Tupolev Tu-154

The Tupolev Tu-154 (Russian: Tyполев Ту-154; NATO reporting name: Careless) is a three-engine medium-range narrow-body airliner designed in the mid-1960s and manufactured by Tupolev. A workhorse of Soviet and (subsequently) Russian airlines for several decades, it carried half of all passengers flown by Aeroflot and its subsidiaries (137.5 million/year or 243.8 billion passenger km in 1990), remaining the standard domestic-route airliner of Russia and former Soviet states until the mid-2000s. It was exported to 17 non-Russian airlines and used as a head-of-state transport by the air forces of several countries.

With a cruising speed of 560 mph (901.23 km/h) the Tu-154 is one of the fastest civilian aircraft in use and has a range of 3,280 miles (5,278.6 kilometers). Capable of operating from unpaved and gravel airfields with only basic facilities, it was widely used in the extreme Arctic conditions of Russia's northern/eastern regions where other airliners were unable to operate. Originally designed for a 45,000 hour service life (18,000 cycles) but capable of 80,000 hours with upgrades, it was expected to continue in service until 2016, although noise regulations have restricted flights to western Europe and other regions.

In January 2010 Russian flag carrier Aeroflot announced the retirement of its Tu-154 fleet after 40 years, with the last scheduled flight being Aeroflot Flight 736 from Ekaterinburg to Moscow on December 31st, 2009.

Since 1968 there have been 39 fatal incidents involving the Tu-154, most of which were caused either by factors unrelated to the aircraft, or by its extensive use in demanding conditions.

Following a crash in 2016 all Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft in Russia were grounded. However, the Tu-154 is still being used as of January 2017 by North Korea.

Users

 * Armenia
 * Armenian Air Force
 * Bulgaria
 * Bulgarian Air Force
 * People's Republic of China
 * People's Liberation Army Air Force
 * Cuba
 * Cuban Air Force
 * Czechoslovakia
 * Czechoslovak Air Force (passed onto succesor states)
 * Czech Republic
 * Czech Air Force
 * East Germany
 * East German Air Force (passed onto Luftwaffe upon reunification)
 * Germany
 * Luftwaffe
 * Kazakhstan
 * Kazakhstan Air Force
 * Mongolia
 * Mongolian Air Force
 * Poland
 * Polish Air Force
 * Russia
 * Russian Air Force
 * Russian Navy
 * Soviet Union
 * Soviet Air Force (passed onto successor states)
 * Turkmenistan
 * Turkmenistan Air Force
 * Ukraine
 * Ukrainian Air Force
 * Uzbekistan
 * Uzbek Air Force