Manufacturer catalog

Tupolev

Tupolev is a Russian aerospace design bureau and aircraft manufacturer now operating inside the United Aircraft Corporation group. In this catalog it provides the builder context for long-range military aircraft families such as the Tu-22M and Tu-95.

5 weapons

Tupolev traces its lineage to Andrei Tupolev's 1922 design bureau and remains one of the best-known names in Russian aerospace. Britannica describes it as a Russian aerospace design bureau and major producer of civilian airliners and military bombers, with headquarters in Moscow.

For this catalog, Tupolev is the builder facet behind the catalog's long-range bomber and missile-carrier entries. The profile keeps the modern UAC-branded corporate context connected to the historic design-bureau name that appears across aircraft history and production references.

military aircraftlong-range bomberscruise-missile carrierscivil aircraftaircraft modernizationaircraft design

Notable Systems

Tu-22M, Long-range supersonic bomber and missile carrier, Aircraft & UAVs

Tu-22M3

Long-range supersonic bomber and missile carrier

UAC describes the Tu-22M3 as a long-range supersonic missile carrier-bomber designed to strike sea and ground targets with guided missiles and bombs.

Sources: Tu-22M3 - UAC
Tu-95, Strategic turboprop bomber and cruise-missile carrier, Aircraft & UAVs

Tu-95MS

Strategic turboprop bomber and cruise-missile carrier

UAC traces the Tu-95MS family to Tupolev's late-1940s bomber project and describes it as a long-range strategic missile carrier.

Sources: Tu-95MS - UAC
Tu-160, Strategic supersonic bomber and cruise-missile carrier, Aircraft & UAVs

Tu-160

Strategic supersonic bomber and cruise-missile carrier

UAC identifies the Tu-160 as a Tupolev-designed intercontinental strategic missile-launching aircraft armed with long-range cruise missiles.

Sources: Tu-160 - UAC

Manufacturer History

  1. Tupolev design bureau founded

    Britannica places Tupolev among Russia's major aerospace design bureaus and identifies the company lineage with Andrei Tupolev's 1922 design office.

    Sources: Tupolev

  2. Tupolev folded into UAC

    UAC says it was established in 2006 to consolidate Russia's aircraft-design and production assets and names PJSC Tupolev among the member companies in its corporate group.

    Sources: United Aircraft Corporation

  3. Innovation design center announced

    UAC reported that Tupolev was creating an innovation design center to modernize the Tu-214, showing the company's continuing role in Russian aircraft development.

    Sources: Tupolev innovation design center

Predecessors
Tupolev Design Bureau (OKB-156)
Website links
Official websiteUAC product rangeTu-95MS on UACTu-22M3 on UACTu-160 on UAC

Public sources use several names for the same entity, including Tupolev, Tupolev Design Bureau, PJSC/AO Tupolev, and legacy OKB-156 references. This profile normalizes those variants under the Tupolev builder facet and keeps the current UAC-group context explicit.

Manufacturer Sources

  • TupolevPublisher: Encyclopaedia Britannica | Note: Supports Tupolev's identity as a Russian aerospace design bureau, its 1922 origin, its headquarters in Moscow, and its civilian and military aircraft production role. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • United Aircraft CorporationPublisher: United Aircraft Corporation | Note: Supports UAC's role as the current corporate group for the Tu brand and its 2006 consolidation of Russian aircraft design and production assets. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Tu-95MS - UACPublisher: United Aircraft Corporation | Note: Supports the Tu-95MS family's Tupolev design-bureau lineage and its long-range strategic missile-carrier role. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Tu-22M3 - UACPublisher: United Aircraft Corporation | Note: Supports the Tu-22M3 as a Tupolev-designed long-range supersonic missile carrier-bomber and the company's continuing bomber-design role. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Tu-160 - UACPublisher: United Aircraft Corporation | Note: Supports the Tu-160 as a Tupolev-designed intercontinental strategic missile-launching aircraft armed with long-range cruise missiles. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Tupolev innovation design centerPublisher: United Aircraft Corporation | Note: Supports the 2024 announcement that AO Tupolev, within PJSC UAC, was creating an innovation design center to modernize the Tu-214. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Wikimedia Commons UAC Tupolev logoPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports the builder image and its provenance; Commons identifies the SVG as a public-domain text logo uploaded from tupolev.ru. | Accessed: 2026-06-21

Produced weapons

Category

Aircraft & UAVs

Crewed aircraft, drones, and loitering munitions.

5/5
Tu-22M, Long-range supersonic bomber and missile carrier, Aircraft & UAVs1979 Soviet-Afghan War, 1994 First Chechen War +3 moreTu-22MLong-range supersonic bomber and missile carrierBuilt in: Soviet Union / RussiaThe Tupolev Tu-22M Backfire family is a variable-sweep, long-range supersonic bomber and missile carrier built for maritime strike and deep land attack. The Tu-22M3 Backfire-C is the principal operational version: UAC says it entered service in 1989, while Rosoboronexport and later reporting tie the type to Kh-22 and Kh-32 standoff missile carriage as well as large conventional bomb loads.
Tupolev Tu-141 Strizh, Reusable operational-tactical reconnaissance UAV, Aircraft & UAVs2014 Russia-Ukraine WarTupolev Tu-141 StrizhReusable operational-tactical reconnaissance UAVBuilt in: Soviet Union (Ukrainian SSR)The Tupolev Tu-141 Strizh is a Soviet jet-powered reconnaissance UAV built for high-speed, reusable missions hundreds of kilometers beyond the front line. Designed by Tupolev and produced at Kharkiv during 1979-1989, it reappeared in Ukrainian service after 2014 and became notable after the 2022 escalation for reported long-range strike adaptations against Russian targets.
Tupolev Tu-143 Reys, Reusable tactical reconnaissance UAV, Aircraft & UAVs2014 Russia-Ukraine War, 2023 Israel-Hezbollah ConflictTupolev Tu-143 ReysReusable tactical reconnaissance UAVBuilt in: Soviet UnionThe Tupolev Tu-143 Reys is the air vehicle of the Soviet VR-3 Reis tactical reconnaissance complex, a jet-powered reusable UAV developed by Tupolev for low-altitude front-line reconnaissance. Produced in large numbers during 1973-1989, it used truck launch, booster assistance, parachute recovery, and interchangeable reconnaissance payloads; wartime reporting has documented Ukrainian Tu-143 examples in the Russia-Ukraine war and a Hezbollah DR-3 cruise-missile adaptation tied to the same airframe family.
Tu-95, Strategic turboprop bomber and cruise-missile carrier, Aircraft & UAVs2014 Russia-Ukraine War, 2011 Syrian Civil WarTu-95Strategic turboprop bomber and cruise-missile carrierBuilt in: Soviet Union / RussiaThe Tupolev Tu-95 is a Soviet-designed four-engine turboprop strategic bomber family whose Tu-95MS and Tu-95MSM missile-carrier variants remain part of Russia's long-range aviation force. UAC traces the Bear's role from early nuclear missile carriage to the Tu-95MS cruise-missile carrier, while FAS and conflict reporting document its continuing use for standoff Kh-55/Kh-555 and Kh-101/Kh-102 strike missions in Syria and Ukraine.