In the early 1920s, a discussion broke out among the aircraft designers of the young Soviet Republic about what it was necessary to build aircraft from. The abundance of forests in the USSR, it seemed, should have led to the conclusion that Soviet aircraft should be made of wood. But there were also those among Soviet aircraft designers who adhered to the idea that the USSR should produce all-metal aircraft. Among them was Andrei Nikolaevich Tupolev.
TB-1 (ANT-4) - became the first Soviet mass-produced bomber, and also, it is the world's first serial all-metal heavy twin-engine monoplane bomber. The aircraft was designed by A. N. Tupolev and took 9 months to develop. In 1925, the aircraft was made in metal. Serially produced from 1929 to 1932, a total of 212 bombers of this type were built. It was in service with the Red Army until 1936. Then he began to be transferred to the Civil Air Fleet and Polar Aviation.
Tests carried out in the USSR proved that aluminum aircraft have better flight characteristics than wooden ones. Despite the fact that aluminum has a greater specific gravity than wood, aircraft built from aluminum turned out to be lighter than wooden ones. This was explained by the fact that in wooden airplanes the lower strength of the wood was compensated by the increased thickness of the spars, ribs, frames and stringers.
The success of light all-metal aircraft, which had been created by Tupolev earlier, convinced the country's leadership of the advisability of creating a heavy all-metal bomber. On November 11, 1924, by order of the Special Technical Bureau, TsAGI began work on the design and construction of TB-1.
TB-1 is a twin-engine cantilever all-metal monoplane. The main material of the body is duralumin with the use of steel construction in especially loaded places. The bomber's glider could be divided into separate units, which facilitated its manufacture, repair and transportation.
The structure was based on trusses made of steel and duralumin pipes, which bore the main load. The corrugated skin provided the aircraft with torsional rigidity and strength.
The plumage of the TB-1 bomber was cantilever, all steering surfaces were equipped with horn compensation. The stabilizer could be adjusted in flight. The angle of its installation could be changed using the steering wheel, which was located to the right of the left pilot. The aircraft was equipped with 12-cylinder water-cooled engines BMW VI or M-17 of domestic production. In the operation of the machine, it was allowed to use one M-17 engine and one BMW VI. The engines were started using an autostarter or compressed air, and, if necessary, manually, by unscrewing the screw.
The propellers of the TsAGI design were wooden, two-bladed, left-hand rotation. The diameter of the screws was 3.3 meters. They were made from ash or oak and fitted with aluminum fittings.
The aircraft had 10 gasoline tanks with a total capacity of 2100 liters, all tanks were combined into one system. The tanks were suspended in the wing of the aircraft on metal belts with felt pads. Every engine above everything
among other things, it was equipped with a special oil tank of 56 liters, which was located in the engine nacelle behind the firewall.
The TB-1 chassis was of a pyramidal type and was equipped with rubber cord shock absorption. The wheels were spoked. Initially, imported Palmer wheels of 1250 x 250 mm size were used, later domestic wheels of 1350 x 300 mm. A metal crutch with rubber cushioning was located in the aft fuselage. In winter, the wheels of the bomber could be replaced with skis. Also, instead of a wheeled landing gear, floats could be installed on the aircraft, while the tail crutch was removed.
TB-1, equipped with floats, additionally received floating and bottom anchors, mooring devices and a hook. In the front cockpit, a speed indicator, an altimeter, an AN-2 compass, a Jaeger watch, and a thermometer were installed.
outdoor temperature and other equipment. In the cockpit there were direction indicators, slip and speed indicators, an altimeter, 2 tachometers, an AL-1 compass, a clock, 2 thermometers for oil and water, as well as 2 gasoline and oil pressure gauges. The rear cockpit housed an altimeter, an AN-2 compass, a speed indicator and a clock.
The radio equipment of the bomber included a short-wave transmitting and receiving telegraph and telephone station 11SK, intended for communication with airfield radio stations at long range, as well as station 13SP, which served to receive signals from radio beacons. Both could work with a rigid, stretched between the wing struts, as well as an exhaust antenna. The electrical equipment consisted of navigation and code lights, two landing lights, night lighting in the cockpit.
