The Forgotten Bomber that Saved WW2 - The Tu-2
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- čas přidán 11. 09. 2024
- As the Germans got closer to Russia, the desperate Soviet Air Force top officials finally admitted they needed help from the nation's most famous aircraft designer: Andrei Tupolev.
As with many Russian engineers and scientists of the era, the problem was that Tupolev was in prison for crimes against the Red State.
Designed from a prison cell, the twin-engine dive bomber was a machine unlike any other, with many combinations of armament and weaponry depending on the mission.
Intrinsically built as a high-speed daylight and frontline bomber, the Tu-2 was so versatile that it contributed to various missions, including air-to-air combat, interception, ground attack, close-air support, and ISR or intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.
Introduced right in the middle of World War 2, the Tu-2 quickly became one of the most successful warplanes of the era, an essential part of the Red Army's fight against the once invincible Third Reich, and ultimately, a forgotten icon of the Soviet Air Force…
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Join Dark Skies as we explore the world of aviation with cinematic short documentaries featuring the biggest and fastest airplanes ever built, top-secret military projects, and classified missions with hidden untold true stories. Including US, German, and Soviet warplanes, along with aircraft developments that took place during World War I, World War 2, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the Gulf War, and special operations mission in between.
As images and footage of actual events are not always available, Dark Skies sometimes utilizes similar historical images and footage for dramatic effect and soundtracks for emotional impact. We do our best to keep it as visually accurate as possible.
All content on Dark Skies is researched, produced, and presented in historical context for educational purposes. We are history enthusiasts and are not always experts in some areas, so please don't hesitate to reach out to us with corrections, additional information, or new ideas.
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Who knew?
If you design something like your life depends on it, it will end up being iconic!
@ClaritaTurbo
Yes it will, but there ARE better incentives!
Great thought!
Excellent, thank you very much! Just one mishap in 5' 14'', the nazis invaded the USSR in June 1941, NOT in June 1942.
That happens often on this channel.
Yes. 1941. June 22
The true soviet experience. Being very famous and forced to work from prison for that very state.
So the American prison system would qualify
But not just any prison. The prison Tupolev worked from had far nicer facilities than the average Soviet prison of the time, and Tupolev showed his design genius with the Tu-2 light bomber.
I try to see other sides. Andrei Nikolayevich Tupolev lived to the ripe age of 84, died in his sleep after an evening with his gigantic family. It's hard to find much info on the Beria/Stalin era, but he loved travelling, and visited many countries as a high ranking member of the soviet science community. No doubt he had a GUM card as a member of the party, and here in Canada, we'll soon need the same from the liberal party. The Tu-95 still roams the skies though, and contrary to popular belief, it is a very capable aircraft to this day, due to continuous upgrades and refits, kinda like the B-52 in that regard. Cheers.
@@Dillonkg1 nope
The m-1 carbine was designed by a guy in Federal prison.
The strange looking TU-2 in the thumbnail is an experimental version used to test a crude way of surviving impacts with barrage balloon cables. A special cable woven from high tensile steel was run from one reinforced wingtip to the other via a nosecone that extended about 20 feet ahead of the nose.
Thnk u. Was wondering what kind of of TU-2 is that
@@ThePenitentOne i think it was some kind of radar test
i could be wrong tho
Where did you get this information from Sir?
Definitely not compensating for anything.
I was guessing it was ment to act like a jousting knight. Don't need ammunition just spear the German planes
I cannot help but wonder what Tupolev would have achieved if he had left the USSR and fled to the West, starting his own aircraft design enterprise just like Sikorsky did.
His competence and understanding are second to none of his peers.
Excuse me? This was not his only contribution to Russian Aviation. And despite what you may think there is no lack of engineering expertise in Russia. They have toys the US cannot match today. Not only in aviation, but in hypersonic missiles as well.
One can't understand why in the world those guys accepted to work for the state than imprisoned them. If I was Tupolev, I would defect to the west ASAP
he achieved a lot in the Soviet Union ???
@@xavierrodriguez2463 @Dave Froman Guys, you got me wrong, i do not doubt he achieved a LOT in USSR, my point was that he could have achieved MUCH MORE pretty much anywhere else.
