The Tupolev Tu-134 (NATO reporting name: Crusty) is a twin-engined, narrow-bodyjet airliner built in the Soviet Union for short and medium-haul routes from 1966 to 1989. The original version featured a glazed-nose design and, like certain other Russian airliners (including its sister model, the Tu-154), it can operate from unpaved airfields.
One of the most widely used aircraft in former Comecon countries, the number in active service is decreasing because of operational safety concerns and noise restrictions. The model has seen long-term service with some 42 countries, with some European airlines having scheduled as many as 12 daily takeoffs and landings per plane. In addition to regular passenger service, it has also been used in various air force, army and navy support roles; for pilot and navigator training; and for aviation research and test projects. In recent years, a number of Tu-134s have been converted for use as VIP transports and business jets. A total of 854 Tu-134s were built of all versions (including test bed examples) with Aeroflot as the largest user by 1995, the Tu-134 had carried 360 million passengers for that airline.
Design and development
Tu-134UBL cockpit
Following the introduction of engines mounted on pylons on the rear fuselage by the French Sud Aviation Caravelle, airliner manufacturers around the world rushed to adopt the new layout. Its advantages included clean wing airflow without disruption by nacelles or pylons and decreased cabin noise. At the same time, placing heavy engines that far back created challenges with the location of the centre of gravity in relation to the centre of lift, which was at the wings. To make room for the engines, the tailplanes had to be relocated to the tail fin, which had to be stronger and therefore heavier, further compounding the tail-heavy arrangement.[3]
Looking through the nose of an Aeroflot-Nord Tu-134 (2009)
Operational history
In September 1967, the Tu-134 made its first scheduled flight from Moscow to Adler. The Tu-134 was the first Soviet airliner to receive international certification from the International Civil Aviation Organization, which permitted it to be used on international routes. Due to this certification, Aeroflot used most of its Tu-134s on international routes. In 1968, the first export customers, Interflug of East Germany, LOT Polish Airlines and Malév Hungarian Airlines purchased the Tu-134. In 1969, the Tu-134 was displayed at the Paris Air Show.
In its early years, the Tu-134 developed a reputation for reliability and efficiency, especially when compared with previous Soviet designs. After the establishment of tougher noise standards in the ICAO regulations in 2002, the Tu-134 was banned from most western European airports for its high noise levels. In early 2006, 245 Tu-134s were still in operation, 162 of which were in Russia. After a fatal accident in March 2007, and at the instigation of Russian Minister of Transportation Igor Levitin, Aeroflot announced that it would be retiring its fleet, and the last Tu-134 was removed from service on 1 January 2008. Some were still in operations with Aeroflot subsidiaries on local routes within Russia. The Tu-134 also found a new life as a business jet with many having an expensive business interior installed. High fuel and maintenance costs are increasingly limiting the number used today.
In June 2011, as a response to RusAir Flight 9605 which resulted in 47 fatalities, Russian president Dmitry Medvedev ordered preparations for taking the Tu-134 out of use by 2012.
On 22 May 2019, the final passenger flight of the Tu-134 in Russia took place.[4]
Many Tu-134s have been preserved as memorials at airports throughout the former Soviet Union. A former Malév Tu-134A (registration HA-LBE) is on display at the Aeropark at Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport[5] in Hungary.
The prototype Tu-134 (CCCP-45075) retained this slightly confusing designation. All subsequent aircraft are identified as Tu-134.
Tu-134
The glass-nosed version. The first series could seat up to 64 passengers, and this was later increased to 72 passengers.
CCCP-45075 Tupolev Tu-124A (Tu-134 Prototype) – badly preserved at Moscow-NovogireyevoTupolev Tu-134A with its radar and glass noseTu-134UBL "Volga" from 1449th Airbase in Tambov city
Tu-134A
Second series, with upgraded engines, improved avionics, seating up to 84 passengers. All Tu-134A variants have been built with the distinctive glass nose and chin radar dome, but some were modified to the B standard with the radar moved to the nose radome.
Tu-134A-2
The glass nose was replaced.
Tu-134A-3
Second series, powered by two updated Soloviev D-30 turbofan engines.
Second series, 80 seats, radar moved to the nose radome, eliminating the glazed nose. Some Tu-134B models have long-range fuel tanks fitted under the fuselage; these are visible as a sizable bulge.
↑Gordon, Yefim; Rigmant, Vladimir; Boyd, Alexander (2005). OKB Tupolev: a history of the design bureau and its aircraft. Hinkley: Midland. pp.248–246. ISBN1857802144.
Fontanellaz, Adrien; Cooper, Tom; Matos, Jose Augusto (2020). War of Intervention in Angola, Volume 3: Angolan and Cuban Air Forces, 1975-1985. Warwick, UK: Helion & Company Publishing. ISBN978-1-913118-61-7.
Healey, John K. (January–February 2004). "Retired Warriors: 'Cold War' Bomber Legacy". Air Enthusiast. No.109. pp.75–79. ISSN0143-5450.
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