From Aerokosmicheskoye Obozreniye N°2, 2008:
Work on Aircraft "486" ended in the initial design stages, serving as a basis for the design of the Aircraft "86" long-range bomber in January 1949. Initially, Aircraft "86" was a modification of the Tu-14, designed by OKB-300. It was to be powered by two AM-02 turbojet engines with a thrust of 4780 kgs, or with two TR-3 turbojet engines with a thrust of 4500 kgs. After wind tunnel testing of the project at TsAGI, the aircraft was completely redesigned, and in March 1949 a completely new aircraft with swept wings was designed, based on the Aircraft "486" configuration. The original version of the machine had the following data:
Wing span, m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25.7
Length, m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24.1
Height, m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6
Swept wing degrees. . . . . . . 36.0
Flight weight overload, ie. . . . . . . 42.0
Empty weight, t. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21.7
Full speed at 6000 m, km / h . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .980
Time to climb to 5000 m min. . . . . . . 4.8
Service ceiling, m. . . . . . . . . . . 13.400
Range with 2,000 kg of bombs, km. . . .4000
Takeoff, m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1060
Crew. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Airplane "86" differentiated itself from Aircraft "486" by the size of its bomb bay, calculated with a normal 2-ton bomb load of and a maximum 6-ton load; greater fuel capacity, increased from 5,2 to 17,2 cubic meters; and a larger fuselage diameter. The crew was increased to six people. The forward pressurized cabin was completely rearranged, and lost the fighter pilot-type stepped cockpit. The radio operator was moved into a separate, enclosed compartment. The front landing gear extended, while the main gear was fitted with dual wheels. Brake pads were installed in the aft fuselage. Gunnery armament supplemented the NP-23 forward cannon. A PSBN radar was fitted in the forward part of the fuselage.
During the development of Aircraft "86", the design bureau conducted research on the wing area, wing aspect ratio and flight characteristics of swept-wing aircraft. Their aim was to determine the optimal size of a wing with a sweep of 36° for a jet bomber with a takeoff weight of about 40,000 pounds and two AM-02 engines. The basis for study was a plane with a wing area of 80 sq.m. and an 8.06 stretch; 6,700 kg of fuel in the wings, 10,700 kg in the fuselage; and an empty weight of 19,000 kg. As a result, the optimal parameters were determined to be a wing area of 80-90 sq.m. with an 8-10 extension.
To increase the flight distance, an elongation of 10 and a wing area of 100-110 sq.m. were required. The original Aircraft "86" study continued to evolve, increasing the length of the fuselage, wing span, overall size and fuel capacity. The forward fuselage become more pointed, and the fuselage was rearranged to accommodate extra fuel tanks. The nose landing gear was equipped with dual wheels. Front cannon installation once again included an NP-23 gun. The PSBN radar was replaced by the PSBN-M. The calculated data of the second draft of Aircraft "86" was as follows:
Wing span, m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.5
Length, m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.5
Height, m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3
Flight weight overload, ie. . . . . . . 42.0
Empty weight, t. . . . . . . . . . . . . 21.7
Full speed at 6000 m, km / h . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .980
Service ceiling, m. . . . . . . . . . . 13.400
Time lift to a height of 5,000 m, min. . . . 4.8
Range with 2,000 kg of bombs, km. . . .4750
Takeoff, m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1060
Crew. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Bomb load, kg. . . . . . . . . . . 2000-6000
The defensive armament. . 7 guns, HP-23
Based on Aircraft "86", a reconnaissance aircraft and torpedo bomber were drafted. The former had an increased fuel capacity and photographic reconnaissance capability, while the latter featured an extended bomb bay.
Research on Aircraft "86" showed that a full-fledged long-range bomber was possible only by increasing the weight and dimensions of the machine and its engine thrust by 1.5-2 times. Work on the program stopped at the stage of active design, but design solutions (in particular, the overall layout of the fuselage) were used in the project of the Tu-16, the creation of which was performed by the same design bureau.
In the absence of AM-02 engines, the bureau prepared a variant of Aircraft "86" using the more real TR-3 engines, designed by OKB-165. The project received the designation Aircraft "87" but did not differ from the original otherwise. Preliminary design was issued on July 18, 1949, but further development work was not granted.
The layout of Aircraft "86" and Aircraft "87" was studied in the preliminary design department, headed by S. M. Egerom. Despite the fact that both projects were not implemented, the layout solutions — especially for the fuselage, crew placement, weapons and equipment — were implemented with little or no changes in the "88" project and the preceding "494" project, proposed by B.M. Kondorsky's team.