | Reconnaissance and electronic intelligence versions. The Tu-16R (Badger-E) carried ELINT equipment, the Tu-16RM-1 (Badger-D) was a maritime reconnaissance conversion with 23 rebuilt from K-10 missile carriers, which already had a nose radar, and the Tu-16Ye (Badger-K) was another ELINT version. Egypt also used the Tu-16R, and the Soviet Navy flew the maritime versions. |
| Tu-16 Elka / Buket / KRM | Electronic warfare versions. The Tu-16 Elka (Badger-H) was a stand-off jamming aircraft, the Tu-16P Buket (Badger-J) was an escort jammer, and the Tu-16KRM launched target drones. The reconnaissance versions, the tanker and the torpedo bomber are listed separately in this table. The Tu-16Ye was a further ELINT version. |
| Tu-16T / S / Z / N | Special-purpose conversions. The Tu-16T torpedo bomber had 76 built, the Tu-16S carried a lifeboat for search and rescue, the Tu-16Z was an early wing-to-wing tanker, and the Tu-16N was a tanker for the Tu-22 and Tu-22M bombers that entered service in 1963. The Tu-104G was a fast air mail and training version. |
| Xi'an H-6 | The Chinese version. Licence production began in 1959 and the first Chinese-assembled Tu-16 flew that year, and the first fully domestic H-6 flew in December 1968. H-6K variants were still in production in 2020, at least 120 H-6s were in PLAAF service, and Iraq used the H-6D, which it called the B-6D. |
No photos added yet for this aircraft.
Museum aircraft listed in a single source, which describes none as airworthy and gives no serial numbers. It also flags the Datangshan aircraft as one to check against another source.
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