01450 SOVIET PASSENGER AIRCRAFT NATO CODE CAMEL-A

The Tu-104 was a Soviet airliner from the Cold War period. The prototype flight took place in 1955. Serial production was carried out in the years 1956-1961. About 200 aircraft of this type were built in its course. The propulsion was provided by two turbojet engines RD-3M-500 with a thrust of 95.1 kN each. The length of the aircraft was 38.85 meters with a wingspan of 34.54 meters. The Tu-104 was developed at the Tupolev Design Bureau as the first turbo-jet airliner in the history of Soviet aviation. Its design was based on the experience gained from the operation of the successful Tu-16 bomber. The plane, although not free from defects, turned out to be a generally successful design and set as many as 26 world records for passenger planes in categories such as flight speed and lifting capacity. In the course of production, many versions of this machine were created, for example: Tu-104A (the first serial version with 70 seats for passengers), Tu-104B (extended version that could carry 100 passengers), Tu-104D and Tu-104W (modernization of version A) or Tu-104LL (version intended for checking avionics in flight). The machine was withdrawn from service in Aeroflot in 1981.