The MDR-3 (a.k.a.11) was a long-range flying boat designed and built in the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

from 1931.

Development

In 1931, Chyetverikov was commissioned to design a new long-range flying boat for MA (''Morskaya Aviatsiya'' – naval aviation). Chyetverikov used few new parts, borrowing wings, tailplane and engine nacelles (mounted above the wing) from the

Grigorovich TB-5 The Grigorovich TB-5 () was an experimental heavy bomber designed and tested in the Soviet Union in the early 1930s. Designed as a competitor for the Tupolev TB-3, the TB-5 was intended to be powered by two FED 24-cylinder X engines of 746 kW ...

and a scaled-up

Grigorovich ROM-2 The Grigorovich ROM-2 (bureau designation MR-3; military designation MDR-1) was a long-range reconnaissance flying boat designed by the Grigorovich Design Bureau for the Soviet Navy in the late 1920s. Design The ROM-2 (ROM = ''Razviedchik Otkryto ...

fuselage. The use of ready designed or built components led to quick construction of the prototype which was ready for flight tests in Dec 1931. These commenced in January 1932 after the aircraft was transported to

Sevastopol Sevastopol ( ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea and a major port on the Black Sea. Due to its strategic location and the navigability of the city's harbours, Sevastopol has been an important port and naval base th ...

in the

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

. Despite fast construction and excellent structural qualities, results of the flight tests were disappointing. Takeoff time was 36 seconds, climb rate less than a metre per second and the ceiling was only 2,200m. As a result project was transferred to KOSOS (''Konstrooktorskiy Otdel Sektora Opytnovo Stroitel'stva'' – section of experimental aeroplane construction), as there was a lack of faith in Chyetverikov's abilities to rectify the poor performance. The MDR-3 became the basis of the ANT-27, MDR-4 and MTB-1.

Specifications (MDR-3)

References

* Gunston, Bill. “The Osprey Encyclopaedia of Russian Aircraft 1875–1995”. London, Osprey. 1995. * Taylor, Michael J.H. . “ Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. Studio Editions. London. 1989. {{Soviet scout designations 1930s Soviet patrol aircraft Flying boats MDR-3 High-wing aircraft Four-engined push-pull aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1936 Twin-tail aircraft

Development

Specifications (MDR-3)

See also

References