Tupolev Tu-114

Tu-114 Rossiya
AeroflotTu-114 atSchiphol Airportin 1964
Role	Largeturbopropairliner
Manufacturer	Tupolev OKB
First flight	15 November 1957(1957-11-15)
Introduction	24 April 1961
Retired	1991
Status	Retired
Primary users	Aeroflot Japan Airlines(in association withAeroflot) Soviet Air Forces
Produced	1958–1963
Number built	32
Developed from	Tupolev Tu-95
Variants	Tupolev Tu-126

TheTupolev Tu-114 Rossiya(Russian:Tyполев Тy-114 Poccия;NATO reporting nameCleat) is a retired largeturboprop-powered long-rangeairlinerdesigned by theTupolevdesign bureau and built in theSoviet Unionfrom May 1955.The aircraft was the largest and fastest passenger plane at that time and also had the longest range, at 10,900 km (6,800 mi). It has held the official title offastest propeller-driven aircraftsince 1960.

Due to its swept wing and powerplant design, the Tu-114 was able to travel at speeds typical of modern jetliners, 880 km/h (550 mph). Although it was able to accommodate 224 passengers, when operated byAeroflot,it was more common to accommodate 170 passengers with sleeping berths and a dining lounge.

The Tu-114 carried over six million passengers before being replaced by the jet-poweredIlyushin Il-62.Thirty-two aircraft were built at theKuibyshev aviation plant (No.18)in the early 1960s.

Development

In response to a directive No.1561-868 from the Council of Ministers and Ministry of Aircraft Production order No.571, issued in August 1955, the Tupolev Design Bureau was to create an airliner that had a range of 8,000 km (4,971 mi), based on theTupolev Tu-95strategic bomber, powered by fourKuznetsov NK-12engines drivingcontra-rotating propellers.

The Tu-114 used the basic wing, empennage, landing gear, and powerplants of the Tu-95 bomber, mated to a totally newpressurizedfuselageof much larger diameter. To cope with the increased weight, increasedlanding flapsurface area was required, and the flap chord was increased compared to the bomber's flaps. The wing was mounted low on the fuselage, giving the Tu-114 a much higher stance on itslanding gearthan the bomber. As a result, a new nose landing gear strut was required, although the main landing gear remained unchanged.

The Tu-114 was able to reach speeds typical of modern jetliners (880 km/h), but its cruising speed equivalent toMach 0.71was markedly lower than equivalent jet airliners such as theBoeing 707,Douglas DC-8,andVickers VC10,which usually cruised at Mach 0.83. It carried up to 224 passengers in maximum carriage configuration, although a more usual number for long-distance transcontinental flights was 170 passengers, which enabled the planes to be fitted with such luxuries as sleeping berths and even a dining lounge for the upper-class cabin.

Design

Tu-114 at the Paris Air Show, 1961

The Tu-114 had several unique features for its time, such as:

• Wingsswept backat 35 degrees — the same angle as for theBoeing 707and several other pure turbojet-powered airliners
• The most powerful turboprop engines to enter service on any aircraft, theKuznetsov NK-12MV, each driving two AV-60H,contra-rotating,four-bladed, reversible-pitch propellers.
• Lower deckgalleys.Adumbwaiterconnected the galley to the upper deck; originally, a member of the crew was a chef.
• Lower deckaircrewrest area.
• Longlanding gear(the nose gear was 3 meters high) due to a combination of a low wing and its large propeller diameter. Many destination airports did not have steps tall enough to reach the Tu-114's cabin door because of this.

The Tu-114s was a rare example of a plane with a dual-use layout — as a commercial airliner and for government transportation. The same dual-purpose layout was used in the first Tu-104s. The Tu-114 had four sleeping compartments with three berths in each, and a "restaurant" cabin in the midsection of the aircraft — the loudest section on the aircraft — with eight tables, each of which had six seats in a face-to-face arrangement. During official flights the middle cabin was used as a restaurant for dining. VIPs likeNikita Khrushchevand his wife travelled in the sleeping compartments, with their staff and entourage in two tourist class cabins with 3+3 layout. Front cabins had 41 seats (first row 2+3), and the aft cabin had 54 seats.