The small arms of the bomber included 3 coaxial installations with 7, 62-mm machine guns. Initially, these were English "Lewis", later domestic DA. Machine guns were mounted on Tur-5 turrets (stern, rolling from side to side) and Tur-6 (bow). The total weight of the bomb load could reach 1030 kg. Possible loading options were: 16 bombs of 32, 48 or 82 kg caliber in the bomb bay. Or up to 4 bombs weighing 250 kg on an external sling. The aircraft was equipped with the German Hertz FI.110 bomber sight.
The bomber's crew consisted of 5-6 people: the first pilot, the second pilot (for flights with the maximum duration), the bombardier and 3 gunners. The functions of one of the shooters could be performed by a flight mechanic.
The performance characteristics of TB-1:
Dimensions: wingspan - 28.7 m, length - 18.0 m.
Wing area - 120 sq. m.
Aircraft weight, kg.
- empty - 4 520
- normal takeoff - 6 810
- maximum takeoff - 7 750
Engine type - 2 PD M-17, 680 hp. each
The maximum speed is 207 km / h.
Cruising speed - 178 km / h.
The maximum flight range is 1,000 km.
Service ceiling - 4,830 m.
Crew - 6 people.
Armament: 6x7, 62 mm PV-1 machine guns and up to 1000 kg. bombs.
A prototype of the TB-1 bomber took off on November 26, 1925.
This aircraft became a truly legendary machine, to which in many cases the phrase "the first Soviet" could be applied. It was the first Soviet monoplane bomber, the first Soviet all-metal
bomber, the first Soviet bomber to enter serial production. In addition, the TB-1 became the ancestor of a whole family of multi-engine aircraft. It is with TB-1 that the formation of strategic aviation begins in our country.
TB-1 was quickly mastered by the Air Force personnel. On May 1, 1930, bombers took part in the May Day parade in Moscow. A group of heavy bombers marched in formation over Red Square. The second time the plane was publicly shown on July 6 at the Central Aerodrome, where a solemn ceremony of transferring new aircraft to the Air Force, which was considered a gift for the XVI Congress of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks), took place. By August 25 of this year, the Red Army Air Force had 203 aircraft of this type, more than 1/3 of them were based in the Moscow Military District. However, already in the fall of 1932, the bomber brigades began to re-equip with new four-engine TB-3 bombers. By the spring of 1933, only 4 squadrons, armed with these aircraft, remained in the Air Force. At the May Day parade of 1933, TB-3 in the sky was already 2 times more than TB-1. Gradually, the twin-engine bomber was pushed aside for the role of transport and training aircraft. A pilot who had not been trained on them was not allowed to fly on the new four-engine giants.
The combat use of the aircraft was limited. The 95th TRAO in Central Asia since mid-1933 included one TB-1. He participated in actions against the Basmachi in Turkmenistan, and served not only for transportation. From time to time, the plane was loaded with small bombs to strike at gangs concentrated near settlements and wells. At the end of the 1930s, there were TB-1s in other transport units and units, such as the 14th and 15th troopers in the OKDVA Air Force, the 8th near Kharkov. The 19th detachment in Transbaikalia, among other vehicles, had two disarmed TB-1s, which were used to transport goods from Chita to the front line during the battles on Khalkhin Gol in May - September 1939.
The century of TB-1 in the Red Army was short-lived. Since 1935, TB-1 aircraft began to be transferred to the Civil Fleet or even written off. Weapons were removed from the vehicles that remained in the Air Force. They were also used in flight schools that trained pilots, navigators and shooters for bomber aviation. On April 1, 1936, there were 26 such machines in flight schools. On September 25, 1940, only 28 TB-1 aircraft remained in the Air Force.
