Tupolev Tu-142

infobox Aircraft
name = Tu-142
type = Maritime reconnaissance and patrol
manufacturer = Tupolev


caption = A Tu-142 of the Indian Navy
designer =
first flight =
introduced =
retired =
status =Active service
primary user = Soviet Navy
more users = Russian Navy Indian Navy
produced =
number built =
unit cost =
developed from = Tupolev Tu-95
variants with their own articles =

The Tupolev Tu-142 (Туполев Ту–142) (NATO reporting name Bear F and Bear J) is a Russian maritime reconnaissance/anti-submarine warfare (ASW) turboprop aircraft. It is based on the Tupolev Tu-95 strategic bomber.

Design and development

Originally designed as a maritime surveillance aircraft to supplement the Bear D, the Bear F evolved to become the premier anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft of the Soviet Navy during the Cold War. The ASW variants were designated as Tu-142M2 (Bear F Mod 2), Tu-142M3 (Bear F Mod 3), and Tu-142M4 (Bear F Mod 4).

The Tu-142MR (Bear J) was a variant of the Bear F modified for use in submarine communications as well as other command, control and communications (C3) duties.

With eight-bladed contra-rotating propellers the engine that emerged was the Kuznetsov NK-12 with a nominal 12,000 eshp (8948kW) power rating. Although the engine was advanced, the fuselage design was conventional: it is a low-wing cantilever monoplane with 35 degrees of sweep. The angle ensured that the main wing spar passed though the fuselage in front of the bomb bay. It had a retractable tricycle landing gear, with the main gear retracting rearwards.The first aircraft flew in 1953.

Operational history

The Indian Navy uses 8 Tu-142s as maritime reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare aircraft.cite book |last= Donald |first= David |coauthors = Jon Lake |title= The Encyclopedia of World Military Aircraft |year=2000 |publisher= Barnes & Noble |location= NY, NY |isbn= 0-7607-2208-0 |pages= 426 ]

Variants

;Tu-142/Tu-142M (Bear F):Anti-submarine variant with extended forward fuselage and other changes from Tu-95.;Tu-142MR (Bear J) "Morskoy Razvedchik"

Operators

;IND
* Indian Navy - received eight Tu-142 aircraft for maritime patrol.;RUS
* Russian Naval Aviation;UKR
* Ukrainian Air Force - have two Tu-142 in flying condition but not operational.

Former;USSR
* Soviet Naval Aviation - passed all their aircraft to Russia.

pecifications (Tu-142M3)

aircraft specifications

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=prop

ref=The Encyclopedia of World Military Aircraft
crew=
length main= 49.50 m
length alt= 162 ft 5 in
span main= 51.10 m
span alt= 167 ft 8 in
height main= 12.12 m
height alt= 39 ft 9 in
area main= 311.10 m²
area alt= 3,348.76 ft²
empty weight main= 90,000 kg
empty weight alt= 198,000 lb
loaded weight main= kg
loaded weight alt= lb
max takeoff weight main= 185,000 kg
max takeoff weight alt= 407,848 lb
engine (prop)= Kuznetsov NK-12MV
type of prop= turboprops
number of props= 4
power main= 11,033 kW
power alt= 14,795 shp
power original=
max speed main= 925 km/h
max speed alt= 500 kt, 575 mph
cruise speed main= 711 km/h
cruise speed alt= 384 knots, 442 mph
range main= km
range alt= nm, mi
combat radius main= 6500 km
combat radius alt= 3,454 nm, 3,977 mi
combat radius more= (operational)
ceiling main= 12,000 m
ceiling alt= 39,000 ft
climb rate main= m/s
climb rate alt= ft/min
loading main= kg/m²
loading alt= lb/ft²
power/mass main= W/kg
power/mass alt= hp/lb
armament=

ee also

aircontent
related=
* Tupolev Tu-95
* Tupolev Tu-114
* Tupolev Tu-119
* Tupolev Tu-126
similar aircraft=
* P-3 Orion
* Hawker Siddeley Nimrod
lists=
* List of bomber aircraft
* List of military aircraft of the Soviet Union and the CIS
see also=

References

External links

* [http://www.aviation.ru/Tu/95/Tu-95.html Aviation.ru - "Tu-20/95/142 Bear: The fastest prop-driven aircraft."]