text:
Petlyakov Pe-8

The Petlyakov Pe-8 (Петляков Пе-8) was a Soviet heavy bomber designed before World War II, and the only four-engine bomber the USSR built during the war. Produced in limited numbers, it was used to bomb Berlin in August 1941. It was also used for so-called "morale raids" designed to raise the spirit of the Soviet people by exposing Axis vulnerabilities. Its primary mission, however, was to attack German airfields, rail yards and other rear-area facilities at night, although one was used to fly the People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs (Foreign Minister) Vyacheslav Molotov from Moscow to the United States in 1942.

Originally designated the TB-7, the aircraft was renamed the Pe-8 after its primary designer, Vladimir Petlyakov, died in a plane crash in 1942. Supply problems complicated the aircraft's production and the Pe-8s also had engine problems. As Soviet morale boosters, they were also high-value targets for the Luftwaffe's fighter pilots. The loss rate of these aircraft, whether from mechanical failure, friendly fire, or combat, doubled between 1942 and 1944.

By the end of the war, most of the surviving aircraft had been withdrawn from combat units. After the war, some were modified as transports for important officials, and a few others were used in various Soviet testing programs. Some supported the Soviet Arctic operations until the late 1950s.

Design and development
Development of the Pe-8 began in July 1934, when the Soviet Air Forces (VVS) issued requirements for an aircraft to replace the obsolete and cumbersome Tupolev TB-3 heavy bomber. These requirements specified a bomber that could carry 2000 kg of bombs 4500 km at a speed greater than 440 km/h at an altitude of 10000 m, figures that were twice the range, speed and service ceiling of the TB-3. The task was assigned to the Tupolev Design Bureau (OKB) where Andrei Tupolev handed the work to a team led by Vladimir Petlyakov and the project received the internal bureau designation of ANT-42. The resulting aircraft, a four-engined, mid-wing cantilever monoplane, was initially designated as the TB-7 (Тяжёлый Бомбардировщик, Tyazholy Bombardirovschik—Heavy Bomber) by the VVS and owed more to the streamlined design of the Tupolev SB than to the block-like design of the TB-3.

The bomber was built mainly of duralumin, with two steel spars in the wings, although the ailerons were fabric-covered. The pear-shaped monocoque fuselage required the pilots to sit in tandem, offset to the left. In the prototype, space for a fifth engine, an auxiliary Klimov M-100, was reserved inside the fuselage, in a fairing above the wing spars and behind the pilots. It was intended to drive a supercharger that supplied pressurized air to the Mikulin AM-34FRN engines, with the installation designated ATsN-2 (Agregat tsentral'novo nadduva—Central Supercharging Unit), an idea pioneered in 1918 by the Zeppelin-Staaken firm in the German Empire, and refined further for the Third Reich Luftwaffe's Do 217P and Hs 130E experimental bomber designs. Subsequent models of the Pe-8 omitted the internal engine, and provided seating for a flight engineer and radio operator, behind and below the pilots. The bombardier sat in the nose and manned a turret armed with a 20 mm ShVAK cannon that covered a 120° cone ahead. A prominent chin gondola, nicknamed the 'beard', protruded beneath the nose. The dorsal gunner sat at the rear of the ATsN fairing with a sliding hood covering a 7.62 mm ShKAS machine gun and another ShKAS mounted in a ventral hatch. The tail gunner had a powered turret with a ShVAK and, most unusually, there were manually operated ShVAK cannon mounted at the rear of each inner engine nacelle. Crewmen had access to these positions through the wing or by a trapdoor in the upper wing surface. The large internal bomb bay racks held up to 4000 kg of bombs; external racks held a single 500 kg FAB-500 (Fugasnaya AviaBomba - high explosive bomb) bomb under each wing.

The maiden flight of the unarmed prototype, piloted by M. M. Gromov and without the ATsN installation, occurred at Khodynka Aerodrome on 27 December 1936. After successful initial trials, the ATsN system was installed for the State acceptance trials in August 1937 and the AM-34RNB engines were fitted during the tests. Gromov reported that the rudder was ineffective and that the outer engines overheated. Subsequent wind tunnel testing identified a problem with the aerodynamics of the radiators and nacelles. To solve this problem, the outer engines' radiators were moved into deep ducts under the inner nacelles. The Pe-8 now featured only two pronounced radiator intakes, one under each inner engine, each shared by both inner and outer engines, one of the distinctive and unique features of the aircraft. The rudder was also enlarged and redesigned with a smooth skin.

