Russia Expands Fleet of Enhanced Tu-160M Nuclear Bombers to Ten Aircraft

Footage taken in Russia has confirmed the expansion of the fleet of enhanced Tu-160M strategic bombers to ten aircraft, as work continues both to complete a post-Soviet production run of 50 aircraft, and to upgrade the much smaller fleet of 17 Soviet-built aircraft to the new standard.  Tu-160 serial number 8-04, named Deynekin, was previously seen undergoing modernisation at the Kazan Aircraft Production Association in 2020, and has belatedly been brought up to the much improved new standard, with the same avionics as new production variants. The Tu-160M program has faced significant difficulties, with the Moscow Arbitration Court having in May 2025 ordered Tupolev to pay 3 billion rubles to the Defence Ministry due to delays in fulfilling contracts, while in June 2025, the Ministry filed an additional lawsuit for 0.9 billion rubles due to further unmet obligations. Uncompleted maintenance or upgrade work on strategic aircraft had reportedly been a leading cause for disputes.

The Tu-160’s producer Tupolev was in January reported to have seen a new chief executive, Yuri Ambrosimov, appointed to replace Aleksandr Bobryshev, a year after prior management rotations at the firm in late 2024. This follows multiple reports of legal and financial disputes between the firm and the Defence Ministry. Bringing the bomber back into production has caused significant difficulties, as while it was one of the most complex aircraft produced in the Soviet Union, the extreme post-Soviet decline of the Russian industrial base meant several technologies and production methods needed to be revived to build Tu-160s. First flown in 1981 and entering Soviet service in 1987, the aircraft can carry up to 12 Kh-55 or Kh-101/2 cruise missiles in two internal rotary launchers. The decision to resume production was announced in 2015. 

The Tu-160 first saw combat in 2015 launching air strikes against jihadist militants in Syria to support Syrian government counterinsurgency effort, and subsequently in June 2025 saw its first deployment to launch sorties against Ukrainian targets. Although the Tu-95 has been employed extensively to launch missile strikes against Ukrainian targets from early 2022, the Tu-160 may have not been due to its operational costs and much smaller numbers. The decision to employ the Tu-160 for combat operations may have been influenced by the significant losses suffered by the Tu-95 fleet, which came under intense drone attacks across multiple bases under the Ukrainian SBU's Operation Spider's Web on June 1 that year. Ukrainian forces have launched multiple attempted strikes on the bomber’s primary operating facility, Engels-2 Airbase, with one strike on June 6 causing a major fire.