@@sim.frischh9781 it doesn't work like that. There are many great aircraft, built by extremely talented designers, that failed in the west(no demand/politics and so on). Just because you have talent, doesn't guarantee you success.
The Sturmovik overshadowed the Tu-2 but the Tu-2 was an excellent weapon.
They are planes of diffferent kinds and different tasks and can't be compared. Shturmovik is ground attack strike plane and Tu-2 is tactical bomber capable to do dive bombing
Different types of planes. One is a bomber made to bomb German cities the other is a CAS aircraft
It’s not even “apples and oranges”, it’s “apples and burgers”. Completely different types of aircraft. Besides, real IL-2 and IL-2 of Soviet propaganda and video games are different things too.
Despite its rough finish it was a beautiful looking aircraft, I had the pleasure of seeing them close up in Warsaw Poland. The aircraft continued operations long after the war and received the NATO definition BAT.
@@LB-oz9hv which one came 1st
Tupolev Tu2
or
Petlyakov Pe2 ?
Nice plane. I hadn’t even heard of it until this excellent video. I guess I had never thought that the russkies had bombers, which was extremely shortsighted on my part.
Never knew about this and I consider myself a WW2 buff….. well done!
Well lol, in your defence: the Canadian PM doesn't even know who fought who in WW2 so...
Few western twin engined aircraft of this era are as beautiful as the Tu-2. The Beechcraft Grizzly is almost a direct copy (arrival at same concept). Perhaps the DeHavilland Mosquito/Hornet, the On Mark A-26, and Howard 350 (nose wheeled) , P-38 (prototype), F7F, Kawasaki Ki-96, Breda Ba. 88, and PBM-1 Mariner are close contenders for said beauty contest, each in their own right. Almost forgot the XP-67 Moonbat.
The French had many similar aircraft that equaled, or surpassed, the Tu-2 for looks. Their service lives were so short we just never hear of them. It's all a matter of taste: Amiot 354, Bloch MB-170, Breguet 693, LeO 451, Potez 633
@@wdtaut5650 No I totally agree, the SNCASO SE.100, CAPRA R.40, Bugatti 100 et. al. It seems that the P-38 lines were a minimum standard design aesthetic for all their twins. But then again there's the Potez 75 and the Loire 130 😲
As shown on your images, the Tu-2 had radial engines, not V-12's , and its top speed was about 342 mph, not 380. Its rival, the Pe-2 ,was produced at 10 times the rate of the Tu-2. However it was an outstanding design both as a light bomber and as a night fighter.
The original Tu-2 were indeed driven by the liquid cooled AM-37 and had a top speed of 600 kph (380 mph). But because AM-37 production plants were needed for AM-38 engines that were used by IL-2 Stormovik, the Tu-2 production was first ceased and then restarted with air cooled radial M-82 (ASh-82). That version was slower but had a bigger bombload.
Pe-2 looked similar to Tu-2 because it was designed basically by the same people. Petlyakov worked for Tupolev until the latter’s arrest. However, Pe-2 wasn’t a direct competitor to Tu-2. It was much smaller, could carry just a half of of the Tu-2 bombload and in real life the difference in top speed was negligent.
The Tu-2 may carry only half the weight of the TB-3, but it was 2.5 times faster, smaller and much more lethal!
Old soldiers never die, they just fade away.
Hey, the story, the historical punctuallity but also the voice is incredible for me! Lot`s of Thanks!
I never knew about this aircraft. Very impressive.
Very similar to the mosquito regarding its reputation. Still, I recommend checking out the Pe-2 as well
I thought I knew most of the significant aircraft of WW!!, but this is the first I heard of the TU-2. It was, like the Mosquito and P38 Lightning, a very pretty aircraft. Thank you for this episode.
Édesapám keresztapja volt TU-2 toronylövész , és Míg- 21 Alumínium önvény makett generációs játék ! Várom esetleges unokát melynek átaadom ,!
my grandfather services these during WW2. I met some of his friends who flew the mission but they never talked about war.
Ok. This craft has escaped me until now. Thanks!
Can't wait to see them break these out in a few months.
1800 HP engines? Nice power-to-weight ratio.
Pilots like that.
