Tupolev TB-6
Tupolev · Soviet Union · never flew (project 1930) · bomber
The Tupolev TB-6 (ANT-26) was a proposal by the Tupolev Design Bureau in the 1930s for a super-heavy bomber. Had it been built, it would have been the biggest Soviet bomber and the largest aircraft by wingspan of its time.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | High-mounted, straight |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 12 × piston, wing-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | 39 m fuselage |
| T — Tail | Conventional |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Proposed super-heavy bomber with twelve engines, ten tractor and two pusher
- 95 m wingspan, the largest of its time, but never built
- Planned defensive armament of cannon and machine guns in multiple positions
Known only from models and drawings: a huge monoplane with a 95 m wing carrying twelve engines, planned with 37 mm and 20 mm cannon and a crew of seventeen.
Specifications
- The Tupolev TB-6 has a length of 39 m (128 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 95 m (312 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 300 km/h (186 mph).
- Typical crew: 17.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
Developed from the ANT-16 by Andrei Tupolev and Vladimir Petlyakov, the design was to have twelve 1,200 hp Mikulin AM-34FRN engines, ten of them tractors and two pushers. Its 95 m span was nine feet short of the Hughes H-4 Hercules.
Variants
No variants; the design was never built.
Where you'll see it
The TB-6 was never built or flown, so it had no service. It was intended for the Red Air Force, with a normal bomb load of 15,000 kg and a maximum of 24,600 kg.
Related aircraft
- Tupolev ANT-10
- Tupolev I-8
- Tupolev TB-3
- Tupolev ANT-14 Pravda
- CAMS 52
- Comte AC-3
- Curtiss A-4 Helldiver
- Curtiss F8C-4 Helldiver
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