White Swan AKA Tu-160
Tupolev Tu-160 is supersonic heavy strategic bomber plane. It is also known as the white swan. It is designed by the Tupolev Design Bureau in the Soviet Union in the 1970s. It was first manufactured in 1981. Its’ first flight took place on December 19, 1981, and was added to the Soviet Air Force in 1987. Tu-160 is also reported to be the aircraft with the highest supersonic speed and the largest cruise missile capacity. Currently, it is engaged in patrolling in the Arctic, Atlantic, and Pacific regions.
Tu-160 is 13.1 meters high, 54.1 meters long, and has a wingspan of 55.7 meters it can set its wings under the angles of 20°, 35°, and 65°. Its weight is about 110,000 kg and the maximum take-off weight is about 275,000 kg. Also, it can carry around 148,000 kg of fuel.
Tu-160 can carry both nuclear and conventional weapons, including long-range nuclear missiles. The aircraft can carry 12 Kh-55MS strategic cruise missiles. The Kh-55MS missile is propelled by a turbofan engine and has a maximum flying range of 3,000 km. Tu-160 is also armed with a 200kt nuclear warhead. The aircraft is also capable of carrying aerial bombs with a total weight of up to forty tons.
It can carry four people at a time: two pilots, a gunner, and a communicator. This plane has four high-power KUZNETSOV NK 32 Turbo engines. Tu-160 aircraft can reach a maximum speed of 2200 km/h and cruise speed is 960 km/h. Tu-160 can go 12300 km — 14000 km without refueling after one refueling and this aircraft also can refuel in the air.