Tupolev ANT-58

The Tupolev ANT‑58 was a Soviet experimental aircraft developed in the early 1930s as part of Andrei Nikolayevich Tupolev’s series of high‑speed, twin‑engine bombers. Built at the Tupolev Design Bureau, the sole prototype flew for the first time in 1934, employing a low‑wing monoplane layout and a sleek, all‑metal stressed‑skin construction that was advanced for its era. Powered by two 750 hp Gnome‑Rhône 14K radial engines, the ANT‑58 could reach a top speed of roughly 460 km/h (286 mph) and carried a modest payload of up to 800 kg of bombs, making it a testbed for aerodynamic refinements and structural techniques later used in the highly successful Tupolev SB and DB‑3 series. Although only one example was built and it never entered mass production, the aircraft’s streamlined fuselage, retractable landing gear, and integrated engine nacelles demonstrated the feasibility of modern bomber concepts for the USSR. The ANT‑58’s experimental data helped shape Soviet bomber doctrine in the pre‑World‑War years, contributing to the rapid evolution of tactical air power and cementing Tupolev’s reputation as a pioneering aerospace manufacturer. Today the ANT‑58 is preserved in the Central Air Force Museum near Moscow, serving as a tangible reminder of the innovative spirit that propelled Soviet aviation forward.