Developed in the 1960s/1970s, the Tu-144 was the Soviet Union’s only practical venture into supersonic commercial aviation. Though its career was all too brief, it was a major technological achievement for the Soviet aircraft industry.

The book provides in-depth coverage of the “Concordski,” including projected versions, the Tu-144’s production and service history, and a comparison with the Concorde.

First flown on the last day of 1968—ahead of the Concorde—the Tu-144 had to undergo a long gestation period before the production version entered service in November 1977.

Unfortunately, its career proved to be brief; two accidents and a powerful anti-Tu-144 lobby caused the type to be withdrawn in May 1978.

The book describes the Tu-144’s versions (including the Tu-144LL research aircraft developed under a Russian-US program) and touches on the projected military derivatives.

It is illustrated with color side views and previously unpublished photographs.[AuthorName]By Yefim Gordon, Dmitriy Komissarov, and Vladimir Rigmant[/AuthorName][AuthorBio]Yefim Gordon has been an aviation journalist and photographer for more than 40 years.

Dmitriy Komissarov has been a translator and journalist since 1993.

Vladimir Rigmant is an aviation engineer and has worked for the Tupolev aircraft design bureau since 1986.
Yefim Gordon is an aviation journalist and photographer who has been researching Soviet/Russian aviation history for more than 40 years. He has authored and coauthored more than 130 books on the subject and published hundreds of features and photographs in Russian and foreign aviation magazines. Dmitriy Komissarov is a translator and journalist whose work has been associated with aviation since 1993. He has translated or authored/coauthored more than 80 books on Soviet/Russian aircraft and written numerous features for Russian and foreign aviation magazines.[/AuthorBio][NumIllustration]548 color and b/w images[/NumIllustration][CoAuthor][/CoAuthor][SubTitle]The Soviet Supersonic Airliner[/SubTitle][ColorPattern]548 color and b/w images[/ColorPattern]