Even though the original Tu-95s first entered service more than 70 years ago, the aircraft was not deployed in combat until 2015.
The Russian Aerospace Force’s Tupolev Tu-95 (NATO reporting name “Bear”) is the only remaining propeller-driven bomber in service anywhere in the world. Although it was designed in the early 1950s, the aircraft has been upgraded and enhanced. Developed as a long-range bomber that would not require aerial refueling to reach American targets, the Tu-95 can fly slow and steady, and that is precisely what it did this week in two different patrol missions, Russian state media announced.
A pair of the Tu-95MS strategic bombers carried out a flight over the Sea of Japan, while two other aircraft conducted a similar patrol flight over the Barents Sea.
“Tu-95MS strategic bombers of long-range aviation performed a scheduled flight over neutral waters of the Sea of Japan. The flight lasted more than six hours. The crews of Su-35S and Su-30SM aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces provided fighter support for the flight,” the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement to Tass.
It confirmed that another four-hour flight took place over the Barents Sea.
“The crews of Su-33 aircraft of the Navy provided fighter support for the flight,” the ministry added.
The Tu-95’s Specifications
- Year Introduced: 1956 (Tu-95), 1981 (Tu-95MS)
- Number Built: 88 Tu-95MS built between 1982 and 1992
- Length: 46.2 m (151 ft 7 in)
- Height: 12.12 m (39 ft 9 in)
- Wingspan: 50.1 m (164 ft 4 in)
- Weight:
- Empty – 90,000 kg (198,416 lb)
- Maximum takeoff weight – 188,000 kg (414,469 lb)
- Engines: Four Kuznetsov NK-12 turboprop engines (15,000 PS each)
- Top Speed: 920 km/h (572 mph)
- Range: Over 15,000 km (9,300 mi)
- Service Ceiling: 13,716 m (45,000 ft)
- Loadout: Two 23mm cannons, Kh-55 cruise missiles
- Aircrew: 6-7
Russia’s Tu-95s Are Far from Ukraine—for Good Reason
The Tu-95MS, the current modernized variant, has been employed in the ongoing war in Ukraine, but that has made it a high-value target, as Kyiv has carried out drone attacks on seemingly remote Russian airbases to damage or destroy the aircraft on the ground.
The most recent strike in June, the daring “Operation Spiderweb,” destroyed at least eight of the strategic bombers. Although the current models were built as part of a new production run in the 1980s, it is still impossible for the Kremlin to replace those losses.
The Tu-95 remains among the only Soviet bombers that can strike targets in the United States from territory within Russia; Moscow will likely go to great lengths not to see additional losses. That could explain why the Bear is doing its prowling in the Far East. However, even before the war began, the Tu-95s had been employed on flights that entered the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ), a self-declared buffer zone outside of United States airspace.
Though foreign aircraft are “legally free” to fly within another nation’s ADIZ, doing so is often considered an act of aggression. Moscow has been increasingly aggressive in its flights in the regions since 2014, with such missions over the neutral waters of the Barents Strait being carried out multiple times a year.
In July 2024, the Russian Aerospace Forces carried out a joint patrol with Chinese Xi’an H-6 bombers near the ADIZ. The H-6, the PLAAF’s primary bomber aircraft, is a license-built version of the Soviet-designed Tupolev Tu-16. That patrol marked the first joint sortie near Alaska of both Chinese and Russian bombers, and it was followed by a similar mission over the Sea of Japan, East China Sea, and the western Pacific Ocean in November.
Tu-95s Carried Out Strikes in Syria
The Tu-95 is among the oldest military aircraft designs still in operation, and even the upgraded model is still equipped with a tail gunner’s position. Its inclusion must be a matter of tradition, and to help the crew feel secure, as no modern fighter needs to be anywhere near the visual range of the bomber to engage it.
Even though the original Tu-95s first entered service more than 70 years ago, the aircraft was not deployed in combat until 2015, when a pair of Tu-95MS bombers were used in a series of long-range airstrikes as part of the Russian military intervention in Syria. The tail gunner likely did not get to do much except take in the sights. The same is likely true of the recent patrol sorties.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a 30-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a contributing writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image: Shutterstock / Almaz Mustafin.
