The Soviet TU-4 was a reverse-engineered copy of the American B-29, was it the first plane to be copied like this? Were other planes "copies" in the WW2/coldwar era?

by alittletoostoned
Woekie_Overlord

First of all I think it is worthwhile to establish the definition of reverse-engineering, as sometimes the boundaries between reverse-engineering and patent-infringement or development of stolen technology can be a bit blurry. According to the Cambridge Dictionary reverse engineering is “The act of copying the product of another company by looking carefully at how it is made”. This definition thus can include reverse engineering from stolen blueprints, thereby forgoing the need to have a physical aircraft to tare apart and reconstruct. Something, which with the advent of telecommunications became increasingly easy during the latter stages of the cold-war.

The example of the Tupolev 4 you mentioned is probably the most obvious, as it is nearly an exact clone of the B-29, of which Russia was able to capture a few that landed within Russian territory. As far as I am aware, although admittedly I never deeply looked into this particular subject before this question, this is the first example of an aircraft to be fully copied in the sense of your question.

It is however not the only example of reverse engineering within the aircraft industry. During WWI for instance Anthony Fokker took the ideas for an interrupter gear, enabling forward facing machine guns on aircraft to not destroy the propeller, from August Euler’s patent and improvements thereon by (amongst others) the French engineer Raymond Saulnier. Fokker somewhat improved upon the design and started producing these interrupter gears, thereby giving the German air force an edge over allied aircraft. (1) Although you could debate whether or not this is truly reverse engineering, it is one of the earliest examples of copying, improving and patent infringement in the aerospace industry.

Skipping some years towards the end of wwII: both the Americans and the Russians launched technology gathering operations in order to secure German technologies: Operation Paperclip (US) and Operation Osoaviakhim (Russia). The technologies they captured included many innovations in the fields of rocketry and aviation, including swept wing design, axial-flow jet engines, the V2 missile, and of course German scientists. The Russians built a direct copy of the German V-2 Missile and dubbed it the R-1. This feat was achieved through a reverse engineering effort, aided by captured materials and scientists. The Americans, also aided by German scientists and captured materials built the Bell X-5, which closely resembled the Messerschmitt P.1101. Although on the Bell X-5 the ‘variable sweep’ function of the wings was operationalized for inflight usage. The P.1101 also had variable sweep wings, but these were intended for adjustment on the ground only, in order to evaluate different angles of sweep in flight. Based on the captured technologies both sides started to develop jet aircraft, it is no coincidence that the F-86 Sabre Fighter and the MiG-15 look so similar, they were developed from the same captured German technologies. (2)

The story of the MiG-15, more specifically its engine, is also one of true reverse engineering. The British, through engineer Frank Whittle, had been working on centrifugal type jet engine before WWII, and towards the end of the war these plans had been developed into the Rolls-Royce RB.41 Nene centrifugal jet engine. Ten of these engines were sold to the USSR by the British in 1946, where they were reverse engineered, slightly modified and put into production as the Klimov VK-1 Jet engine. (3)

Often the Yak 38 is accused of being a copy of the Harrier. They do share some similar features on the outside and both are VTOL aircraft, but underneath the Yak-38 uses a completely different system than the Harrier. The Harrier uses a single engine blasting through 4 nozzles, whereas the Yak-38 uses a main engine with a rotating nozzle at the back, and smaller vertically placed jet engines up front specifically for vertical thrust, Not unlike the F-35B ;)

Although there are probably more examples out there, the cold-war is relatively close to the modern day, which means that many files are still classified making it hard to confirm or debunk accusations of reverse engineering or technology stealing. Although I can imagine, as I wrote in the beginning that the internet made the acquisition of foreign technology easier. The examples presented here are some that I am aware of, that does not mean it is an exhaustive list and other examples may very well exist.

Sources

  1. Marc Dierikx, Anthony Fokker: Een vervlogen Leven. (2014)

  2. Michael J. Neufeld, The Nazi Aerospace exodus: Towards a global, transnational History. History and Technology, 28:1, 49-67, https://doi.org/10.1080/07341512.2012.662338

  3. Bill Gunston, World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines, (1989)