Myasishchev 3M
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The Myasishchev M-4 ''Molot'' (),
USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
/DoD reporting name "Type 37", ASCC reporting name Bison) was a four-engined
strategic bomber A strategic bomber is a medium- to long-range Penetrator (aircraft), penetration bomber aircraft designed to drop large amounts of air-to-ground weaponry onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating the enemy's capacity to wage war. Unl ...
designed by
Vladimir Mikhailovich Myasishchev Vladimir Mikhailovich Myasishchev (; 28 September 1902 – 14 October 1978) was a Soviet aircraft designer, major general of Engineering (1944), Hero of Socialist Labour (1957), Doctor of Technical Sciences (1959), Honoured Scientist of the RS ...
and manufactured by the
Soviet Union 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 ...
in the 1950s to provide a Long Range Aviation bomber capable of attacking targets in
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. The aircraft fell well short of its intended range and was not fully capable of attacking the most valuable targets in the
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. As this became clear, production was shut down. In spite of the failure to produce a capable strategic design and the resulting small numbers, the M-4 nevertheless sparked fears of a "
bomber gap A bomber is a military combat aircraft that utilizes air-to-ground weaponry to drop bombs, launch torpedoes, or deploy air-launched cruise missiles. There are two major classifications of bomber: strategic and tactical. Strategic bombing is ...
" when 18 of the aircraft were flown in a public demonstration on
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in 1954. The US responded by building thousands of
Boeing B-47 The Boeing B-47 Stratojet (Boeing company designation Model 450) is a retired American long- range, six-engined, turbojet-powered strategic bomber designed to fly at high subsonic speed and at high altitude to avoid enemy interceptor aircraft ...
s and
B-52 The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Ai ...
s to counter this perceived threat. The design was updated with more efficient engines, inflight refuelling (IFR) support and the removal of the glass nose for optical bombing and moving the radar to this location. With these changes, production restarted as the 3M. Even with these modifications the design was not truly effective in the nuclear bomber role, and only 125 aircraft, both M-4s and 3Ms, were produced before the production line was shut down for good in 1963. Only 19 of these served on nuclear alert. M-4s and 3Ms were primarily used as long-range
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and
strike aircraft An attack aircraft, strike aircraft, or attack bomber is a tactical military aircraft that has a primary role of carrying out airstrikes with greater precision than bombers, and is prepared to encounter strong low-level air defenses while pres ...
and other supporting roles. Most were converted in the 1970s and 80s to
tanker aircraft This is a list of tanker aircraft used for aerial refuelling of another aircraft while in powered flight. Refueling methods ;Looped hose: The first commercial method employed a hose which was held slack in a trailing half-loop behind both airc ...
, especially as the
Tupolev Tu-22M The Tupolev Tu-22M (; NATO reporting name: Backfire) is a supersonic, variable-sweep wing, long-range strategic and maritime strike bomber developed by the Tupolev, Tupolev Design Bureau in the 1960s. The bomber was reported as being designated ...
took over the maritime missions. The tanker conversions remained in service until 1994. Most surviving examples were broken up as part of post-
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arms limitations agreements. The M-4 was the first four-engine jet bomber deployed operationally by the Soviet Union.