Since 1935, obsolete bombers under the G-1 brand began to be transferred to the GUSMP aviation, and then to the Civil Air Fleet. All weapons were removed, the turret openings were usually sewn up with a sheet. Often all the glazing of the navigator's cabin was also removed. A roof was mounted over the pilots' seats and side windows were made.
These planes were usually used as cargo planes, but sometimes they carried passengers as well. Most of them were exploited on the outskirts of the country: in Siberia, the Far East and the Far North. These robust and reliable aircraft have played a significant role in the development of sparsely populated areas.
During the war with Finland, several G-1s became part of the Northwest Special Air Group of the Civil Air Fleet, which served the army. They transported food, ammunition and evacuated the wounded.
G-1 of polar aviation in the Ulyanovsk Museum of the Civil Air Fleet
By the beginning of the war, the Civil Air Fleet had 23 G-1s, they were included in the transport air groups and detachments attached to the fronts and fleets. The G-1 was not sent for the front line, they tried to use it in the rear. Therefore, the losses were small: until the end of 1941, they lost only four G-1s, and lost one more in 1942. Old corrugated aircraft met on the front lines until the end of 1944.
Aircraft of polar aviation were used throughout the war, they did not conduct ice reconnaissance and even searched for submarines. The last G-1 was written off by polar explorers in 1947.
On the basis of TB-1, a long-range reconnaissance aircraft R-6 (ANT-7) was created.
The aircraft was ordered multivariate - at first they wanted to make a heavy escort fighter out of it, but already in August 1927 (after showing the project to the Air Force leadership), the specialization was changed to a reconnaissance aircraft and a light bomber. Accordingly, he was assigned the designation P-6, but Tupolev himself completely disagreed with this turn of affairs. The chief designer continued to insist on the further development of the aircraft as an escort fighter with enhanced armament. However, the rapid improvement of aviation in the 30s and the growth of speeds left no chance for the R-6 in this role. It was not possible to create the P-6 in a purely fighter version.
The "reconnaissance" specialization for the R-6 was left unchanged, but at the same time the military brought the requirements for the maximum bomb load from 588 to 725 kg. On November 9, 1927, updated requirements for the aircraft were put forward. According to the TTZ, the R-6 was supposed to have a crew of five people, a bomb load of 890 kg and an armament of eight 7, 62-mm machine guns. According to the calculations of the design bureau, after such a modernization, the aircraft noticeably increased in size and lost in speed, which dropped to 160 km / h.
The first experimental R-6 was built at the beginning of 1929. Factory tests, which took place at the end of winter, were quite successful, but state tests revealed very significant shortcomings of the scout. The customer was very upset by the low characteristics of the aircraft, concerning its insufficient speed and rate of climb. The flight range turned out to be insufficient, and in terms of maneuverability, the R-6 could hardly compete with a similar fighter. In total, 73 different defects in the aircraft design were identified, after which the R-6 was sent back to TsAGI to eliminate the shortcomings.
On June 24, the scout was again presented to the military, and in the process of a new stage of testing, 24 defects were discovered. However, the customer recommended the aircraft for mass production - firstly, the R-6 had a very impressive firepower, secondly, the aircraft could be used in many variants and, thirdly, the aircraft was not inferior to world analogues in terms of its characteristics.
According to the construction plan in 1929-1930. Plant No. 22 was supposed to produce 10 aircraft, and over the next three months of the new year - another 17. In reality, by the end of 1931, it was possible to produce only two series of R-6, 5 and 10 reconnaissance aircraft, respectively. The first two aircraft were not transferred to combat units - they were used only for tests.
The first serial R-6 was equipped with German BMW VI engines, the Hertz Fl 110 sight and the Sbr-8 bomb release system. The bombs were placed only on the external sling on Der-7 holders. The scout's small arms consisted of two DA machine guns on the Tur-5 turret in the forward fuselage and another DA in the TsKB-39 ventral turret.
