soviet heavy bomber designed world war engine bomber ussr built war produced limited numbers bomb berlin august called morale raids designed raise spirit soviet people exposing axis primary mission attack german airfields rail yards rear area facilities night fly people foreign affairs foreign minister moscow united_states originally designated aircraft renamed primary designer died plane crash supply problems complicated aircraft production engine problems soviet morale high value targets luftwaffe fighter pilots loss rate aircraft mechanical failure friendly fire combat doubled end war surviving aircraft withdrawn combat units war modified transports important officials soviet testing programs supported operations late 1950s design development development began july issued requirements aircraft replace obsolete heavy bomber requirements specified bomber carry bombs speed greater mph altitude metres figures twice range speed service ceiling task assigned handed work team led project received internal bureau designation resulting aircraft engined mid wing initially designated russian heavy bomber owed streamlined design block like design bomber built mainly steel wings fabric covered pear shaped fuselage required pilots sit tandem offset left prototype space fifth engine auxiliary reserved inside fuselage wing pilots intended drive supplied air engines installation designated russian subsequent models omitted internal engine provided seating flight engineer radio operator pilots sat nose manned turret armed millimeter cannon covered cone ahead prominent chin nicknamed beard beneath nose dorsal gunner sat rear sliding hood covering millimeter machine gun mounted ventral hatch tail gunner powered turret unusually manually operated cannon mounted rear inner engine crewmen access positions wing upper wing surface large internal bomb bay racks held bombs external racks held single kilogram high explosive bomb bomb wing maiden flight unarmed prototype piloted installation occurred december successful initial trials system installed state acceptance trials august engines fitted tests reported rudder ineffective outer engines subsequent wind tunnel testing identified problem solve problem outer engines moved deep inner rudder enlarged redesigned smooth skin construction second prototype began april incorporating lessons aircraft feedback designers widened fuselage beard widened tail section modified resistance improve rudder function control system included engineers redesigned portions electrical system engines changed powerful redesigned fitted airframe additional fuel tanks increased craft range defensive offensive armament revised bomber weaponry expanded twin guns nose tail turrets dorsal turret design eliminated ventral gun bomb bay modified allow single kilogram bomb carried provisions added carry poison gas wings arrests october great purge disrupted program second prototype flight july prototype served basis series aircraft modifications armament new weaponry included retractable dorsal turret tail turret millimeter machine gun barbette inner engine fuel tank increased range beard removed entirely replaced streamlined nose authorization production slow reasons including great purge resources shortage workers production facilities ready early order begin given manufacture supply problems engine supply problems complicated construction aircraft production organized systematic way equipped factory shut production line beginning alternative engines evaluated massive soviet chain command decision proceed engine installation required design change modification allowed commander radio operator carried place compound problem production engines ended second half equipped eighteen aircraft produced end fitted engines aircraft engines fitted engines officials evaluated aircraft diesel engines fitted diesel engines entirely satisfactory despite greatly increasing range aircraft surviving engined end production continued slowly factory factory resources devoted higher priority successful light bomber time aircraft designated killed crash january built production engines radial engine proposed replacement alleviate shortage engines modification went production late exhaust arrangements compatible gun turrets rear engine guns removed reducing aircraft defensive capability end nose turret deleted favor manually operated machine gun streamlined nose version aircraft proved range diesel engined versions reliability greatly improved production totaled completed russian special mission engines base vertical special transports seating capacity cargo capacity kilograms sources disagree armament removed partly entirely operational history wartime use began june 2nd squadron 14th heavy bomber regiment russian based equipped ready combat destroyed german air strikes shortly war began withdrawn reach german bombers ordered squadron reformed regiment strike targets deep inside german territory theoretically tactic boost soviet morale demonstrating vulnerability enemy squadron designated june began training long range missions july renamed time evening august accompanied long range bomber aviation regiment attempted bomb berlin near heavily loaded crashed immediately lost engine managed reach berlin outskirts returned base landed crash landed finland estonia aircraft commander long range bomber division regiments belonged attacked mistakenly baltic_sea lost engine later reach berlin german fuel tank crash landed aircraft southern estonia lost operation largely seven lost month august rendering regiment ineffective period surviving aircraft equipped gave shorter range reliable engine october regiment mustered fourteen having new aircraft factory spent rest year conducting night raids berlin danzig german occupied cities soviet_union regiment designated separate long range aviation regiment russian december aircraft reported hand days later designation strength march winter regiment assigned destruction railroad bridge near april aircraft flew diplomatic personnel mail non stop flight moscow great_britain test run flight carrying soviet foreign minister delegation moscow london washington negotiations open second nazi_germany june flight crossed german controlled return trip incident august regiment flew sorties dropped tonnes long tons short tons bombs course missions lost bombers combat rest engine malfunction regiment received replacements sixteen aircraft hand number increased seventeen months later regiment losing aircraft fast replaced long range aviation regiment russian formed june regiments bomb german held transportation centers pace activity increased regiments flew missions august months war eve soviet counterattack november regiments fourteen hand command 45th long range bomber aviation division russian participate air attacks division primary airfield southeast moscow regiments bombed transportation centers airfields troop concentrations railroad yard favorite target regiment dropped approximately tonnes long tons short tons bombs february september clear sorties combination aircraft addition regiment dropped bomb april continuing pin attacks targets deep german rear efforts shifted disrupt german concentration forces sortie bombers 45th struck rail junction evening reported destruction rail wagons ammunition trains july regiment deployment early phase long range aviation units continued attack targets german rear areas night supporting soviet ground offensive called began july germans transferred wing flying mix aircraft counter soviet raids near area initially night fighters ineffective soviet raids deployment ground radar eyes germans use radar night july soviet losses increased sharply germans flew fourteen sorties night claimed kills night july captain commander shot exhaust engine contributing factor engines lacked flame making visible distance despite losses designated 25th long range guards aviation regiment september recognition achievements removal combat loss causes mechanical combat friendly fire steadily increased aircraft flights sorties despite losses production kept pace need number aircraft belonging 45th continued rise hand january june flew sorties targets aviation historian maintains flew mission night august claim showing assigned 45th january hand period 45th regiments primary aircraft 45th use primary combat aircraft began fly spring designated december formed early received regiments returned spring regiment began convert lend lease post war use war extensively trials involving soviet derivatives german flying bomb designated prototype engine trials mother ship experimental rocket engined received surviving polar exploration military equipment removed additional fuel tanks installed painted orange engines upgraded landed helped monitor drift ice stations late 1950s operators soviet_union soviet specifications data gordon soviet world war general characteristics crew length wingspan height wing area weight loaded weight max takeoff weight powerplant liquid cooled engine performance maximum speed mph range service ceiling rate climb min wing loading power mass armament guns millimeter cannons dorsal tail turrets millimeter machine guns engine millimeter machine guns nose turret bombs
Petlyakov Pe-8