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Thank you for flying Soviet airline
The Daily Mail ^ | 13 December 2012 | Leon Watson

Posted on 12/13/2012 8:26:18 PM PST by MinorityRepublican

The CCCP on this plane's tail refers to Russia's former regime, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Sat rusting away in a field 555 miles east of Moscow, these relics are all that's left of a bygone era of Soviet innovation in military and civilian aircraft.

Among them are some of the former Communist regime's greatest achievements in air travel, that have since been superseded many times and rendered redundant.

Nine thousand of the hulking Cold War wrecks can be seen at the vast plane and helicopter graveyard at Russia's largest aviation museum in Ulyanovsk, in the Middle Volga region.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Russia
KEYWORDS:
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1 posted on 12/13/2012 8:26:25 PM PST by MinorityRepublican
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To: MinorityRepublican

Makes me feel old that they feel it’s necessary to explain “CCCP” !

I flew the old Aeroflot once and that was enough, more than enough. Don’t know what it’s like today.


2 posted on 12/13/2012 8:36:22 PM PST by 1066AD
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To: MinorityRepublican
At one time, Aeroflot was the world's largest airline. It was the Soviet Union's national air carrier and had the worst safety record for the number of passengers carried. Soviet obsession with keeping bad news at a minimum dictated that air crashes were classed as state secrets. If there was a crash, the authorities would not contact the victim's families. Instead the family members were supposed to call the airline office at the intended destination to find out their relative’s dead or alive status.
3 posted on 12/13/2012 8:43:51 PM PST by MasterGunner01
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To: MasterGunner01
If there was a crash, the authorities would not contact the victim's families. Instead the family members were supposed to call the airline office at the intended destination to find out their relative’s dead or alive status.

So if nobody called, then nobody died. Keeps the numbers lower that way, I suppose.

4 posted on 12/13/2012 8:53:00 PM PST by eartrumpet
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To: MinorityRepublican
Woah..that a rare vintage bird, with the landing skis on the left: transport or bomber-trainer I believe; would have to dig out some books to identify.

5 posted on 12/13/2012 9:05:02 PM PST by wolficatZ (Hey blue states....Got Food?)
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To: eartrumpet
If you didn't call the right airport, you'd never be told what happened. Many Russian families never found out what happened. The only crashes that were announced had foreign nationals among the casualties. Otherwise, the silence was absolute.
6 posted on 12/13/2012 9:08:50 PM PST by MasterGunner01
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To: wolficatZ
A Tupolev Ant-4, the only one left.

7 posted on 12/13/2012 9:19:56 PM PST by wolficatZ (Hey blue states....Got Food?)
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To: 1066AD

Yea, I did that once too... Helsinki to Moscow in the mid 1980’s... and lived to tell about it!


8 posted on 12/13/2012 9:36:00 PM PST by Cementjungle
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To: MinorityRepublican

In Soviet Russia, airplane fly you.


9 posted on 12/13/2012 9:37:58 PM PST by andyk (I have sworn...eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.)
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To: wolficatZ

Is that a Tupolev TB-3, not a 4? Only one TB4 was ever built.

By August 1941, these crates made up 25% of the Soviet bomber fleet, and they flew DAYLIGHT, unescorted bombing raids in to the face of the German Air Force. The crews died bravely, but they still died in huge numbers.


10 posted on 12/13/2012 10:16:22 PM PST by tcrlaf (Well, it is what the Sheeple voted for....)
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To: MinorityRepublican
Soviet innovation?

Like hell. Most of those were primarily American knock-offs form the days in which America actually had innovators.

11 posted on 12/13/2012 11:04:41 PM PST by onedoug
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To: onedoug
When a few of our B-29’s were forced to land in the Soviet Union during WWII I believe, (could have been after), it took them a while to give them back to us.

Stalin had his Engineers study the planes and reproduce exact copies. The Engineers were so fearful of Stalin, that they replicated everything, including the patched bullet holes.

I'll have to check out the details, just a recollection.

12 posted on 12/13/2012 11:27:34 PM PST by Kickass Conservative (They Live, and we're the only ones wearing the Sunglasses...)
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To: Kickass Conservative

Copying those B-29’s really was an impressive feat, given that every part on them was made using materials measured in imperial units, whereas all Soviet materials, from sheet metal to wire was made in metric units.


13 posted on 12/14/2012 2:00:01 AM PST by SeeSharp
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To: 1066AD

Well those letters are Cyrillic and mean S S S R. Can’t remember how they translate except Sovietskoe S S Russki...I think


14 posted on 12/14/2012 2:40:45 AM PST by Jimmy Valentine (DemocRATS - when they speak, they lie; when they are silent, they are stealing the American Dream)
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To: Kickass Conservative

That would be the Tupolev Tu-4.


15 posted on 12/14/2012 3:16:21 AM PST by jamaksin
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To: wolficatZ

16 posted on 12/14/2012 3:55:43 AM PST by Rebelbase
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To: Rebelbase

What the heck is that?


17 posted on 12/14/2012 4:26:56 AM PST by Wildbill22 (They have us surrounded again, the poor bastards- Gen Creighton Williams Abrams)
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To: Wildbill22

Nothing that I know of that was ever built, crops up from time to time.

Would be great for some marvel movie, actually I think it was used in Captain America. Or a similar design, these are just very well crafted images.


18 posted on 12/14/2012 4:34:22 AM PST by Eye of Unk (A Civil Cold War in America is here, its already been declared.)
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To: MinorityRepublican

Probably more leg room and prettier stewardesses in any of those planes than on any USA airline today.


19 posted on 12/14/2012 5:04:17 AM PST by Notary Sojac (Only liberals believe that people can be made virtuous via legislative enactment.)
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To: Wildbill22

http://www.rusring.net/~levin/k7/k777.htm

Bonus points for translating!


20 posted on 12/14/2012 5:33:55 AM PST by jughandle
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