Model R-6 at the aircraft plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur
After successful tests on the R-6, it was decided to install the M-17 engines, and the aircraft with such a moto installation began to be tested on November 3, 1931. With Soviet, constantly overheating motors, the weight of the aircraft increased by 126 kg, the speed decreased by 13 km / h, and the ceiling by 1000 meters. In addition, all variants of the P-6 had insufficient lateral stability, poor visibility for the pilot straight ahead and heavy loads on the steering wheel. Nevertheless, it was decided to continue mass production, making a number of significant changes to the design of the reconnaissance aircraft.
Most of the 15 first production aircraft entered the Air Force only in the spring of 1932, leaving 4 of them for testing at the manufacturing plant.
All in all, plant number 22 in 1932 appeared a float version of the reconnaissance aircraft - R-6a.
Floats from TB-1 were installed on it and a number of works were carried out aimed at fine-tuning the machine to the level of a marine reconnaissance officer. The tests, which began on December 30, ended at the end of March 1933, and the new reconnaissance aircraft was put on the conveyor under the designation MP-6a.
According to the pilots' reviews, in comparison with Western counterparts, the MP-6a did not have the required stability and seaworthiness, but favorably distinguished itself by greater maneuverability on water and in the air and lower fuel consumption than the conventional R-6. At the end of 1933, the MR-6a was sent to the 19th MRAE and 51st AO of the Baltic Fleet Air Force, which had previously flown on Italian flying boats S-62bis and German Do “Val”. Closer to the summer of 1934, the MP-6a also hit the Pacific Fleet - these aircraft were included in the 30th KRAE.
Almost simultaneously with it, a new version of the reconnaissance aircraft - KR-6 (Cruiser-Reconnaissance-6) entered the test. According to the plan, his tasks included both reconnaissance and direct escort of groups of bombers, for which the fuel supply was increased to 3000 liters, and the oil supply to 250 liters, which made it possible to increase the flight range. The ammunition load of the bow DA was now 20-24 discs, and the ventral turret was dismantled. In addition, externally, the KR-6 was distinguished by a new horizontal tail and a new form of motorcycle hoods. The bomb release system was replaced with Sbr-9. In April 1934, the KR-6 was tested since the summer of 1934, after which comparative tests of the marine modification of the KR-6a with German engines were carried out. They wanted to build both versions in series, but basically they produced the first one. The total production of the KR-6 was about 222 aircraft, including 72 KR-6a aircraft.
The experiments on the installation of heavy cannon armament on the P-6 were very curious. In the 1930 year, even before the start of the serial construction of the reconnaissance aircraft, it was planned to install a 37-mm Hotchkiss cannon or a semi-automatic 20-mm tank gun on it, but, due to their low ballistic characteristics and strong recoil when firing, they were recognized as unsuitable for installation even on such a heavy aircraft like the R-6. Then they began to consider options with the 20 mm Erlikon F and L aircraft cannons, which were produced in Switzerland, although it did not come to the construction of a reconnaissance aircraft with a similar gun mount either.
In the mid-1930s, the P-6 was used to train the suspension and the use of chemical weapons. In particular, bombs of the G-54, G-58 and G-59 types were suspended under the plane (its components included 300 small thermite bombs). The "chemical" P-6s were not delivered to the combat units.
It so happened that during operation, the R-6 almost always lost to the scouts of the biplane scheme.
The KR-6a-T float torpedo bomber, created in 1935 (later modified and renamed KR-6T), was not accepted for service partly because of its low performance characteristics, partly due to the fact that the P-5T was already in service. The R-6 appeared in massive quantities in 1933, and the KR-6 in 1935. But they almost immediately began to be transferred to the reserve part or sent to warehouses. The moral and technical obsolescence of the aircraft was clear even then. As of December 31, 1937, there were still 227 reconnaissance aircraft of various modifications and 81 float aircraft in the units. By April 1, 1940, their number was reduced to 171 aircraft and, in October, by order of the Air Force leadership, the last 116 R-6 / KR-6 reconnaissance aircraft were withdrawn from the first line units. Regiments and squadrons that surrendered their P-6s received P-Z biplanes or more modern P-10 biplanes in return.
