This Jet-Powered Soviet Airliner Had A Distinctive (However Harmful) Design

As any aviation fanatic will let you know, the identify “de Havilland” is synonymous with the historical past of the jet engine. The British de Havilland Comet was the primary of its type — a jet airliner that might revolutionize air journey and pave the best way for different airliners to comply with. Its first prototype launched in 1949, in response to the Royal Air Drive Museum. After two disasters, the results of structrual deficiencies, the Comet 1 was retired.

However the Soviet Union unleashed its personal jet airliner: the Tupolev TU-104. The physique of a TU-16, one other Soviet bomber, was tailored so as to add extra passenger house inside, and the plane switched from a navy to a industrial capability. 

In authorities’ zeal to place the Soviet stamp on the historical past of worldwide jet journey, about 10,000 employees members labored on the airplane, and its flight debut occurred a number of weeks sooner than initially supposed. This appeared to imply, although, that testing wasn’t as rigorous because it may have been, and the plane was suffering from issues consequently.