Central Museum of the Russian Air Force. Civilians.
What we haven’t really looked at yet are civil aircraft. It is clear that civil aircraft are very conditional. For example, for me the term “transport aircraft” is simply a short spelling of “military transport aircraft” with full preservation of the essence of the named one.
Main publication: Central Museum of the Russian Air Force. Introduction.
Previous publication: Central Museum of the Russian Air Force. Unusual.
And, immediately, contradicting myself, I show the Tu-144, which is not associated with any bomber.
This is not the first Tu-144 I have seen; previously I was able to examine it in Ulyanovsk. All my life I envy my brother who managed to get on one of the 55 passenger flights Moscow-Alma-Ata!
I wonder why NASA chose the already decommissioned Tu-144 as a flying laboratory, and not the regularly cruising Concorde?
But the next plane will completely rehabilitate me and the concept I outlined about the kinship between civil and military aviation.
If this plane doesn’t remind you of anything, go back to looking at the Tu-95 bomber. It’s just his “fat” twin.
And one mystery about this plane: “Who are these people and what do they have to do with this plane?”
If you guessed right, go and take some candy. Well done!
And this is Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev, who flew to visit his colleague Dwight David Eisenhower. And he arrived on this plane.
Please note: not the same one, but exactly this one!
I was able to fly on some of the exhibits, the relatives of which have already been taken out of service. Of these, I can mention the IL-62, which I flew back in the period when uncles (for me at that time) walked around the cabin with cigarettes during the flight.
Or Yak-42. At that time I was already smoking, but not in the salon.
Well, and, in fact, from those with whom I started – transport workers. The Antonov Design Bureau dominates here. From the “small” An-8
to the larger An-12
and then to the stunningly sized An-22,
which was not for nothing called “Antey”: look how firmly it stands on the ground with its huge and multiple wheels.
Remember Mi-12? They have the same cargo compartment dimensions!
Off topic, but I can’t help but boast that I once drove past the giant An-124
The next plane should have been placed in the previous section of strange planes, but it didn’t fit there.
This is one of the few foreign aircraft in this museum.
I’ll conclude the review of the IL-76, which became tragically famous a couple of days ago.
I must say that this section of the museum gave me a rather painful feeling. Apart from the Tu-144, there is not a single exhibit in more or less normal condition. This is despite the fact that military equipment looks quite good, just good and even excellent.
Later, when preparing reports, I learned that there was a fairly long-standing order from Shoigu to transfer either part or all of the exhibits to Patriot Park. Well, and with the verbal battle that flared up on the Internet about this.
I will neither repeat the arguments of the parties nor refute them: on both sides there is both complete nonsense and very sensible considerations. Let me simply note that often unrighteous thoughts are hidden behind the right words.
A little earlier, I showed the hangars of Kubinka, which had previously been similarly absorbed by Patriot Park, and noted the positiveness of the changes.
So my opinion is clear.