The converted reconnaissance aircraft first entered civil aviation back in 1935. In October, the first two aircraft were sold to Dalstroy by the NKVD for courier work, where they were assigned the designations MP-6 (float R-6a) and PS-7 (R-6 on a wheeled chassis). These designations were subsequently assigned to all aircraft transferred to the Civil Air Fleet. Somewhat earlier, in mid-1933, the P-6 was reworked to meet civilian standards, removing all military equipment from it and equipping it with a passenger cabin for seven people. The crew was reduced to a pilot and navigator, and instead of the Soviet M-17, the plane again received BMW VI engines. The aircraft, renamed ANT-7, was transferred to the GUAP where it was safely crashed on September 5, 1933. No more attempts were made to create a purely civilian vehicle from the R-6.
But the R-6 and R-6a, one might say, "found themselves" flying in the Civil Air Fleet and similar structures. Airplanes flying in the north of the country received the index "H". The N-29 and N-162 vehicles took off for ice reconnaissance and performed transport functions, and the N-166 distinguished itself in the rescue of Papanin's expedition. On the first flight on March 21, 1938, the crew of P. G. Golovin took 23 people with him, and a total of 80 were evacuated.
Two KR-6s were converted to the PS-7 “limousine” standard, equipped with a passenger cabin. In 1939, the Civil Air Fleet had 21 PS-7 aircraft.
With the outbreak of World War II, the squadrons of the Red Army Air Force had a very small number of scouts of the R-6 and KR-6 types. These aircraft did not fly either in Spain or Mongolia due to the obsolescence of the design and, as a result, the inability to use these scouts as full-fledged combat aircraft. By the time of the war with Finland, two P-6s were in the 10th, 24th and 50th BAPs. They were used mainly for transport purposes, although very little is known about their more specific uses.
By June 1941, the P-6 and KR-6 were few. In order to replenish the aviation units that had significantly thinned out in the first months of the war, old scouts began to be withdrawn from warehouses and aviation schools. In the fall of 1941, the 2nd AG was formed in the Baltic under the command of I. T. Mazuruka. The group consisted of four aircraft that took off for ice reconnaissance. Until the end of their operation (at the beginning of 1943), only one car was lost - it was crashed during a forced landing on June 25, 1942.
The largest unit during the war, in which the former P-6 reconnaissance aircraft were operated, was the Airborne Corps deployed on the Kalinin Front. In addition to the A-7 and G-11 gliders, it consisted of a wide variety of aircraft, ranging from the old SB and ending with the relatively new Il-4. Among them were the P-6, recruited together with the SB, for the most part from the Saratov Military Gliding School. When the brigade was fully recruited and relocated to the Engels airfield, it turned out that there were as many as 43 aircraft of the R-6 and KR-6 types. The work for them was the most varied.
Part of the R-6 and SB were initially involved in Operation Antifreeze, which lasted from November 12 to 16, 1942. The aircraft towed gliders in which there were containers with coolant directly to the airfields near Stalingrad. Then, until the summer of 1944, P-6s were actively used to supply partisan groups on the territory
occupied Belarus. For these purposes, the airfields Begoml and Selyavshchina were allocated, from where the planes dragged gliders and transported various goods themselves. At the moment, there is only one reliable fact about the combat losses of the P-6 that participated in such sorties - in March 1943, G. Chepik's plane was set on fire by a German fighter, but the pilot managed to land the wounded car “on its belly”, having managed to unhook the towed one before. glider.
In 1942, another plane was sent to the front from the Kulyab airfield. This machine was an ordinary PS-7 on which, in order to save time and money (as well as due to the complete lack of spare parts for it), wheels from PS-9 and shock absorbers from captured Ju-52 / 3m, transported to Central Asia, were installed …
Longest of all PS-7 and R-6 used the 87th OTrAP and 234 AO. The first took an active part in hostilities, transporting 12688 people and 1057.7 tons of cargo during the hostilities, while losing two aircraft in battles. Detachment 234 served builders in Siberia and the Far East and handed over its aircraft only at the beginning of 1946.