On domestic flights all seats were sold at one price; there was no class difference in the USSR during the Tu-114's flying career. The most uncomfortable places on the plane were in the "restaurant" compartments (six seats instead three sleeping berths), these were sold last. Three places in row 16, near the stair to the lower deck were equipped with baby bassinets. Maximum seating capacity of the Tu-114 in its "native" configuration was 170 passengers.

For international flights, sleeping places were sold as first class. In the early 1970s, sleeping compartments and the "restaurant" on most Tu-114s (excluding three or four) were dismantled and replaced with the usual passenger seats, with maximum seating reaching 200.

The design was not without shortcomings. Passengers on the Tu-114 endured high noise levels (108–112 dB) and vibrations from the propellers and engines.

Operational history

Video of a Tu-114 landing atAmsterdam Airport Schipholin 1964

The first Tu-114, registration СССР-Л5611, was first shown to the West in 1958 at theBrussels World Exhibition.It later carried Nikita Khrushchev onhis first trip to the United States in September 1959,the first such visit by any Soviet leader. The Tu-114 was still in the testing phase and had completed its first long range flight only four months earlier, after which postflight analysis found that hairline cracks had formed in the engines. Trusting the Soviet leadership to a still experimental aircraft was risky, but the only other option for a flight to the United States would be the short rangeIl-18which would require multiple fueling stops. Although the Central Committee, Minister of DefenseMalinovsky,and Khrushchev's personal pilot all considered it too risky to use the new aircraft, the Soviet premier insisted and aircraft designerAndrei Tupolevfelt confident enough to put his sonAlexeion the same flight. During Khrushchev's flight, a group of engineers were aboard the plane, operating diagnostic equipment to monitor the engines and verify that they were functioning correctly. Khrushchev later said, "We didn't publicize the fact that Tupolev's son was with us" for "to do so, would have meant giving explanations, and these might have been damaging to our image".When it arrived atAndrews Air Force Base,the ground crew found that the aircraft was so large and its landing gear so tall that they had no passenger steps high enough to reach the forward hatch. Khrushchev and his party were obliged to use the aircraft's own emergency escape ladder.The last flight of this particular plane was in 1968, and it is now on display at theCentral Air Force MuseumatMonino,outside of Moscow. Similar issues were experienced when the plane first landed at London and Paris airports, neither of which had hosted a plane of this size.

The Tu-114 entered regular Aeroflot service on flights fromVnukovo Airportin Moscow to Khabarovsk on 24 April 1961. It was subsequently used for Aeroflot flights to international destinations includingCopenhagen,Havana,Montreal,New Delhi,Paris,BelgradeandTokyo(in co-operation withJAL).

Flights to Havana viaConakryinGuineabegan on 10 July 1962. After the United States government placed political pressure on Guinea, landing rights were denied after four flights, and the Tu-114 service had to be routed throughDakar,Senegal,instead. Further American pressure to isolate Cuba resulted in denial of landing rights after three flights, and the route was changed toAlgiers,Algeria,instead. After three more flights, Algiers was also closed to the Tu-114. To overcome this, the Tu-114 was specially modified into the long-range Tu-114D variant, with seating reduced from 170 to 60, and 15 extra fuel tanks added. These aircraft refuelled atOlenyanearMurmansk,in the far North of the Soviet Union, and then flew via theBarents Seato Havana. Usually, this fuel load was enough, but in case of strong headwinds, an emergency refuelling stop inNassauinThe Bahamaswas necessary; this was an American military field. All planes operating this route were converted back to normal specifications after the jet-poweredIlyushin Il-62began flying the Moscow–Havana route.

