Aviation News – June 2018

I

n the 1950s the Soviet monopolist airline

Aero ot saw a signi cant expansion

in its operations, serving routes in the

country spanning nine time zones.

The sustainment of the growth required

bigger and longer- ying turboprop and jet-

powered airliners to enlarge its domestic and

international route network.

A passenger jet was to be added to the

 eet to serve the long-range international

routes between Moscow and Tokyo, Delhi

and Montreal, in addition to the longest

domestic services between Moscow and

Khabarovsk and Vladivostok in the Far

East. The four-turboprop Tu-114, based on

the Tu-95 bomber, proved to be an interim

solution, but it was relatively slow, noisy and

passengers experienced signi cant cabin

vibration.

A new long-range, four-engined jetliner

was needed, in the class of the Boeing 707

and Douglas DC-8. In 1960, the Moscow-

based Ilyushin Design Bureau, known at

the time as OKB-240, began work on its

own initiative on a concept of an all-new

jet-powered airliner for transporting 150

passengers over 2,427nm (4,500km)

distance. Designated Il-62, it was intended

to feature a high degree of community with

the Il-18 four-engined turboprop, which was

already in production, and was to be powered

by four tail-mounted RD-23-300 turbojets. In

February 1960, Ilyushin submitted a proposal

for the new aircraft to the Soviet Deputy

Prime Minister, Dmitry Ustinov.

The design may have been in uenced

by the VC10 which was being developed at

the same time. The Il-62 received a positive

response and on June 18, 1960 the Soviet

Union’s Council of Ministers issued a decree

for launching the type’s development. The

aircraft was required to be able to transport

165 passengers for 2,427nm (4,500km)

or 125 passengers a distance of 3,614nm

(6,700km). The Kuznetsov Design Bureau

(known at the time as OKB-276) was tasked

to develop the NK-8 turbojet engines to

power the new machine.

The Il-62 had the distinction of being the

last aircraft that saw the active involvement

of the design bureau founder, Sergey

Ilyushin. The jetliner’s concept with four

engines, mounted in horizontal pairs on each

side of the rear fuselage, was proposed

by him. Intended to provide a signi cant

reduction in the noise and vibration levels

in the cabin, it also allowed for the use of

low-mounted wings for the best aerodynamic

efficiency.

The engine installation layout, packed

next to each other, also meant easier

control during powerplant failure due to

the lack of thrust asymmetric effects. But

the rear-mounted engine layout also had

some drawbacks, such as the centre of

gravity shifted to the rear, which could

create controllability problems, necessitating

a precise placement of the fuel and the

passengers on board. The powerplant

installation also imposed the use of a

T-shaped tailplane.

Ilyushin wanted to design a simple aircraft

CLASSIC JETLINERS SPECIAL

ILYUSHIN Il-62

SOVIET PIONEER

I

n the 1950s the Soviet monopolist airline

Aero ot saw a signi cant expansion

own initiative on a concept of an all-new

jet-powered airliner for transporting 150

The Il-62 had the distinction of being the

last aircraft that saw the active involvement

SOVIET PIONEER

The Ilyushin Il-62 played an important role in passenger aircraft

development in the Soviet Union, facilitating the expansion of the

Aerofl ot route network in the 1960s and 1970s. Alexander Mladenov

and Krassimir Grozev examine the advancement and service

of the fi rst mass-produced Soviet long-range passenger jet.

36 Aviation News incorporating Jets June 2018

36-41_jetliners_il-62DC.mfDC.mf.indd 36 03/05/2018 10:11