Design and development

Following
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the Soviet Union prioritized developing a long-range strategic bomber capable of delivering
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. Their first aircraft was the
Tupolev Tu-4 The Tupolev Tu-4 (; NATO reporting name: Bull) is a piston-engined Soviet Union, Soviet strategic bomber that served the Soviet Air Force from the late 1940s to the mid-1960s. The aircraft was a copy of the American Boeing B-29 Superfortress, ha ...
, a
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version of the American
B-29 Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is a retired American four-engined Propeller (aeronautics), propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to ...
. The Tu-4 was only ever a stop-gap solution, as unlike the American strategic bomber force that could operate from bases in allied countries close to the USSR, it lacked the range to reach the continental United States, and experiences in the
Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...
demonstrated piston engine bombers were extremely vulnerable to jet fighter interception. With the advancement of Western jet bombers like the
B-47 Stratojet The Boeing B-47 Stratojet (Boeing company designation Model 450) is a retired American long- range, six-engined, turbojet-powered strategic bomber designed to fly at high subsonic speed and at high altitude to avoid enemy interceptor aircraft ...
and
Vickers Valiant The Vickers Valiant was a British high-altitude jet bomber designed to carry nuclear weapons, and in the 1950s and 1960s was part of the Royal Air Force's " V bomber" strategic deterrent force. It was developed by Vickers-Armstrongs in respon ...
, Vladimir Mikhailovich Myasishchev was directed to construct a ''strategichesky dalny bombardirovshchik'' (SDB) (стратегический дальный бомбардировщик (СДБ), "strategic long-range bomber") in spring of 1951. The first M-4 (Bison-A) prototype flew on 20 January 1953, and was handed over to state acceptance trials in March 1954, with production beginning later that year. It entered service in 1955, with 34 being built including two prototypes.The Myasishchev M-4 / 3M "Bison" & M-50 "Bounder"
''Air Vectors.net''.
The M-4 was made mostly of aircraft aluminum alloys with some steel and magnesium components. It had wings swept at 35-degrees and powered initially by four
Mikulin AM-3 The Mikulin AM-3 (also called RD-3M) was a turbojet engine developed in the Soviet Union by Alexander Mikulin.Gunston 1989, p. 104. Design and development The development of the high-performance single-shaft engine began in 1948. The engine was ...
A engines with a maximum thrust of 85.8 kN (8,750 kgp; 19,290 lbf), but later upgraded to RD-3M-500 turbojets with a maximum thrust of 93.2 kN (9,500 kgp; 20,940 lbf). There were 18 bladder fuel tanks in the fuselage and wings, providing a total fuel capacity of 123,600 liters (32,610 US gallons); this gave the aircraft a range of , although this fell short of the range initially specified. It had a payload of 24 tonnes (26.4 tons) in various configurations. Defensive armament consisted of six AM-23 23 mm cannons with a rate of fire of 1,250 rpm each in a manned twin tail turret with 400 rounds per gun and two twin remote controlled turrets in the top and bottom fuselage with 300 rounds per gun each. The aircraft had a crew of eight: a navigator/bombardier in the nose; pilot and copilot in the cockpit; radar operator/navigator, flight engineer/gunner, radio operator/gunner, and dorsal turret gunner in a compartment behind the cockpit; and a tail gunner.


3M

While the M-4 had less range than the
Tupolev Tu-95 The Tupolev Tu-95 (; NATO reporting name: "Bear") is a large, four-engine turboprop-powered strategic bomber and missile platform. Maiden flight, First flown in 1952, the Tu-95 entered service with the Soviet Long Range Aviation, Long-Range Avia ...
, it had greater speed and payload, sufficient advantages to continue improving on the design. In 1954, approval was granted for a redesign of the M-4, which flew on 27 March 1956 and began state trials in early 1958. The 3M "Bison-B" was powered by four
Dobrynin RD-7 The Dobrynin RD-7 or "VD-7" is a Soviet single-shaft axial-flow turbojet engine, which was produced in a small series. "RD" means ''реактивный двигатель'' (jet engine). Designed by designer Vladimir Alekseevich Dobrynin (the orig ...
turbojets, which had the same thrust as the RD-3M but were 25% more fuel efficient; a nose
inflight refueling Aerial refueling (American English, en-us), or aerial refuelling (British English, en-gb), also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from ...
probe was also added to further increase range. The center fuselage was considerably redesigned to reduce weight and improve aerodynamics, and the wings were updated with a wider span and area. 74 Bison-Bs would be built.


Tanker

From the outset when the M-4's range shortfall became apparent, Myasishchev began investigating inflight refueling (IFR). In 1955, the second production aircraft was modified to a hose-&-drogue tanker configuration and the first production aircraft was fitted with an IFR probe above the nose, with two more converted for trials the following year. From the late 1950s, the M-4 fleet was converted to the tanker configuration through the fit of a hose-drum unit (HDU) and fuel tanks in the bomb bay and removal of all defensive armament. Similar conversions were performed to the 3M fleet in the 1970s and 1980s, the 3MS-1 "Bison-B" becoming the "3MS-2" tanker and the 3MN-1 becoming the "3MN-2" tanker.


