The Tu-22M3 is a strategic bomber that can carry up to three Kh-22 cruise missiles. During the war, Ukraine has already destroyed or damaged 4 such aircraft, but on the ground.
The Ukrainian Air Force conducted a special operation with the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense. As a result, the Tu-22M3 strategic bomber was destroyed in the air for the first time. Focus collected what is known about the aircraft and what missiles it carries.
On the morning of April 19, the Russian Aerospace Forces again attacked Ukraine with missiles. To achieve this, the Russian Federation launched missiles from Tu-22M3 and Tu-95 strategic bombers. According to monitoring channels, there were 2-3 Tu-22M3 in the sky. However, one of them was shot down in the air.
What is known about the Tu-22M3
Tu-22M3 is a Soviet supersonic launch vehicle-bomber. The aircraft’s first flight took place in August 1969. Over the years of production, hundreds of such bombers were manufactured. Currently, the Tu-22M3 is not produced in the Russian Federation, so the loss of the aircraft is irreparable. At the Kazan Aviation Plant they can only upgrade the Tu-22 to the level of the Tu-22M3M.
It is the Tu-22M3 that carries the Kh-22 anti-ship cruise missiles, which the Air Force until now could not shoot down. The X-22 is a supersonic high-speed missile that was created in the USSR against aircraft carriers. Its warhead weight is 900 kg. The bomber can carry up to three X-22/X-32. It can also carry unguided FAB-type bombs.
The X-22 missile was a target that the armed forces could not shoot down
The occupiers repeatedly used the Tu-22M3 to launch missile attacks on Ukraine. It is known that during a full-scale war, Ukraine destroyed two and damaged two more Tu-22M3 strategic bombers. According to GUR data from the end of August 2023, the occupiers have about 27 serviceable Tu-22M3s in service.
Earlier, aviation expert Anatoly Khrapchinsky explained Focusthat during the production of the Tu-22 there were many series. Therefore, it is difficult for the enemy to keep them all in the air.
“The Tu-22 has gone through several stages of modernization since Soviet times – Tu-22M, Tu-22M0, Tu-22M1, Tu-22M2, M3 and even M4. They occurred from the 1960s until the collapse of the USSR. Air intake engines changed, there were changes in terms of control units and so on, each time there was almost a new plane,” explained Focus Anatoly Khrapchinsky.
Let us recall that on April 19, the commander of the Air Force, Lieutenant General Nikolai Oleshchuk, revealed the details of the downing of the Tu-22M3.
Previously Focus I figured out why the production of FAB-3000 aerial bombs was shown in the Russian Federation. The carrier of which is the Tu-22M3.
