4 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Tupolev Tu-126 0012: Marcin Zieliński· CC BY 2.5
- 2. Model Tupolev Tu-126: Hornet Driver· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 3. Tu-126 in flight 1977: Unknown author Unknown author· Public domain
- 4. Tupolev Tu-126 Model: Hornet Driver· CC BY-SA 4.0
what is it?
The Tupolev Tu-126 (NATO reporting name: Moss) was an airborne early warning and control aircraft developed from the Tupolev Tu-114 airliner by the Tupolev design bureau. It was in service with the armed forces of the Soviet Union from 1965 to 1984.
How to recognise it: 4 turboprops · low wing · 51.4 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 64 years ago, in 1962.
- Top speed is 6.1× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 51.4 m: about 11 cars parked nose to tail.
- Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 29 African elephants (~6 t each).
- Range of 7,000 km: Amsterdam to New York (≈5,850 km) without stopping.
- Can fly 1.2× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).
turboprop: A jet-style turbine turning a propeller: efficient on short hops.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1962-01-23
- introduced
- 1965
- retired
- 1984
- status
- retired
- number built
- 9
- role
- airborne early warning and control
- origin
- 🇷🇺 Soviet Union
- makers
- Tupolev, Aviakor
- engines
- 4× Kuznetsov NK-12MV / NK-12
- crew
- 12
- length
- 56.5 m
- wingspan
- 51.4 m
- height
- 16.1 m
- max take-off weight
- 171 t
- top speed
- 790 km/h
- cruise speed
- 520 km/h
- range
- 7,000 km
- ceiling
- 10,700 m
- wings
- low wing
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q958576, Wikipedia: Tupolev Tu-126 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.