In the history of Soviet aviation, the T-4 occupies a special place. It was an ambitious and expensive aircraft project that was supposed to be a dangerous adversary for American ocean-going aircraft carriers. The creation of the T-4 was marked by a long fierce struggle between domestic design bureaus. Having become an important milestone in the arms race between the USSR and the USA, the aircraft never entered mass production, remaining an experimental model. The T-4 was abandoned due to excessive cost and technological complexity.
Prerequisites for appearance
The Sotka (T-4) aircraft became the Soviet argument in the fight against American nuclear aircraft carriers. In the late 1950s, it became clear that the USSR had nothing to oppose to the United States in the field of the navy and strategic aviation. The most serious headache for the Navy was nuclear submarines, which were covered by aircraft carriers. The formation of such ships had an impenetrable defense.
The only thing that could hit an American aircraft carrier was a high-speed missile with a nuclear charge. But it was not possible to hit the ship with it due to the fact that he was constantly maneuvering. In aggregateFor these reasons, the leadership of the Soviet army came to the conclusion that it was time to take on the implementation of the project of a new high-speed aircraft. They became "weaving" (T-4). The aircraft had the design name "Product 100", which gave it its nickname.
Competition
Thunderstorm of aircraft carriers was supposed to receive 100 tons of takeoff weight and 3,000 kilometers per hour of cruising speed. With such characteristics (and a ceiling of 24 kilometers), the aircraft became inaccessible to American radar stations, and, consequently, anti-aircraft missiles. The State Committee for Aviation Technology wanted the T-4 to be invulnerable to interceptor fighters.
Several design bureaus participated in the competition for the advanced aircraft project. All experts expected that the Tupolev Design Bureau would take on the T-4, and the rest of the design bureaus would participate only for the sake of competition. However, the Sukhoi design bureau took up the project with unexpected enthusiasm. The working group of specialists at the initial stage was headed by Oleg Samoylovich.
Project of the Sukhoi Design Bureau
In the summer of 1961, a scientific council was held. The goal is to determine the design bureau that will finally take on the T-4 bomber. "Sotka" was in the hands of the Sukhoi Design Bureau. The Tupolev project was crushed due to the fact that the proposed aircraft was too heavy for the tasks assigned to it.
Also Alexander Yakovlev spoke with his brainchild Yak-35. During his speech, he spoke out against Andrei Nikolaevich Tupolev, criticizing his decision to make an airplane out ofaluminum. In the end, neither of them won the competition. Pavel Sukhoi's car seemed more suitable to the State Committee.
Engine
The aircraft "weave" (T-4) was unique in many respects. First of all, its engines stood out for their characteristics. Given the specifics of the machine, they had to work properly in unusual conditions of rarefied air, high temperatures and use unconventional fuel. Initially, it was planned that the T-4 missile carrier ("weave") will receive three different engines, but at the last moment the designers settled on one - RD36-41. They worked on its development in the Rybinsk Design Bureau.
This model was most similar to another Soviet engine, the VD-7, which appeared in the 1950s. RD36-41 was equipped with an afterburner, a two-stage turbine with coolers and an 11-stage compressor. All this made it possible to use the aircraft at the highest temperatures. The engine was made for almost ten years. This unique device later became the basis for other models that played a big role in Soviet aviation. They were equipped with Tu-144 aircraft, M-17 reconnaissance aircraft, as well as Spiral orbital aircraft.
Armaments
No less important than the engines for the aircraft was its armament. The bomber received Kh-33 hypersonic missiles. At first they were also developed at the Sukhoi design bureau. However, during the design of the missiles, they were transferred to the Dubnin Design Bureau. The armament received the most modern characteristics at that time. autonomous missiles couldmove towards the target at a speed 7 times the speed of sound. Once in the affected area, the projectile itself calculated the aircraft carrier and attacked it.
The terms of reference were unprecedented. For its implementation, the missiles received their own radar stations, as well as navigation systems, which consisted of digital computers. Projectile control in its complexity was comparable to the complexity of controlling the aircraft itself.
Other Features
What else is new and unique for the T-4? "Sotka" is an aircraft, the cockpit of which was equipped with the most modern indicators of the tactical and navigational situation. The crew had television screens at their disposal, on which the onboard radars broadcast their data. The resulting picture covered almost the entire globe.
