Not sure if this is historic or military, given the age of the jets, what is clear however is the Daily Mail maintains it’s usual “high” standards of reporting…..
That’s some upgrade, bringing it up to Mach 5, 4000 mph!!!! 🙁
Putin’s war games factory: Workers near completion of Russia’s latest supersonic 4,000mph strike bombers ahead of test flights later this month
By: Flanker_man - 16th August 2018 at 18:20
Incidentally I always thought the whole issue of describing the Blinder and Backfire with a similar designation was strange: they obviously have nothing in common.
The reason for the designation is that Andrei Tupolev was trying to get funding for a new clean-sheet swing wing design, but called it a Tu-22M as a ruse – so that it appeared to be just a development (Modification) of the existing Tu-22 Blinder.
Ken
By: Sabrejet - 16th August 2018 at 17:31
That is one grubby-looking modification line: if you compare with other western modification lines (think Nimrod MRA.4 for instance), aircraft of a far older vintage will look like new. These Backfires look like they’ve spent a long time there, and with minimal hands on.
Just an observation.
Incidentally I always thought the whole issue of describing the Blinder and Backfire with a similar designation was strange: they obviously have nothing in common.
By: Flanker_man - 16th August 2018 at 16:39
Rather than criticising the DM for getting things wrong, can we at least get the designation right on here???
It isn’t ‘Tu-22’, nor ‘TU-22’ – that is the earlier Blinder.
It is Tu-22M3 – Reporting name ‘Backfire’ – with the upgraded version being called Tu-22M3M (presumably for ‘Modified’)
Ken
By: blurrkup - 16th August 2018 at 14:14
Think the DM has got their facts mixed up again as usual. The missile that the TU-22 will deploy can travel approx Mach 5, not the bomber.
By: Flanker_man - 16th August 2018 at 14:12
At least they got the aircraft designation correct – Tu-22M3M.
The Tu-22 is the old Blinder – long since gone.
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August 16, 2018 at 2:02 pm