BERIEV MAINSTAY: The Soviet AWACS

Video Description

Defending the Soviet Union's long borders against SAC and RAF bombers was a vexing problem throughout the Cold War. Their first flying radar picket, the TU-126 Moss, proved to be obsolete on delivery as SAC moved to low level ingress profiles. So the PVO moved to acquire a more advanced aircraft, equipped with a pulse-doppler radar. This, in turn, led to the Beriev Mainstay, an interesting aircraft that continues in service today. Note: In the video I mention the shooting down of two Mainstays in Ukraine and that the exact method of attack is as yet unclear. At the time of publication the most likely scenario is that they were both downed by forward-deployed Patriot missile batteries shooting at extreme range. I don't believe that conclusive evidence has been provided that this was the cause but doubtless over time that evidence will emerge. Sources: Flight Craft 6: Ilyushin/Beriyev A-50: The 'Soviet Sentry' by Yefim Gordon and Dmitriy Komissarov contains some interesting details however some of the technical claims do seem to contain a little hyperbole Soviet and Russian Special Mission Aircraft by Yefim Gordon also contains some interesting anecdotes about the Mainstay as well as other AWACs and related support aircraft. It is interesting and contains information that I've not seen in other publications or online