Operational history

The M-4 was first displayed to the public in
Red Square Red Square ( rus, Красная площадь, Krasnaya ploshchad', p=ˈkrasnəjə ˈploɕːɪtʲ) is one of the oldest and largest town square, squares in Moscow, Russia. It is located in Moscow's historic centre, along the eastern walls of ...
, on
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, 1954. The aircraft was a surprise to the United States, which had not known that the Soviets had built a jet bomber. However, it soon became clear that the bomber had an insufficient range to attack the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and still return to the Soviet Union. Only a few of the original
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M-4s were actually put into service. To remedy this problem, the Myasishchev design bureau introduced the 3M, known to the West as the 'Bison-B', which was considerably more powerful than the previous version. This new model first flew in
1955 Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...
. Among other things, two of the five original gun barbettes were removed to lighten the aircraft. In July 1955 American observers saw 28 Bisons in two groups during a Soviet air show. The United States government believed that the bomber was in mass production, and the
Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...
estimated that 800 would be available by 1960. The display was a hoax; the first group of ten repeated the flyby with eight more. The classified estimates led, however, to American politicians warning of a "
bomber gap A bomber is a military combat aircraft that utilizes air-to-ground weaponry to drop bombs, launch torpedoes, or deploy air-launched cruise missiles. There are two major classifications of bomber: strategic and tactical. Strategic bombing is ...
". The new airplane was not for the
Soviet Air Force The Soviet Air Forces (, VVS SSSR; literally "Military Air Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics"; initialism VVS, sometimes referred to as the "Red Air Force") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Sovie ...
(VVS), but rather for the
Naval Aviation Naval aviation / Aeronaval is the application of Military aviation, military air power by Navy, navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. It often involves ''navalised aircraft'', specifically designed for naval use. Seab ...
(AV-MF). Though it could still not bomb
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, the 3M had a sufficient range to fulfill the need for a long-range
maritime patrol aircraft A maritime patrol aircraft (MPA), also known as a patrol aircraft, maritime reconnaissance aircraft, maritime surveillance aircraft, or by the older American term patrol bomber, is a fixed-wing aircraft designed to operate for long durations over ...
. In 1959, the 3M broke numerous world records for payload to height, including to and to . However, it was thought by the
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(and would continue to be thought until 1961) that the 3M was the original M-4, meaning that the capability of the M-4 was vastly overestimated by Western
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. In the early 1960s, the 'Bison-C', with a specialized search
radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...
, was introduced. By this time, many of the original M-4s had been converted to M-4-2
fuel A fuel is any material that can be made to react with other substances so that it releases energy as thermal energy or to be used for work (physics), work. The concept was originally applied solely to those materials capable of releasing chem ...
tankers for
aerial refueling Aerial refueling ( en-us), or aerial refuelling ( en-gb), also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from one aircraft (the tanker) to an ...
. Later, 3Ms were converted to 3MS-2 and 3MN-2 tankers as well. Neither the M-4 nor the 3M ever saw combat, and none were ever converted for low-altitude attack, as many American B-52s were, nor were any ever exported to the Soviet Union's allies. However, it is a different story when it comes to aerial refueling aircraft. Production of the Bison aircraft stopped in 1963, by which time 93 of them had been built. The last aircraft, an M-4-2 fuel tanker, was withdrawn from service in 1994. The three
VM-T The Myasishchev VM-T ''Atlant'' (Russian: ''Мясищев ВМ-Т «Атлант»'' ( "Atlas"), with the "VM-T" ("BM-T") standing for Vladimir MyasishchevTransport) was a variant of Myasishchev's M-4 ''Molot'' bomber (the "3M"), re-purposed ...
heavy lift aircraft were converted from 3MN-2 tankers, with very large loads carried piggy-back above the fuselage. The single vertical fin/rudder was replaced with two large rectangular fin/rudders at the tips of the horizontal stabilizers to improve control due to the turbulence caused by the cargo pod. With the withdrawal of the Myasishchev bombers and tankers the vast majority of the retired airframes were broken up under the terms of the relevant arms limitation treaty.


Variants


Prototype

* Izdeliye M (Product M) – the in-house designation for the SDB, Project 25, M-4 aircraft.Gordon 2003 * SDB (''Strategichesky Dalny Bombardirovshchik'' – strategic long-range bomber) – The government designation for the M-4 programme. * 'Tema Dvadtsat Pyat'' Subject 25 – The VVS designation for the strategic bomber program. * Myasishchev 3M-5 – The improved M-4 with Dobrynin VD-7 engines with higher thrust and better S.F.C. than the Mikulin AM-3A engines, configured as a launch platform for the
KSR-5 The KSR-5, also designated as the Kh-26 (NATO reporting name AS-6 Kingfish) was a long-range, air-launched cruise missile and anti-ship missile developed by the Soviet Union. It was essentially a scaled down version of the Kh-22 'Kitchen', ...
air to surface missile. One prototype aircraft converted from a 3MN-1 bomber, but further conversions not carried out due to the limited life remaining on candidate aircraft. (NATO Bison-B) * Myasishchev 3ME – A comprehensive avionics upgrade was tested on the sole 3ME, converted from a production 3M bomber (c/n 8301101). New navigation and radar equipment and a completely revised fire sensing and suppression system were also fitted. The prototype was damaged beyond repair when the Myasishchev M-50 prototype jumped its chocks during ground running of the engines, striking the 3ME killing one engineer on the 3ME. (NATO Bison-B) * 101M - M-4 prototype.1 machine manufactured. * 102M - This is an M-4 ground strength tester not intended for flight. 1 machine manufactured.


