Tumansky R-21
{{Short description|1960s Soviet turbojet engine}}
| {{Infobox Aircraft Begin
|name=R-21 |image= }}{{Infobox Aircraft Engine |type= Turbojet |manufacturer= Tumansky |first run= 1960 |major applications= Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-8 |number built = |program cost = |unit cost = |developed from = Tumansky R-11 |developed into = |variants with their own articles = }} |
The Tumansky R-21 was a Soviet turbojet engine of the 1960s. Used for development only, the project was canceled.
Design and development
The Tumansky R-21 was developed at Tushino motor plant (part of OKB-300), headed by Nikolai Georgievich Metskhvarishvili, as a twin-spool axial-flow afterburning turbojet. It was based on the Tumansky R-11 with the goal of increasing thrust and airflow, using a new six-stage compressor with a larger diameter and different rotor blades than its predecessor as well as a new afterburner chamber and variable exhaust nozzle. The increased pressure ratio and turbine inlet temperature required components to be fabricated from advanced alloys.[http://airwar.ru/enc/xplane/e8.html Ye-8 development history on Airwar.ru] Several contemporary Soviet aircraft were planned to use the R-21, including the Sukhoi T-58, Sukhoi T-6 and the Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-8. On September 11, 1962 an R-21, fitted to a Ye-8, exploded in mid-air after compressor failure; test pilot Georgy Mosolov survived the ejection at Mach 1.78, but he never fully recovered.[https://web.archive.org/web/20120528201107/http://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/AS-Interview-Georgy-Mosolov.html?c=y&page=2 Interview with Georgy Mosolov in Air & Space magazine] Shortly afterward the Ye-8 program was cancelled along with R-21 development in favour of heavier fighter planes such as the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23, which required more powerful engines.
Variants
- R-21F-300 – the only version built.
Specifications (R-21F-300)
{{jetspecs
|
|type=Afterburning turbojet
|length=
|diameter=987 mm (38.9 in)
|weight=1,250 kg (2,755 lb)
|compressor= Six-stage axial compressor
|combustion=
|turbine=
|fueltype=
|oilsystem=
|power=
|thrust=
- 46.1 kN (10,361 lbf) military power
- 80.6 kN (15,873 lbf) with afterburner
|compression=
|aircon=
|turbinetemp=
|fuelcon=
|specfuelcon=
|power/weight=
|thrust/weight=3.76; 5.76 with afterburner.
}}
See also
{{aircontent
|see also=
|related=
|similar aircraft=
|lists=
|similar engines=
}}