Profile
- Type
- Strategic turboprop bomber and cruise-missile carrier
- Conflict side
- Russia
- Origin
- Soviet Union
- Service note
- Cold War design, modernized Russian service
Aircraft & UAVs
Tu-95
The Tu-95 Bear is a Soviet-designed, four-engine turboprop strategic bomber that remains in Russian long-range aviation as a cruise-missile carrier. In the Russia-Ukraine War, the Tu-95MS variant is documented as one of the launch platforms for Kh-101 land-attack cruise missiles fired from standoff range against targets in Ukraine.
- Conflict side
- Russia
- Built by
- Tupolev
- Built in
- Soviet UnionRussia
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Service History
- In service
- Entered Soviet service in 1956; Tu-95MS remains in Russian service
- Used by
- Russian Aerospace Forces, Soviet Air Forces
- Wars
- Russia-Ukraine War
Production History
- Designer
- Tupolev Design Bureau
- Designed
- Early 1950s
- Built by
- Tupolev
- Built in
- Soviet UnionRussia
- Produced
- 1950s-1990s
- Variants
- Tu-95MS, Tu-95MSM, Tu-142 maritime patrol derivative
Specifications
- Role
- Long-range strategic bomber and missile platform
- Powerplant
- Four Kuznetsov NK-12 turboprops
- Dimensions
- 51.10 m wingspan; 49.20 m length; 12.12 m height
- Maximum takeoff weight
- 188,000 kg
- Cruise speed
- 435 knots true airspeed
- Range
- 6,775 nautical miles
- Missile carriage
- Tu-95MS Bear is documented as a Kh-101 land-attack cruise missile launch platform
Conflict Usage
- Russia-Ukraine War
- Side: Russia
Operated by Russia's Aerospace Forces as a long-range standoff missile carrier; IISS documents Kh-101 land-attack cruise missiles being launched from Tu-95MS Bear and Tu-160 bombers during the war.
Related Weapon Systems
Kh-55/Kh-555Air-launched subsonic cruise missile familyThe Kh-55/Kh-555 family is a Soviet-designed, Raduga-built air-launched cruise missile line carried by Russian strategic bombers. The original Kh-55 was a nuclear-armed standoff weapon, while the Kh-555 is a conventional derivative with improved accuracy and a reported range up to about 3,500 km. In the Russia-Ukraine War, Russian Tu-95MS bombers have launched Kh-101/Kh-555/Kh-55 missiles as part of large mixed strike packages against Ukrainian infrastructure and other targets.
AQ-400 ScytheLong-range one-way strike UAVThe AQ-400 Scythe is a Ukrainian long-range one-way strike UAV developed by Terminal Autonomy for mass production and deep-strike missions. Its modular airframe, pusher-propeller layout, and visual/terrain-aided navigation are intended to provide Ukraine with a comparatively low-cost way to put a sizable payload hundreds of kilometers from the launch area under electronic-warfare pressure.
BoberLong-range one-way attack UAV / loitering munitionThe Bober, also known as the UJ-26 Beaver, is a Ukrainian long-range one-way attack UAV associated with deep-strike missions against Russian military infrastructure. Open sources describe it as a pusher-propeller, canard-layout loitering munition with roughly 800 to 1,000 km of reported range and an approximately 20 kg warhead, giving Ukraine an indigenous strike option for targets far beyond the front line.
Su-34Twin-seat fighter-bomber / strike aircraftThe Su-34 Fullback is a Russian twin-seat fighter-bomber derived from the Su-27 family and built for long-range strike, interdiction, and reconnaissance missions. In the Russia-Ukraine War, Russian forces have relied on Su-34s as key launch aircraft for stand-off glide bombs, allowing heavy ordnance delivery while trying to remain outside many Ukrainian short-range air-defense envelopes.
Su-57Fifth-generation multirole fighter aircraftThe Su-57, NATO reporting name Felon, is Russia's Sukhoi-designed fifth-generation multirole fighter, built for air-to-air combat and standoff strike missions with low-observable shaping, integrated avionics, and internal weapons carriage. In the Russia-Ukraine War it has appeared as a scarce Russian Aerospace Forces asset used cautiously, with documented Ukrainian reporting of a June 2024 strike against an Su-57 at Akhtubinsk airfield rather than routine overflight of defended Ukrainian airspace.
Sukhoi Su-30Twin-engine multirole fighter aircraftThe Sukhoi Su-30 is a two-seat, twin-engine multirole fighter developed from the Su-27 family and fielded in several Russian and export variants. In the Russia-Ukraine War, Russian Su-30SM aircraft have been used around the Black Sea for combat aviation missions, where Ukrainian forces have documented high-profile losses including a 2025 naval-drone missile engagement near Novorossiysk.Sources
Tupolev Tu-95Publisher: SKYbrary Aviation Safety | Note: Supports general aircraft background and technical data including dimensions, powerplant, weight, cruise speed, and range. | Accessed: 2026-06-20TupolevPublisher: Encyclopaedia Britannica | Note: Supports Tupolev design-bureau background and the Tu-95's development as an intercontinental strategic heavy bomber. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Russia's War in Ukraine: Ballistic and Cruise TrajectoriesPublisher: International Institute for Strategic Studies | Note: Directly supports Russia-Ukraine War use context by documenting Kh-101 deployment from Tu-95MS Bear and Tu-160 bomber aircraft. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Tupolev Tu-95MS (RF-94124) in flightPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance; the file page identifies the photo as a Tu-95MS in flight and lists CC BY-SA 3.0 / GFDL licensing with VRT permission. | Accessed: 2026-06-20