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Russia's First Upgraded Tu-160 Blackjack Strategic Bomber Completes Maiden Flight

On Wednesday, January 12th, the first newly-built Tu-160M Blackjack strategic bomber took off to the skies. Russia's largest and most powerful supersonic aircraft flew from the Kazan Aviation Plant and stayed in the air for half an hour before returning to the Tupolev-owned facility, marking the successful completion of its maiden flight.
Tu-160M Blackjack 6 photos
Photo: United Aircraft Corporation
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Designed by Tupolev for the Soviet Union back in the '70s, the first Tu-160 was flown for the first time in 1981. Codenamed Blackjack by NATO, the aircraft is the world's largest and heaviest missile carrier with variable-sweep wing ever manufactured.

After Putin decided in 2015 to resume production of the Tu-160M, a modernized variant of the bomber, the Russian Air Force has started upgrading it. Now the first modernized aircraft took to the skies, reaching a new milestone within the program.

The momentous occasion was announced by United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), which is part of the state-owned Rostec, Russia's government arms production organization. According to the company, the first Tu-160M Blackjack flight lasted 30 minutes in total. The missile carrier climbed to a 600-meter (1,968.5-ft) altitude during the test before landing back at the Kazan Aviation Plant.

During the flight, pilots verified that everything worked accordingly and that the aircraft was stable in the air. Visually, the Tu-160 looks the same. However, it comes with a "completely new technological base using digital technologies." The M version brings new engines and improved systems for navigation, aircraft, and weapon controls.

Denis Manturov, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, said that this first flight allowed them to "see significant prospects for the Tu-160 platform: further development will make it possible to use it for new types of weapons, including promising ones."

UAC general director Yuri Slyusar said that "the systems and equipment in the new machine have been updated and modernized by 80 percent," and the new Tu-160M has been practically "rebuilt from scratch."
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About the author: Florina Spînu
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Florina taught herself how to drive in a Daewoo Tico (a rebadged Suzuki Alto kei car) but her first "real car" was a VW Golf. When she’s not writing about cars, drones or aircraft, Florina likes to read anything related to space exploration and take pictures in the middle of nature.
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