The Poltava airbase, where many TU-22M3 strategic
bombers were stationed in 1987-1988, was well known to the Americans thanks to
spy satellites. However, in the USSR this base was secret and a limited number
of people had access to it. Over time, the city authorities of Poltava decided
to build residential houses in the area, which is directly adjacent to the
territory of the military airbase. An amateur photo you can see below was taken by a
resident of one of these houses.
The fact is that the designers did not take into account the fact that from the upper floors of the standard Soviet nine-story building, the base was visible as in the palm of your hand. For many decades, the author of the photo did not dare to show it to anyone. Only recently, this already historical photo was posted on the Internet. As about the fate of Poltava-located TU-22M3 (NATO reporting name: Backfire), 43 Tu-22M3, and 423 Kh-22 cruise missiles were scrapped during 2002-2006 under the Nunn–Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction agreement led by the US. Only one aircraft can be seen now in the Poltava Museum of Long-Range and Strategic Aviation.
Tu-22M3 in the Poltava Museum of Long-Range and Strategic Aviation
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