Enjoyed your video and so I gave it a Thumbs Up
At approximately 5:20 into this video, the narrator makes a mis-statement saying "In June of 1942, the [German invasion began] "... That happened in June of 1941. But I really like this video and didn't know this much about the Tupolev 2 before seeing this .. it must have been a very valuable asset to the Russian military at that time.
Dark Skies is joke. He has mistakes in every single video. Mostly in the technical data, but also in the historical facts.
Wonderful Soviet design, despite the problems its creators and the aircraft had been manufactured
Another most important plane of WW2. I'm sure fought in the most important battle of WW2. With the most decorated men
It fought even against USA during Korean war in early 50s.
Awesome! First time learning about this solid aircraft.
While the Tu-2 I'm sure was excellent in it's own right, it was outshined and out produced by the Pe-2 and Il-2
He has probably mistaken for the PE-2 with the liquid cooled V-12 engines
Reminds me of the Mosquito and served many of the same roles.
considering the number of aces the Luftwaffe had, it's hard to believe that so few of these planes were downed.
Ultra provided the targets position, so the TU2s could hit and run from a longer distance than the Sturmovic..
@@philipambler3825 what's Ultra?
You can't take German's aces kill count at their word also. A lot of times they were inflated, either during the war for propaganda or as post-war myths and hearsays
@@lebien4554 I'll believe what I want to believe thankyou very much. The Luftwaffe didn't believe the magnificense tallies of Eric Hartman either. They even send planes along with him to see if he was lying. Turned out he didn't.
@@LarsAgerbk or so they say...
Excellent channel, excellent video, nothing to comment. Just thanks. I have to subscribe.
Gee, over 46 sorties over two months. Wow.
Would love to see a video on the XP-79 Flying Ram.
It’s just so wacky.
The only reason to use an abbreviation like ISR and then say intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance would be to flex
I got a Tu-2 as a beta plane in War Thunder and love it.
It is kinda broken, probably why it was only a beta reward. It has a higher bomb load then the Pe-2 and B-25 at the same B.R.
Got it as well. Best Tu-2 in the game.
@@vikingpowered868 Just used it in my 4.7 ussr tank line up and got a few tanks heheh
The Tu-2 in War Thunder is op and meta especially for squadron battles. Complete menace
Thanks for this 👍
Great vídeo 👍🏻👍🏻
A sleek, snazzy looking aircraft...
Water cooled V12 engines? It was powered by Powerplant: 2 × Shvetsov ASh-82 14-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines, 1,380 kW (1,850 hp) each.
The earliest versions were powered by the Mikulin AM-37 v-12. This proved unreliable and its production was cancelled, leading to the installation of the radial Shvetsovs.
@@huffy1949 Thanks for the clarification. Most of the footage shown was of radial engines, that's why I googled it.
Somebody should restore one to flying condition. Not a bad looking plane
I love how Russia hasn't really improved their methods since then lol
Well, they have stopped putting their engineers in labor camps to motivate them.
...if it works?
@@TheWolfsnack Then they would've already captured Ukraine
Red Skies: *post new video*
Also Red Skies: *_procedes to change thumbnail and title of said video 7 times_*
First flight report: "She's as sweet as Tupolev, honey!"
As odd as it may seem, it looks as if the engines have NACA cowlings? How coincidental could that be?
A Wonderful introducing video aboutTu-2 USSR designed airplanes
Tu-2 vs Mosquito? Hmmm would like to see that!
"The TU-2 participated in operation 'Uranus'". Gee, I wonder where THAT, took place😏???
I hope you do one on the IL-2.
1. Manpower
2. Lend-Lease
3. Manufacturing power
Are there any examples of this aircraft still remaining and flyable?
There are many static survivors around the world in various versions. Tu2s were supplied to the Warsaw Pact countries during the late 40s and 50s. The last in service were North Korean, North Vietnam and China during the 60s and 70s as night raiders. Many are found in museums in eastern Europe. Currently no Tu2s are in flying condition.
0:08
The face you make when the state asks you to build aircraft again ...
Sir, your content is an honor to watch.