Aeroflot first appeared in theOAGregistry in the January 1967 issue, which shows:

• a weekly Tu-114 from Sheremetyevo to Montreal, scheduled 11 hours 50 minutes (YUL to SVO was 10:30)
• two weekly Tu-114s to Havana in 19:20, returning in 16:25
• one weekly Tu-114 to Delhi in 7:00, returning in 7:40

The May 1967 OAG adds the weekly flight to Tokyo, taking 10:35 hours and the return to SVO in 11:25 hours.

Ilyushin 62s took over the Delhi and Montreal flights in 1967 (though the August 1968 OAG shows a weekly SVO-YUL-HAV Tu-114 along with a weekly Tu-114 via Algiers). Ilyushins took over the Tokyo flight in May/June 1969 and Havana, probably sometime in 1969.

With the increasing use of the Il-62, the Tu-114s were shifted to long domestic flights fromDomodedovotoAlma-Ata,Tashkent,Novosibirskand Khabarovsk. Tu-114s were also used for charter operations for senior officials of the USSR and various official delegations.

The Tu-114 had a short commercial service life compared with other Soviet airliners, being operated on regular flights from1961to1976(in comparison, the Il-62 is still in civilian service 52 years after its introduction, as of 2019). The fatigue life of the airframe was set at 14,000 flying hours. Most of the aircraft passed this point in 1976. By the summer of 1977, Aeroflot decided to scrap 21 aircraft at the same time. A few continued in use by the Soviet Air Forces until 1991.

The Tu-114 was renowned for reliability, speed and fuel economy. Tu-114 burned 5,000-5,500 kg/hour of fuel at cruise flight. Its safety record was rarely matched: there was only one accident involving fatalities, but the plane was not airborne at the time. It was only withdrawn from service after the introduction of the Il-62 and after carrying over six million passengers with Aeroflot and Japan Airlines.

JAL service

For the Moscow–Tokyoroute, Japan Air Lines made an agreement with Aeroflot to use the Tu-114. The flight crew included one JAL member, and the cabin crew consisted of five each from Aeroflot and JAL. The seating was changed to a two-class layout with 105 seats, and the aircraft livery included a small JAL logo and lettering on the forward fuselage. The first flight was on April 17, 1967. In 1969, the Moscow–Tokyo Tu-114 flights ended and the four involved planes converted back to the 200-seat domestic layout.

Tu-114 at Monino Museum.

World records

In June 1959 the Aviation Sports Committee of the Central Air Club named after Valeriy P. Chkalov approached the Tupolev OKB suggesting that various aviation records could be taken by Tupolev-designed aircraft. The Tupolev OKB prepared a detailed plan for record attempts on theTu-16,Tu-104,Tu-104B,Tu-95M and Tu-114. The second preproduction Tu-114 (СССР-76459) was prepared and clearance obtained to fly with the 30-tonne(metric ton) payload required for some of the record attempts.

In a series of flights beginning on 24 March 1960 the Tu-114 achieved the following records in Sub-class C-1 (landplanes) Group 2 (turboprop):

24 March 1960

Maximum speed on a 1,000-km (621-mile) closed circuit with payloads of 0 to 25,000 kg (0 to 55,116 lb)

Pilot: Ivan Sukhomlin (USSR)

Captain: B. Timochuk + 4 other crew

Course/place:Sternberg Astronomical Institute

• 871.38 km/h (541.45 mph)

1 April 1960

Maximum speed on a 2,000-km (1,242-mile) closed circuit with payloads of 0 to 25,000 kg (0 to 55,116 lb)

Pilot: Ivan Sukhomlin (USSR)

2nd pilot: N. Kharitonov + 3 other crew

Course/place: Sternberg-Point Observatory (USSR)

Tu-114 '76459'

• 857.277 km/h (532.687 mph)

9 April 1960

Maximum speed on a 5,000-km (3,105-mile) closed circuit with payloads of 0 to 25,000 kg (0 to 55,116 lb)