Mass production machine


Bomber type

* M-4 – A name used for mass-produced machines. 32 aircraft were built. (
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
Air Standards Co-ordinating Committee codename Bison-A) * 3M – The improved M-4 with Dobrynin VD-7 engines with higher thrust and better S.F.C. than the Mikulin AM-3A engines. The first prototype was converted from an M-4.(NATO Bison-B) * 3MD – Production cruise missile carrying aircraft for carrying the P-6, KSR or Kh-10 air to surface missiles, with only nine built in 1960 before the production line was shut down and the Myasishchev OKB dissolved. (NATO Bison-C) * 3MS-1 (S:''Starye vigateli'' – old engines) – New production long-range bomber aircraft capable of accommodating the VD-7 engines but fitted with Mikulin RD-3M-500a, RD-3M or AM-3A engines due to a lack of flight ready VD-7's. (NATO Bison-B) * 3MN-1 (N:''Novye vigateli'' – new engines) – The initial production version of the 3MN long-range bomber with de-rated VD-7 engines to improve reliability after compressor blade failures. (NATO Bison-B) * 3MSR-1 (S:''Starye vigateli Radioapparatura'' – old engines, avionics pgrade – New production long-range bomber aircraft capable of accommodating the VD-7 engines but fitted with Mikulin RD-3M-500a, RD-3M or AM-3A engines due to a lack of flight ready VD-7's, and fitted with an upgraded avionics suite. (NATO Bison-B) * 3MSN-1 (N:''Novye vigateli Radioapparatura'' – new engines, avionics pgrade – Several new production long-range bomber aircraft capable of accommodating the VD-7 engines but fitted with Mikulin RD-3M-500a, RD-3M or AM-3A engines due to a lack of flight ready VD-7's, and fitted with an upgraded avionics suite. (NATO Bison-B)


Air refueling aircraft type

* M-4-2 (a.k.a. M-4-II) – M-4 production aircraft converted to in-flight refueling tankers. (NATO Bison-A) * 3MS-2 (S:''Starye vigateli'' – old engines) – New production in-flight refueling tanker aircraft capable of accommodating the VD-7 engines but fitted with Mikulin RD-3M-500a, RD-3M or AM-3A engines due to a lack of flight ready VD-7's. During the 1970s and 1980s the majority of surviving 3MS bombers were converted to 3MS-2 tankers. (NATO Bison-B) * 3MN-2 (N:''Novye vigateli'' – new engines) – The initial production version of the 3MN in-flight refueling tanker with de-rated VD-7 engines to improve reliability after compressor blade failures. (NATO Bison-B) * 'Tema Tridtsat Shestt'' Subject 36 – The government designation for the re-engined M-4. (NATO Bison-B)


Transport aircraft type

*
VM-T The Myasishchev VM-T ''Atlant'' (Russian: ''Мясищев ВМ-Т «Атлант»'' ( "Atlas"), with the "VM-T" ("BM-T") standing for Vladimir MyasishchevTransport) was a variant of Myasishchev's M-4 ''Molot'' bomber (the "3M"), re-purposed ...
(''Vladimir Myasishchev-Transportny'') – Three 3MN-2 aircraft converted for oversize cargo flights with a large cargo pod supported on struts above the fuselage and Large rectangular fins attached to the tips of the tail-plane. Notably used for transporting the Buran shuttle and Energia launch vehicle components before the
Antonov An-225 The Antonov An-225 Mriya (; NATO reporting name: Cossack) was a large strategic airlift cargo aircraft designed and produced by the Antonov Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. It was originally developed during the 1980s as an enlarged derivat ...
became available.