Therefore, the Tupolev Tu-2 could be nicknamed the "Soviet Mosquito". Both were designed as high speed tactical bombers, but due to their versatility both were used in many roles, since battlefield reconnaissance and as a fighter bombers engaging with other fighters of the era.
No, Soviet junkers 88.
The Tupolev TU2 had many similarities to the P38, however it was somewhat more lifty. It would be hard to draw a bead on or stay on the tail of a TU2. The draggy pilot cowling was not a fatal flaw.
That's just not at all true, the only comparison you could ever hope to draw between the two planes is their number of engines, nothing else
They're so similar that their most distinctive features has nothing in common
@@lebien4554 they're so similar, that they're actually similar at all, and anyone that would try to argue otherwise is an absolute smoothbrain
1.They both have two engines.
2. They both fly.
End of similarities.
Tu2 and Pe 2 best frontline bombers!
Btw,Pe-2 wasn't anvisioned as a frontline bomber,but,as a heavy fighter !!!!
That's why it's payload is so small !
Hello from Detroit Michigan USA Great video Brother thank you for sharing your knowledge and expertise and for taking us on your adventure through time and history
I like listening to this guy.
I read that a few were imported into the UK for restoration a few years ago bit there's been no news since!
Great channel
My history classes seemed to leave out many, many great Soviet weapons of WWII, and after, strange how that happens!
If you are indeed showing the correct aircraft, then it has an air cooled radial engine, and not a water cooled V12 engine. I have been really enjoying the series; however, my patience is tested when neither the words nor the pictures are matched up. Which is it, in this case? Is it a V!2 or a radial engine?
🏆🏆🏆👍🇺🇲🙏
Thank you for sharing
The Pe-2 was a much more significant dive bomber.
Love it
Tu-2sh would be a video that suits your Chanel (it had 88 guns in the Bombay for strafing)
The breathless delivery and dramatic music is about 80 years obsolete. Could not finish watching.
A year later and still noone cares dude..
Correct me if I'm in error, but I believe most of your photos of aircraft with the radial engines are TU-4s. I also believe a museum somewhere in Texas as a non-flying example.
Tu-4 are copies of the B-29
You might be thinking of the pe-2/3
The thumbnail had me at WTF?? ...
Can you make a video about the Super Etendard please
¡Las Malvinas son Argentinas!
Sorry, that just came out. Not sure why.
I would love to hear Mr. Tupolev's feelings about the whole thing. Being jailed, then working on a project for your country. Working for the jailers but hoping for your country I guess.
In an interview he said "I needed to breathe clean air for a while", a resigned response.
Although the video shows a tiny prison cell, this was not really correct. The designers were removed from liberty but they were still designing, in very basic dorm-like conditions with their lives controlled closely... but still essentially doing their work and with access to all the facilities they needed to do that. Stalin wanted the planes, he didn't want intellectuals forming relationships and starting (in his paranoid mind) a counter-revolution. And he wanted everyone working at absolute maximum capacity, and used fear as a motivator.
Incidentally, the Tu-2 was put in production early, then taken out of production due to the need to prioritise cheaper aircraft, then put back in production in 1944.
Ask any American prisoner. According to a June 2022 report published by the American Civil Liberties Union, prison labor generates more than $11bn annually, with more than $2bn generated from the production of goods, and more than $9bn generated through prison maintenance services.
@@lebien4554 Except for that much of the prison industry, prison farms have been mostly eliminated by the late 19990's...meaning that prison became much more expensive and lost their ability to finance a lot of their own operations....in favor if massive catering corporations providing substandard fare.
@@lllordllloyd One of the army Generals named Rosokovosky released to play a major part in the war had no teeth courtesy of a Stalin purge. This cosy view seems to be difficult to believe. I would imagine a lot of these people had to endure the rite of passage of a pretty thorough and efficient beating up in Lubyanka before any easing of restrictions to get work out of them. I doubt if much has changed since and Russia is what Russia was and Russia always will be. The specific political label adopted by the rulers at any particular time makes little real change in practical terms.