Pilot: Ivan Sukhomlin (USSR)

2nd pilot: Konstantin Sapelkin (2nd pilot)

Course/place: Sternberg-Point Observatory (USSR)

Tu-114 '76459'

• 857.212 km/h (532.647 mph)

12 July 1961

Altitude with payloads of 25,000 to 30,000 kg (55,115 to 66,138 lb)

Pilot: Ivan Sukhomlin (USSR)

2nd pilot: Piotr Soldatov

Course/place: Vnukovo (USSR)

• 12,073 m (39,610 ft)

21 April 1962

Maximum speed on a 10,000-km (6,210-mile) closed circuit with payloads of 1,000 to 10,000 kg (2,205 to 22,046 lb)

Pilot: Ivan Sukhomlin (USSR)

2nd pilot: P. Soldatov

Course/place: Sternberg-Point Observatory (USSR)

Tu-114 '76467'

• 737.352 km/h (458.169 mph)

All these records stand, but the category was discontinued when the category was split into takeoff weight sub-groups. Similar records have been set in the new sub-groups byTu-95andTu-142aircraft at faster speeds.

Variants

• Tu-114— initial production version
• Tu-114 6NK-8— projected long-range version with six NK-8 turbofan engines. Destined as an alternative to the Il-62M; never reached production.
• Tu-114-200— upgrade to original Tu-114, with seating layout for 200 passengers. Almost all aircraft were converted.
• Tu-114A— projected upgraded version designed in 1962–1963, with 98–102 passengers on long-range routes; never entered production
• Tu-114B— variant of Tu-114A with radome and assigned to carry large cruise missile
• Tu-114C— variant of Tu-114A with radome from Tu-114B and side blisters
• Tu-114D— (Dalniy,"long-range" ) long-range version for flights to Cuba, with fewer passengers and increased take-off weight to 182,000 kg. Three built; two were converted to Tu-114-200 standard in 1969–1970 and one was written off in 1962.Not to be confused with the Tu-116 (Tu-114D).
• Tu-114E— reconnaissance version of Tu-114A
• Tu-114F— reconnaissance version of Tu-114A and Tu-114E with additional sensors
• Tu-114PLO— projected maritime strike variant armed with anti-ship missiles and naval radar. This variant was to be powered by a nuclear powerplant.
• Tu-114T— projected cargo freighter version, featuring a swing-tail for loading large cargo.
• Tu-115— projected military transport version with a rear loading ramp and armed with a rear gun turret. Behind the cockpit was a compartment for 38 soldiers. The Tu-115 was designed to transport 300 paratroopers or 40 tons of cargo for a distance of 5,000 km (3,100 mi). Cancelled in favor of theAntonov An-22.

Related developments

Tu-116

Main article:Tupolev Tu-116

The Tu-116 was aTupolev Tu-95bomber fitted with pressurized passenger cabins built to serve as the official government transport. The two passenger cabins were fitted into the space of bomb bays and were not connected to each other or the flight deck.

Tu-126

Main article:Tupolev Tu-126

The Tu-126 (NATO reporting nameMoss) was used by the Soviet Air Force in theairborne early warning(AEW) role until being replaced by theBeriev A-50.

Operators

Civil

Japan

• Japan Airlines– In association with Aeroflot.

Soviet Union

• Aeroflot

Military

Soviet Union

• Soviet Air Forces(Tu-114, Tu-116)

Accidents and incidents

During its service life, the Tu-114 had only one fatal accident. On 17 February 1966,Aeroflot Flight 065attempted to take off fromMoscowSheremetyevo Airportat night in deteriorating weather conditions, after the flight had been delayed several times. The crew was unaware that snow had not been properly cleared from the full width of the runway involved. The plane's wing struck a large snow mound at speed and the propellers of the number 3 and 4 engines hit the runway, resulting in the aircraft veering off course and catching fire. Initial Soviet sources suggested that 48 of the 70 persons on board were killed, including the pilot.The aircraft was bound forBrazzaville,Republic of the Congowith a number of Africans and a Soviet trade delegation on board.Later reports give the fatalities as 21 of 48 on board.

