One of the legendary Soviet aircraft flew in 1963.
Aircraft creation
The beginning of the sixties was characterized by a change of generations of aircraft. The transition from reciprocating passenger aircraft to jet aircraft required the creation of new machines that expand the capabilities of air traffic. In addition, an increase in population mobility and economic development created a high demand for air transport services.
The most demanded directions were already mastered by piston aviation, which belong to the short-haul modern classification. It was this niche that the TU-134 jet passenger plane was to occupy.
General layout
The project was developed at the Tupolev Design Bureau based on previously implemented models. The vast experience in the design of large military, transport and civil aircraft has ensured the successful application of constructive and engineering solutions. In our work we used a reserve for previously designed machines. They brought technical characteristics to the TU-134 aircraft , which ensured long-term successful service.
At the same time, the aircraft was innovative in many respects. The capacity of the car ranged from sixty to eighty people, depending on the layout. Used on international lines, cars with a cabin divided into classes accommodated fewer passengers.
For domestic destinations, salons were designed without passenger classes, the capacity of which was eighty people. Depending on the modifications, the weight of the TU-134 aircraft changed somewhat in the range of forty-seven to forty-nine tons.
Engines
Two turbojet engines of domestic design placed in the tail area. This position of the gondolas perfectly matched the needs of launching from unpaved and poorly equipped airfields, preventing foreign objects from getting inside the engines. The thrust of each engine reached seven tons, which made it possible to start from short runways.
Subsequently, the engines were improved and replaced during the overhaul. The cruising speed of the TU-134 aircraft reached eight hundred and fifty kilometers per hour on the engines of the first version. With the installation of modified powertrains, it increased by forty kilometers per hour.
The peculiar sound of the TU-134 engine, similar in sound to the increasing whistle, contributed to the high recognition of the popular aircraft. The overall noise level produced by the engines at start-up and climb was very high. This circumstance led to problems with the operation of aircraft at foreign airports after tightening the standards of acoustic pollution.
Model development
The car was very successful. The TU-134 aircraft showed the highest modernization potential and reliability. Performance aerobatic characteristics also impressed. The lateral and headwind restrictions imposed on the TU-134 aircraft during takeoff and landing were one of the most insignificant for aircraft of this class. This property of the machine has significantly improved the regularity of flights.
A big drawback of the first TU-134 models was the lack of reverse engine thrust, which significantly increased the braking distance of the machine. To compensate for the deficiency, brake parachutes and an aerodynamic brake were used. The development of the machine made it possible to eliminate the features that passed from the initial stages of the development of jet aircraft.
Air Export Leader
TU-134 turned out to be a very popular aircraft not only on the routes of the Soviet Union, but also in foreign countries. Almost from the very beginning of production, he began to fly to foreign airports. The awareness of the car was also facilitated by the participation of the TU-134 in the 1969 international aviation exhibition in La Bourget. The plane demonstrated not only the level of development of the Soviet aircraft industry, but also a modern approach to creating a civilian air fleet.
In addition to the states of the Soviet bloc, the machine was operated in many countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America. In many cases, the aircraft were part of the air forces of the importing states. After the collapse of the USSR, the machine continued to service the air transportation of the CIS countries.
Long-Life Aviation
The first cars arrived on the airline in 1966. Since then, the plane is in the air. Now this car has remained only with private carriers serving charter flights. But even before 2007, she was a member of the airline staff of Russia and the CIS, making regular passenger flights. Thus, the machine has been used for its intended purpose for more than forty years.
In addition to transporting passengers on regular lines, modifications were made to serve top-level government officials. These sides were equipped with additional elements of increased comfort and safety. They established systems of special government communications.
There were military modifications of the TU-134 aircraft, intended for training pilots and navigators of combat aircraft. One of the versions, equipped with a characteristic nose fairing, served to train pilots of long-range bomber aircraft.
For the history of production, which lasted more than twenty years, almost nine hundred copies of cars of various modifications were produced. According to this indicator, the TU-134 aircraft is one of the most popular examples of Soviet passenger aircraft.
Shutdown
In addition to the technical and moral obsolescence of the machine, the increased noise level of the power plant played a large role in stopping its use. The new ICAO standards put an end to many international routes operated by the TU-134. The remaining directions could not ensure break-even operation of the model and competitiveness with more modern aircraft of foreign and domestic manufacturers.
Although the aircraft was manufactured before 1987, it was discontinued on regular airlines in 2008, replacing it with cars of other brands. Today, the withdrawal of machines of this model from other air transportation structures continues. However, time takes its toll, and the youngest aircraft of this brand are already more than twenty-five years old. More than a hundred aircraft still remain in the airline, but the end of the glorious history of the firstborn of Soviet passenger aircraft is just around the corner.
Accidents and incidents
The many years that the TU-134 spent in the air did not do without accidents. But the plane continued to be considered a reliable and safe machine. The crash of the TU-134 aircraft was rarely associated with the design of the machine itself, its components and assemblies.
The bulk of the tragedy was the result of a combination of circumstances or a human factor. The aircraft was operated under conditions in which the required level of flight safety was not always observed not only in the USSR, but also in developing countries. The instrumentation of the machine corresponded to the standards of the era in which it was created, and required high qualification and responsibility of the crew and ground services.
For all the years of operation of the TU-134 for reasons not related to military operations, more than sixty-five aircraft were lost, in which up to one and a half thousand people died.