Resurrected from the Cold War to dominate modern skies, the Tupolev Tu-160, known to NATO as "Blackjack" and to its crews as the "White Swan", is one of the world's largest and heaviest combat aircraft. Designed as the Soviet answer to the B-1 Lancer, this variable-sweep wing giant is capable of Mach 2+ speeds, allowing it to sprint away from interceptors after delivering its payload. While originally built for nuclear deterrence, the Tu-160 has found a deadly new role in the 21st century as a long-range "missile truck." In a major industrial feat, Russia recently restarted production of this titan as the modernized Tu-160M, featuring entirely new avionics and engines. Today, these aircraft are frequently tracked launching precision Kh-101 cruise missiles against targets in Ukraine from safe standoff distances deep within Russian airspace or over the Caspian Sea, proving that this Cold War veteran is far from retirement.

Explore the Tu-160 and 54 other aircraft in service with the Russian Ministry of Defense in our Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation Edition of Aircraft Recognition Playing Cards deck!