"Russia to Renew Production of Tu-160 'Blackjack'..." Topic

… Strategic Bomber.

"Russia will renew the production of its Tu-160 (Blackjack) supersonic strategic bomber and missile carrier, Russian Defense Minister Gen. Sergei Shoigu said Wednesday.

"Today it is already necessary to solve the task of not only maintaining and modernizing long-range aviation, we must also produce the Tu-160 missile carrier," Shoigu said during a visit at the Kazan Aviation Plant.

Shoigu said that the Tu-160 is "a unique machine, ahead of its time for many years and even until now has not been exploited to its full potential…"
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Amicalement
Armand

I've seen some articles on that 2 months ago. It seems we have 2 fuselages and wings from 90s on Kazan plant, but it will be a huge undertaking, as the drawings are from "paper" period, machining centers have old version of programming, most of the electronics on active duty planes is changed from the original design, etc, etc.
However I like Tu-160 and I hope we have more of them flying.

Thanks for the info Barin1!.

Amicalement
Armand

Ouch, that's a very expensive retooling, with lots of killer "oops" moments waiting to happen!

The different electronics is much less of an issue than the blueprints still only being on paper and no CNC files.

I'm wondering if it wouldn't just be better to design a new aircraft?

Damon.

Yay! Doing their best to push toward bankruptcy!

I am still waiting for them to build their 17 carriers!!!!

I suppose that a lot of missing CNC could be made up for by laser-scanning components and then integrating the 3D files into whatever CNC pathing software is used. The USAF does that to reproduce rare/out-of-production components for aircraft like the KC-135 that don't have much manufacturer support anymore.

Reproducing the blueprints in CAD + 3D scanning existing parts is probably a good way to cut down on "retooling" time, but I have to agree with Garand…might be easier to draw a clean-slate (or damn near) design instead.

Russia's Supersonic Tu-160 Bomber Is Back: Should America Worry?

"Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu announced recently that Russia is going to begin production of the Tu-160, a Soviet-era bomber known as the "Blackjack." The Tu-160 is a nuclear platform, basically something like the Soviet version of an American B-1 bomber: a big, heavy, swing-wing bomber meant to deliver nuclear weapons at long distances. The Soviets built about thirty-five of them in the 1980s, of which only fifteen remain in service.

So what does this mean to the strategic balance between the United States and the Russian Federation in 2015? In reality, it means absolutely nothing in military terms. As a political signal, however, Shoigu's announcement is just the latest in a series of provocations. No American response is required and none would matter…"
Full article here
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Amicalement
Armand