Tupolev Tu-16

Tupolev · Soviet Union · first flew 1952 · bomber

The 'Badger' — the Soviet Union's long-serving twin-jet medium bomber, parent of the Tu-104 airliner and still flying in China as the H-6.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Mid-mounted, swept
E — Engines	2 × turbojet, embedded-mounted
F — Fuselage	34.8 m fuselage
T — Tail	Conventional

WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.

Spot it by:

Two huge turbojets faired into the wing roots
Glazed nose and tail gun position
Long swept wing with trailing gear pods

Look for a glazed nose, two very large engines buried against the fuselage in the wing roots, and gun turrets — an unmistakably 1950s Soviet silhouette shared with no Western type.

Specifications

The Tupolev Tu-16 has a length of 34.8 m (114 ft).
It has a wingspan of 33 m (108 ft).
Its maximum speed is 1050 km/h (652 mph).
Typical crew: 6-7.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

First flown in 1952, the Tu-16 gave Soviet aviation its first credible jet bomber, built in the thousands and adapted endlessly. Its airframe fathered the Tu-104 airliner, and licence production in China as the Xian H-6 continues in modernised missile-carrier form today.

Variants

Free-fall bomber, missile carrier, tanker, reconnaissance and electronic-warfare versions proliferated; the Chinese H-6K/N replaced the turbojets with turbofans and remains in front-line service.

Where you'll see it

Never in UK service, but Badgers shadowing NATO exercises were routinely intercepted and photographed by RAF fighters throughout the Cold War. Preserved examples sit in Russian and Chinese museums.

Related aircraft

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