Another non-operational aircraft was written off, with fuselage damage, on 7 August 1962 atVnukovo Airportafter the nose undercarriage collapsed during servicing.Tail number СССР-76479 was one of only three long range D models manufactured.

Aircraft on display

Russia

СССР-L5611 – (Prototype) On static display at theCentral Air Force MuseuminMonino,Moscow Oblast.This is the airliner used byNikita Khrushchevwhen hevisited the United Statesin 1959.

СССР-76490 – On static display at theUlyanovsk Aircraft MuseuminUlyanovsk,Ulyanovsk Oblasttogether with the sole surviving example of the relatedTu-116.

Ukraine

СССР-76485 – On static display at the Aviation Museum of theNational Aviation UniversityinKryvyi Rih.

Specifications (Tu-114)

Data fromJane's all the World's Aircraft 1969–70

General characteristics

• Crew:5 or 6 flight crew with up to 10 cabin crew
• Capacity:up to 220 pax
• Length:54.1 m (177 ft 6 in)
• Wingspan:51.1 m (167 ft 8 in)
• Width:4.2 m (13 ft 9 in)
• Height:15.44 m (50 ft 8 in)
• Wing area:311.1 m²(3,349 sq ft)
• Empty weight:91,000 kg (200,621 lb)
• Gross weight:164,000 kg (361,558 lb)
• Max takeoff weight:171,000 kg (376,990 lb)
• Fuel capacity:60,000 kg (130,000 lb) / 72,980 L (19,280 US gal; 16,050 imp gal)
• Powerplant:4 ×Kuznetsov NK-12MVturbopropengines, 11,033 kW (14,795 hp) each
• Propellers:8-bladed AV-60N contra-rotating reversible pitch propellers, 5.6 m (18 ft 4 in) diameter

Performance

• Maximum speed:870 km/h (540 mph, 470 kn) at 8,000 m (26,000 ft)
• Maximum speed:Mach 0.78 at 8,000 m (26,000 ft)
• Cruise speed:770 km/h (480 mph, 420 kn) at 9,000 m (30,000 ft)
• Range:8,950 km (5,560 mi, 4,830 nmi) with max fuel and 15,000 kg (33,000 lb) payload
      6,200 km (3,900 mi; 3,300 nmi) with max payload and 60 minutes fuel reserves
• Service ceiling:12,000 m (39,000 ft)
• Wing loading:532 kg/m²(109 lb/sq ft)
• Power/mass:249 W/kg (0.151 hp/lb)
• Take-off run:2,500 m (8,200 ft)
• Landing run:1,400 m (4,600 ft)

See also

Related development

• Tupolev Tu-95
• Tupolev Tu-116
• Tupolev Tu-126
• Tupolev Tu-142

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

• Bristol Brabazon
• Bristol Britannia
• Ilyushin Il-18
• Lockheed L-188 Electra
• Vickers Vanguard

Related lists

• List of civil aircraft

References

• Alexander, Jean.Russian Aircraft since 1940.Putnam. London.ISBN0-370-10025-5
• Gordon,Yefim & Rigmant, Vladimir.Tupolev Tu-114.Midland. Hinkley. 2007.ISBN978-1-85780-246-7
• Gunston, Bill.The Osprey Encyclopedia of Russian Aircraft 1875–1995.London, Osprey. 1995.ISBN1-85532-405-9
• Taylor, John W. R.Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1969–70.London: Sampson Low, Marston & Company, 1969.ISBN0-354-00051-9.

External links

• Tu-114 in Museum of Civilian Aviation, Ulyanovsk, Russia
• "Tu-114 Rossiya"a 1959Flightarticle