The crew of the machine consisted of a navigator-operator and a pilot. People were placed in the cabin, which was divided into two compartments by a transverse leaky partition. The cockpit layout of the T-4 was distinguished by several features. There was no usual lantern. In supersonic cruise flight, the view was carried out using a periscope, as well as side and top windows. The crew worked in spacesuits in case of an emergency depressurization.
Original solutions
The main tragedy of the "Russian Miracle" (T-4, "weaving") is that this project was hacked to death, despite the fact that the most fantastic and ambitious ideas of aircraft designers were embodied in it. For example, such a solution was the use of a deflectable bowfuselage. The specialists agreed to this option due to the fact that the protruding canopy in the pilot's cabin at a huge speed of 3 thousand kilometers per hour became a source of tremendous resistance.
The team of the design bureau had to fight hard for their own bold idea. The military opposed the deflected bow. They were convinced only thanks to the great enthusiasm of test pilot Vladimir Ilyushin.
Building experimental machines
Testing and assembly of the chassis, as well as the development of design documentation, were entrusted to a bureau led by Igor Berezhny. The creation of the aircraft took place in an extremely short time, so the main developments were carried out directly at the Sukhoi Design Bureau. During the design of the machine, specialists had to resolve problems associated with a defect in the turn-turn system. Before the start of the tests, an additional check of the upgraded chassis was carried out.
The first experimental machine was named "101". The side of her fuselage was assembled in 1969. The designers carried out pressure testing and leak testing of the cabins and instrument compartments. It took another two years to assemble various systems, as well as to test aircraft engines.
Tests
The first prototype T-4 ("weaving") appeared in the spring of 1972. During flight tests, pilot Vladimir Ilyushin and navigator Nikolai Alferov sat in his cockpit. Checking the new aircraft was constantly delayed due tosummer fires. Burning forests and peat bogs caused zero visibility in the sky over the airfield. Therefore, tests began only at the end of 1972. The first nine flights showed that the aircraft had good control, and the pilot did not need too much attention to complex technical details. The takeoff angle was easily maintained, and the takeoff from the ground was smooth. The intensity of overclocking was quite good.
It was important for the designers to check how quietly the sound barrier would be passed. The car overcame it calmly, which was exactly recorded by the instruments. In addition, the new remote control demonstrated trouble-free operation. Minor flaws also appeared: hydraulic system failures, chassis jamming, small cracks in steel fuel tanks, etc. Nevertheless, in general, the car met all the requirements set for it.
The supersonic bomber T-4 ("weaving") made the most favorable impression on the military. The army ordered 250 vehicles, which were planned to be prepared for the five-year period 1975-1980. It was a record large batch for such an expensive and modern car.
Unclear future
An experimental batch intended for testing was built at the Tushino Machine-Building Plant. However, its capacity was not enough to mass-produce the aircraft. Only one enterprise in the country could cope with such an order. It was the Kazan Aviation Plant, which at the same time was the main production base for the design bureauTupolev. The appearance of the T-4 meant that the Design Bureau was losing the enterprise. Tupolev and his patron Pyotr Dementiev (Minister of the Aviation Industry) did everything to prevent this.
As a result, Dry was literally squeezed out of Kazan. The pretext for this was the release of a new modification of the Tu-22. Then the designer decided to release at least part of the aircraft in the same Tushino. In high offices, they argued for a long time about what future awaits the model of the T-4 aircraft (“weave”). From a paper signed by Defense Minister Andrei Grechko in 1974, it followed that all testing of the experimental model should be suspended. This decision was lobbied by Petr Dementiev. He persuaded the Minister of Defense to close the program and start manufacturing wings at the Tushino plant for the MiG-23.
End of project
On September 15, 1975, aircraft designer Pavel Sukhoi died. T-4 ("weave") was his brainchild in every sense of the word. Until the last day of his life, the head of the design bureau did not receive a clear answer from officials about the future of the project. Already after his death, in January 1976, the Ministry of Aviation Industry issued an order according to which the 100 product program was finally closed. In the same document, Petr Dementyev emphasized that the cessation of work on the T-4 is being done in order to concentrate funds and forces on creating the Tu-160 model.
The experimental sample, which was used during flight tests, was sent to the Moninsky Museum for eternal parking. In addition to being one of the mostambitious projects of Soviet aviation, time has shown that the T-4 was extremely expensive (about 1.3 billion rubles).