@@michaeld5888 Where did you get that lie about his teeth? What historical document that tale teller provided? On almost all photos Rokossovsky is smiling and good white teeth are clearly visible. In 40s there were no any natural looking dental prothesis. Nobody tortured him there. that's lie. You blindly belive in any anti-Russian crap of your propaganda. Rokossovsky a couple years before war was commander of military district in Eastern Siberia near Baikal-lake/ On winter he ordered to do drills of his units including cavalry and ordered to go on ice of Baikal lake. Because Ice was slippery many horses fell down and broke legs, ribs etc. Siberian military district was important due to activity of Japan on Russian far east borders. So, military authorities considered that as deliberate satobage and Rokossovsky was prosecuted and put into prison. Though, he didn't want to do any sabotage of course. Yes, court was wrong but there were reason to suspect sabotage anyway. Lately, when new minister of state security Beria was assigned , he ordered to reconsider many cases including one of Rokossovsky and he was released becasue there were no facts of deliberate sabotage.
History, you can find it on the internet, you should try it some time!
"Don't mess with my Tu-2." Stalin's famous message to Hitler in 1943.
Impressive stats for the time.
Why is it that it’s so similar to
Petlyakov’s PE2 ?
I don't agree. The Petlaykov Pe-2 was already causing trouble for the Luftwaffe, and the variants available from 1944 on were already very hard to shoot down.
Agreed; the Pe-2 was much more successful. The Tu-2 was an also “ran”.
This channel is a joke with their clickbait titles.
@@chriscarbaugh3936 100% correct
Shame no-one told this guy, narrating......
Probably not "tee you two", but in fact 'too two'. From the Russian Туполев два or Ту-два pronounced 'Tu dva'. I may be wrong. This is my last "acthually" pronunciation comment. I do like your videos
The forgotten lend-lease aviation fuel that saved Tu-2 and WW2.
Near 100% aviation fuel Soviet used during the Russo-German war was from lend-lease aid.
Russian's refining technology was very bad at that time (It is not good even in nowadays). Low quality Russian fuel is okay for tanks and other ground vehicles because you can simply restart it once the engine is shut off due to bad fuel. However, you can't do that for airplanes in most cases. Here came the aviation fuel dependence on lend-lease aid.
I don't get it. Stalin imprisons Tupolev and then Tupolev starts designing planes for that maniac? He was still in prison! Not even released. WTF? What did I miss here?
Yes, when the enemy heard it was called the “Tutu” they died laughing.
2,257 Tu-2 were built, but 11,000 Pe-2. Now which one was the icon?
Latter , NO CONTEST
One of my top choice for planes to be created in IL-2 Sturmovik: BoX!!
Tu\2, JU88, Mosquito, P38... I seem to see something here.
The russians might benefit from pulling one of these out of their museums for use in Ukraine.
Won’t help. They don’t have anyone to fly it.
They don't need it, sadly they are already winning
@@lakshaysingh9743 given that we expected Kyiv to fall in days and here we are six months later with the war very much ongoing, it’s not much of a victory.
@@Justanotherconsumer yes, but things have changed now, now the Russians have the upper hand due to their firepower.
> chooses strange looking TU-2 for the thumbnail
> doesn't show or mention it in the video
Awesome history1
The best Soviet bomber of the war was the B-25 Mitchell.
The Soviets definitely coined "we're all in this together"
Please make a video on the great P47 thunderbolt. I would love to learn more on it
That's what you want to think. This is even more disgusting. I'm not talking about the USA, for Hughes.
This aint got no gas in it!
i like this plane...it fits in with our medium bombers. i can see. a26 c. ...in it....
Still no metric system ?
wow so cool i like all type aircraft's also bat 1 is so cooljust 3 people's on Board flying radio man also on the noise was the gunman?? that what look like??
I do respect the soviets for beating back the nazis. They lost 20 million people.
Germany being fought on two fronts and America supplying weapons and supplies to Russia, is how Russia beat Germany
The problems was any creator. Creativity was very nearly outlawed for fear of worshipping anything but Stalin or Communism. The idea that you speak of "factual" nature about something that clearly had deeper hidden facets, it is quite irritating.
i like to call this plane the "Tootoo"
You mean the real secret - lend lease otherwise they would have been steamrolled.
If you consider 12 to 1 deaths on the ground and 40 to 1 in the air beating than yes.
Secrets let's talk about the secret society at play in this like all other wars.