Tupolev Tu-116

{{Short description|Soviet long-range airliner intended for transporting VVIP & VIP personnels}} {{More citations needed|date=July 2014}}  {{Infobox aircraft | name = Tu-116 | logo = | logo_size = | image = File:Tu-116 in Ulyanovsk Aircraft Museum.JPG | alt = | caption = The only surviving Tu-116 on display at the Ulyanovsk Aircraft Museum | long_caption = | other_names = | aircraft_type = VIP transport | aim = | outcome = | related = | national_origin = | manufacturer = Tupolev | design_group = | designer = | builder = | issuer = | status = | owners = | primary_user = Soviet Air Force | more_users = | service = | major_applications = | proposals = | prototypes = | number_built = 2 | construction_number = | civil_registration = | military_serial = | radio_code = | requirement = | aircraft_carried = | flights = | total_hours = | total_distance = | construction_date = | introduction = | retired = | first_flight = {{start date and age|1957|04|23}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.airwar.ru/enc/aliner/tu116.html|title=Туполев Ту-116|website=www.airwar.ru|access-date=5 February 2019}}</ref> | initiated = | in_service = | last_flight = | expected = | developed_from = Tupolev Tu-95 | variants = | developed_into = | preservation = | fate = | predecessors = | successors = | concluded = }}

The '''Tupolev Tu-116''' ({{langx|ru|Туполев Ту-116}}) is a turboprop-powered long-range airliner designed by the Tupolev design bureau and built in the USSR.

==Development== The Tu-116, like the Tu-114, was based on the Tu-95 strategic bomber. Both airliners were developed in parallel with the Tu-116 taking priority due to the numerous visits of General Secretary Nikita Khrushchev to both Western and Eastern countries during the so-called Khrushchev Thaw. The aircraft's mission was to transport the head of state together with his security detail and entourage. Concurrent development of the Tu-114 and Tu-116 was justified by Khrushchev's visit to the United States, at which time the Tu-114 might not have been ready.

Initially, the airliner was to be developed very quickly, in a little over a year, due to the relative simplicity of modifications. However, the initial introduction date was moved from September 1956 to 1957 because the Tupolev Design Bureau was overloaded with military orders.

The airliner received the internal code Tu-114D ("Diplomatic"), which later created some confusion – the Tu-114D was also the official designation of the long-range variant for transatlantic flights, the letter D standing for "dalniy" (Russian for "long-range"), which also had a total of 64 passenger seats.{{clarify|date=July 2014}}

==Design== The airliner was to transport 24 passengers including a cook, a flight attendant, a navigator-announcer to inform the passengers about the flight, and, when necessary, 10–12 armed guards.

Technically, the airliner was not much different from the original Tu-95. All protective and bombing equipment was removed, and the space behind the wings was given to two passenger cabins, a lavatory, a wardrobe, and a service room with a total area of {{convert|70|m2|sp=us}}, with windows cut into the fuselage. The first passenger cabin held six–eight passengers and the second one was designed for three VIP passengers, equipped with beds and couches.

The pressurized cabin led to a short hallway with a staircase which was lowered to allow access from the ground. It also served as an emergency exit.

The flight crew consisted of two pilots, navigator, flight engineer, flight mechanic and radio operator.

== Operational history == The two Tu-116s were modified from two regular Tu-95s, MSN 402 and 409. Neither was ever used to transport the head of state.

After flight testing, both airliners were transferred to the Soviet Air Force and served for various purposes until the early 1990s. A Tu-116 is on display at the Ulyanovsk Aircraft Museum, located at the Ulyanovsk Baratayevka Airport

==Specifications (Tu-116)== {{Aircraft specs |ref={{citation needed|date=August 2019}} |prime units?=met  |crew=7–8 |capacity=24 passengers (60 pax. max) / {{cvt|32000|kg|0}} |length m=46.17 |length note= |span m=54.1 |span note= |height m=15.5 |height note= |wing area sqm=311.1 |wing area note= |aspect ratio= |airfoil=TsAGI SR-5S <ref name="Selig">{{cite web |last1=Lednicer |first1=David |title=The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage |url=https://m-selig.ae.illinois.edu/ads/aircraft.html |website=m-selig.ae.illinois.edu |access-date=16 April 2019}}</ref> |empty weight kg=93500 |empty weight note= |gross weight kg=124000 |gross weight note= |max takeoff weight kg=182000 |max takeoff weight note= |fuel capacity= |more general=  |eng1 number=4 |eng1 name=Kuznetsov NK-12MV |eng1 type=turboprop engines |eng1 shp=15000 |eng1 note=

|prop blade number=8 |prop name=contra-rotating propellers |prop dia m= |prop dia note=  |max speed kmh=900 |max speed note= |max speed mach= |cruise speed kmh=800 |cruise speed note= |stall speed kmh= |stall speed note= |never exceed speed kmh= |never exceed speed note= |minimum control speed kmh= |minimum control speed note= |range km=10750 |range note= |combat range km= |combat range note= |ferry range km= |ferry range note= |endurance= |ceiling m=12000 |ceiling note= |g limits= |roll rate= |climb rate ms= |climb rate note= |time to altitude= |wing loading kg/m2=421 |wing loading note= |fuel consumption kg/km= |power/mass={{cvt|0.168|kW/kg}} |more performance= |avionics= }}

==References== {{commons category|Tupolev Tu-116}} * {{Cite web |url=https://hushkit.net/2016/05/25/the-ten-worst-soviet-aircraft/ |title=The 11 worst Soviet aircraft |publisher=Hush-Kit |date=2016-05-25 |access-date=2016-06-16}} {{reflist}}

Category:1950s Soviet airliners Category:Four-engined tractor aircraft Category:Shoulder-wing aircraft Category:Aircraft with contra-rotating propellers Category:Four-engined turboprop aircraft Tu-0116 Category:Aircraft first flown in 1957 Category:Aircraft with retractable tricycle landing gear