Derived metrics
Computed by aircraft.fyi from the core specification — see how we calculate these.
How big is it, really?
The Tupolev Tu-144's wingspan, against things you already know the size of.
The numbers
| Length | 65.70 m |
|---|---|
| Wingspan | 28.80 m |
| Height | 12.50 m |
| MTOW (Tu-144D) | 207,000 kg |
| Cruise | Mach 2.15 |
| Range (Tu-144D) | ≈6,500 km |
| Engines (D) | 4 × Kolesov RD-36-51A |
| First flight | 31 December 1968 |
| Built | 16 |
Put the Tupolev Tu-144 next to something
Last verified: 2026-07-14 · Spot an error? business@luck.fyi
What makes it different
The Tu-144 beat Concorde into the air by two months — 31 December 1968 — and past Mach 2 first as well. It was bigger and faster on paper, and needed retractable canard winglets behind the cockpit to land at manageable speeds. The Western press nicknamed it Concordski for its resemblance to its rival.
It won the race and lost everything after. One aircraft broke up in front of 250,000 people at the 1973 Paris Air Show; another crashed in testing in 1978. Its passenger career totalled 55 flights, Moscow to Almaty, cabin so loud that passengers passed notes — and then it was quietly withdrawn.
The strangest afterlife in aviation followed: NASA leased one in the 1990s as a flying supersonic laboratory. Sixteen were built; several survive in museums, including one improbably mounted on the roof of a technology museum in Sinsheim, Germany, next to a Concorde.
Tupolev Tu-144 — the short answers
How fast is the Tupolev Tu-144?
How far can the Tupolev Tu-144 fly?
How many people does the Tupolev Tu-144 carry?
Is the Tupolev Tu-144 still in production?
How big is the Tupolev Tu-144?
The Tupolev Tu-144 line
Tu-144S
Tu-144D
Tu-144LL
Who flies the Tupolev Tu-144
No current operators — this aircraft's flying days are over. The operators of record are below.