Tupolev Tu-22M2 (Backfire-B)
The first series-production Backfire — the bomber that worried NATO navies in the 1970s · Production 1972–1984
The Tu-22M2 was the first version built in quantity. Compared with the early aircraft it had longer wings, an area-ruled fuselage for a crew of four, two NK-22 afterburning turbofans and its main landing gear housed in the fixed wing glove. Top speed was about Mach 1.65, and its usual weapon was one or two large Kh-22 anti-ship missiles carried under the fuselage and wings.
Production ran from 1972 to 1984, and 211 were built. The Backfire-B served with both Long-Range Aviation and Soviet Naval Aviation, whose regiments were tasked with attacking aircraft-carrier groups. That role made it a frequent subject of US Navy intercepts, and its range was a point of debate in the SALT II arms-control negotiations.
After 1991 Ukraine inherited 17 Tu-22M2s along with 43 Tu-22M3s. The operational fleet was scrapped under the US-funded Nunn–Lugar programme, the last aircraft in January 2006; a few were preserved, including "20" at the aviation museum at Kyiv-Zhuliany.
