Being the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces, the President merely used the opportunity to see cruise missile launches, in-flight refueling, maritime reconnaissance, and low-altitude transonic flying. This Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack “joyride” was not expressly planned
The Tupolev Tu-160 missile carrier bomber (NATO codification: Blackjack) is made to destroy targets deep into continental theaters of operations and in remote geographic regions. It is the heaviest combat aircraft in the world and has the highest gross take-off weight among bombers. It is also the largest supersonic and variable geometry wing aircraft in the history of military aviation. Tu-160 was referred to as “White Swan” informally because of its power and grace.
Unbelievably, the Blackjack served as “Air Force One” just once! On August 16, 2005, the Tu-160 “03 Red” Pavel Taran, which had been acquired by the 121st GvTBAP in 2004, took off from Chkalovskaya AB, just west of Moscow, on a lengthy sortie that included the launch of the most recent Kh-555 cruise missile. But this wasn’t the mission’s sole peculiarity; Vladimir V. Putin, who was president of the Russian Federation at the time, was also a passenger.
After the MAKS-2005 airshow’s opening ceremony, Putin flew directly from Zhukovskiy to the base aboard a strategic missile carrier. This was not his first flight in a combat jet; earlier, he had flown as a backseater in a Su-27UB Flanker-C combat trainer, according to Yefim Gordon and Dmitriy Komissarov in their book Tupolev Tu-160, Soviet Strike Force Spearhead.
Indeed, three Tu-160s were present at Chkalovskaya that day, and the planned flight was part of a tactical exercise designed to create a DA task force covering the north-western strategic direction and achieve the specified target. Being the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces, the President merely took the chance to see cruise missile launches, in-flight refueling, maritime reconnaissance, and low-altitude transonic flying. This wasn’t a carefully planned “joyride.”
Lt.-Gen. Igor I. Khvorov, the then-Commander of the 37th VA VGK (SN), briefed Putin on the mission’s specifics before the flight using maps and placards. The President underwent a quick medical examination after which he put on his flight suit and received instructions on how to use the ejection seat and fly safely.
Soon after, “03 Red” lifted off with the President seated in the captain’s chair and steered north toward the region where the joint drill of the DA and the North Fleet was scheduled to take place. Maj.-Gen. Anatoliy D. Zhikharev, the chief of staff of the DA, was in the right-hand seat, controlling the plane alongside Col. Vladimir Adamov, the navigator, and Lt.-Col. Oleg Baranov, as the WSO. The other two Blackjacks, “05 Red” Aleksandr Golovanov (captained by Col. Aleksey R. Serebryakov) and “07 Red” Aleksandr Molodchiy (captained by Lt.-Col. Andrey V. Senchurov), were close behind it.
The bombers altered their trajectory and flew at supersonic speeds before descending near Nizhniy Novgorod. Four Kh-555 cruise missiles were launched during the mission by two Tu-160 aircraft, and they all successfully hit their targets at the Pemboy target range in the Komi Republic near Vorkuta. An Il-78 tanker provided fuel to the “Presidential” Tu-160 during the course of the operation. As they approached Olen’ya All in Olenegorsk in the Murmansk Region, the Tu-160s made a quick pass over the base at a speed of 900 km/h (559 mph).
In fact, on August 25, 2003, the Tu-160 carried a VIP for the first time. During that occasion, Anatoliy D. Zhikharev once again piloted “07 Red” from the right seat while Sergey B. lvanov, the then-minister of defense, was seated in the left seat.
Tupolev Tu-160 Soviet Strike Force Spearhead is published by Schiffer Publishing and is available to order here.
Photo by Presidential Press Service