Projected variants

* Myasishchev 3M-A (''Atomny'' – nuclear) – A nuclear-powered reconnaissance derivative using an indirect heat transfer reactor in the bomb bay for nuclear gas turbines in the wing roots, with the crew housed in a windowless lead lined cockpit. * Myasishchev 3M-M (''Morskoy'' – naval) – A proposed flying boat with a boat hulled fuselage and floats under the wingtips. * Myasishchev 3M-R (''Razvedchik'' – reconnaissance) – A proposed reconnaissance aircraft carrying high-speed reconnaissance cameras. * Myasishchev 3M-K (''Kompleks'' – weapons system) – A proposed strategic missile carrying strike aircraft to carry the
Kh-20 The Raduga Kh-20 (NATO reporting name: AS-3 Kangaroo) was an air launched cruise missile armed with a thermonuclear warhead which was developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. The Kh-20 was designed to be air-launched. Background Kh-2 ...
long range cruise missile. * Myasishchev 3MP – The 3MP was a projected alternative quick-change tanker/bomber, to support all AV-MF receiver aircraft, based on the 3MD, which was not proceeded with due to the cessation of 3MD production and closure of the Myasishchev OKB. * Myasishchev 3M-T (''Toplivozapravshchik'' – refuelling tanker) – The 3M-T was an attempt to make a production convertible tanker/missile carrier version of the 3MD, for supporting the expected
Myasishchev M-52 The Myasishchev M-50 (; NATO reporting name: Rake (stock character), Bounder) is a Soviet Union, Soviet prototype Four-engined jet aircraft, four-jet engine supersonic strategic bomber which never attained service. Only one flightworthy prototy ...
supersonic bomber, Tu-95 and the remaining 3M bombers. No hardware was produced before the OKB was closed in September 1960. * Myasishchev M-29 – The M-29 also known as the M-6p, is a projected airliner based on the M-4 and no known airframes were produced.


Operators

; * Long Range Aviation,
Soviet Air Forces The Soviet Air Forces (, VVS SSSR; literally "Military Air Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics"; initialism VVS, sometimes referred to as the "Red Air Force") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Sovie ...
** 1230th Aviation Regiment of Tanker Aircraft, Engels airfield,
Saratov Oblast Saratov Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the Volga Federal District. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Saratov. As of the 2021 Russian cens ...
. *
Soviet Naval Aviation Soviet Naval Aviation (AV-MF, ) was the naval aviation arm of the Soviet Navy. Origins The first naval aviation units in Russia were formed in 1912–1914 as a part of the Baltic Fleet and the Black Sea Fleet. During World War I, the hydro ...
; *
Russian Air Force The Russian Air Force () is a branch of the Russian Aerospace Forces, the latter being formed on 1 August 2015 with the merging of the Russian Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Defence Forces. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the reb ...


Aircraft on display

Four aircraft are known to survive: *3MD '30 Red' (c/n 6302831) in the Central Russian Air Force Museum at
Monino Monino () is an urban locality (a work settlement) in Shchyolkovsky District of Moscow Oblast, Russia, located east of Moscow. Population: History Monino was founded in the Muninskaya Wasteland () on August 23, 1792. The name "Monino" or "M ...
,
Moscow Oblast Moscow Oblast (, , informally known as , ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). With a population of 8,524,665 (Russian Census (2021), 2021 Census) living in an area of , it is one of the most densely populate ...
*M-4 '60 Red' (c/n 0301804) in the Long Range Aviation museum at
Dyagilevo Dyagilevo (also given as Dyagilevo, Ryazan Dyagilevo) is a military air base in Ryazan Oblast, Russia, 3 km west of Ryazan. It serves as a training center for Russia's strategic bomber force. , the base was home to the 203rd Guards Orlovsky ...
,
Ryazan Oblast Ryazan Oblast (, ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Ryazan, which is also the oblast's largest city. Geography Ryazan Oblast ...
*M-4 '63 Red' (c/n 5301518) at Ukrainka,
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*3MS-2 '14 Red' (c/n 7300805) at
Engels-2 Engels-2 () is a strategic bomber military airbase in Russia located east of Saratov. Engels is a major bomber operations base, and is Russia's sole operating location for the Tupolev Tu-160 (NATO: Blackjack) strategic bomber. The base has a ...
,
Saratov Oblast Saratov Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the Volga Federal District. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Saratov. As of the 2021 Russian cens ...


Specifications (M-4)


See also


References


Notes


Bibliography

* Gordon, Yefim. ''Myasishchev M-4 and 3M''. Hinckley, Lancashire, UK: Midland. 2003. . * Grant, R.G. and John R. Dailey. ''Flight: 100 Years of Aviation''. Harlow, Essex, UK: DK Adult, 2007. . *


External links

{{Authority control Myasishchev aircraft 1950s Soviet bomber aircraft Quadjets Aircraft first flown in 1953 Soviet military tanker aircraft Strategic bombers Aircraft with retractable bicycle landing gear