An unusual incident once occurred in the history of domestic aviation — a strategic bomber Tu-95MS collided with an Il-78 tanker, but photos of the aftermath have only appeared now. The archival footage was shown by a former military pilot and author of the Telegram channel Fighterbomber.
He did not specify where, in what year, and under what circumstances the "accident" occurred. The "Bear" rammed the Il-78 with its keel, leaving a deep, ragged hole in the fairing of the flap mechanism.
Fighterbomber added that the planes were eventually repaired and both continued to serve.
It's hard to imagine the emotions and feelings of the refueling operator who watched the whole ramming process with his own eyes. The situation was complicated by the fact that the landing gear in the "Il" is released under its own weight. But everything worked out.
It should be noted that the difficulty of refueling the Tu-95 is due to the huge propellers of its engines, which create a powerful and extremely unstable air flow. When the "Bear" approaches the tanker, the pilot literally has to "fight" the steering wheel, holding the 180-ton machine a few meters away from the Il-78.
