Denis Manturov, Minister of Industry and Trade, said that the Tu-160M opens up prospects for the subsequent development of a new PAK DA project - a promising long-range aviation complex
KAZAN, February 4. /tass/. By the end of the second quarter of 2022, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation will receive the first new-built Tu-160M missile carrier for subsequent state tests and commissioning. This was announced to journalists on Friday by the Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Denis Manturov.
"I believe that the president's decision to resume production of the Tu-160 in a new guise was absolutely timely. <...> We were able to implement this task in the shortest possible time. Because initially, the contract was supposed to be delivered at the end of 2023, and by the end of the second quarter we will transfer the car to the Ministry of Defense for subsequent state tests and armament," Manturov said.
He noted that the Tu-160M opens up prospects for the subsequent development of a new PAK DA project - a promising long-range aviation complex. "It should also complete preparations for the first flight in the coming years and then go through all the stages of testing and launch into mass production. Two aircraft will be produced in parallel: both the Tu-160M and the PAK DA," Manturov said.
During his visit to Tatarstan, Manturov visited the Kazan Aviation Plant, where he got acquainted with the progress of work on the program for the resumption of production of upgraded Tu-160M missile carriers.
The Tu-160 is the largest and most powerful supersonic aircraft with variable wing geometry in the history of military aviation. The program for the reproduction of Tu-160 aircraft in the upgraded appearance of the Tu-160M was launched by the decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2015.