Construction of a second prototype began in April 1936, incorporating lessons from the first aircraft and feedback from the VVS. Designers widened the fuselage by 100 mm; the 'beard' was also widened and the tail section was modified to lessen resistance and improve rudder function. A reconfigured control system included an autopilot and the engineers redesigned portions of the electrical system. The engines were changed to the more powerful AM-34FRNVs and a redesigned undercarriage was fitted to the airframe. Two additional fuel tanks increased the craft's range. The defensive and offensive armament was revised, and the bomber's weaponry expanded to twin ShKAS guns in the nose, nacelle barbettes and tail turrets and a dorsal turret with a ShVAK; this design eliminated the ventral gun. The bomb bay was modified to allow for a single 5000 kg FAB-5000 bomb to be carried and provisions were added to carry VAP-500 or VAP-1000 poison gas dispensers under the wings.

The arrests of both Tupolev and Petlyakov in October 1937, during the Great Purge, disrupted the program and the second prototype did not make its first flight until 26 July 1938. Although this prototype served as the basis for the series aircraft, further modifications were made to the armament. New weaponry included a retractable ShVAK in the MV-6 dorsal turret, another ShVAK in a KEB tail turret and a 12.7 mm Berezin UBT machine gun in each ShU barbette in each inner engine nacelle, on the underside of the wing covering the lower rear arc of fire to left and right, respectively. Another fuel tank further increased the range, and the 'beard' was removed entirely, replaced by a more streamlined nose. Authorization for production was slow for several reasons, including the Great Purge, but also due to the scarcity of resources, and a shortage of workers. Although production facilities in the Kazan Factory No. 124 were ready as early as 1937, the order to begin was not given until 1939.

Manufacture and supply problems
Engine supply problems complicated the construction of the aircraft. Production of the ATsN superchargers could not be organized in any systematic way and only the first four Pe-8s were equipped with them. Factory No. 124 shut down its Pe-8 production line at the beginning of 1940 while alternative engines were evaluated. Somewhere in the massive Soviet chain of command, the decision was made to proceed without the superchargers. The unavailability of the Klimov M-100 engine of the ATsN-2 installation required a design change, although this modification allowed a commander and radio operator to be carried in its place. Then, to compound the problem further, the production of AM-34FRNV engines ended in the second half of 1939. Only two or four Pe-8s were equipped with them. Eighteen of the aircraft produced by the end of 1940 were fitted with AM-35A engines.

In 1940, six aircraft without engines were fitted with Mikulin AM-35A engines, while VVS officials evaluated both the Charomskiy ACh-30 and Charomskiy M-40 aircraft Diesel engines. At least nine Pe-8s were fitted with diesel engines in 1941, but neither the ACh-30 nor the M-40 were entirely satisfactory, despite greatly increasing the range of the aircraft. All surviving Pe-8s were re-engined with AM-35As by the end of 1941. Production continued slowly at Factory No. 124; most of the factory's resources were devoted to the higher-priority Petlyakov Pe-2, a successful light bomber. At this time, most of these aircraft, re-designated as the Pe-8 after Petlyakov was killed in a Pe-2 crash on 12 January 1942, were built with out-of-production AM-35A engines.

The 1,380-kW (1,850-hp) Shvetsov ASh-82 radial engine was proposed as a replacement to alleviate the shortage of engines and this modification went into production in late 1942. The exhaust arrangements of the ASh-82 were not compatible with the gun turrets in the rear of the engine nacelles and the guns were removed, reducing the aircraft's defensive capability. At the end of 1943, the nose turret was deleted in favor of a manually operated ShKAS machine gun in a more streamlined nose. This version of the aircraft proved to have much the same range as the diesel-engined versions, but reliability was greatly improved. Production of the Pe-8s totaled 93.

The last Pe-8s were completed in 1944 as Pe-8ONs (Osobovo Naznacheniya—Special Mission) with Charomskiy ACh-30B engines and a fillet at the base of the vertical stabilizer. These were special VIP transports with a seating capacity of twelve and a cargo capacity of 1200 kg. Sources disagree as to whether the armament was removed and, if it was, whether partly or entirely.

Wartime use
When Operation Barbarossa began on 22 June 1941, only the 2nd Squadron of the 14th Heavy Bomber Regiment (Tyazholy Bombardirovochnyy Avia Polk—TBAP), based at Boryspil was equipped with Pe-8s, but was not ready for combat. Two of its nine Pe-8s were destroyed by German air strikes shortly after the war began, before the Pe-8s were withdrawn out of reach of German bombers to Kazan. Stalin ordered that the squadron be reformed into a regiment, and that it strike targets deep inside German territory. Theoretically, this tactic would boost Soviet morale by demonstrating the vulnerability of the enemy. The squadron was re-designated on 29 June as the 412th TBAP and began training for long-range missions. On or about 27 July it was again renamed, this time as the 432nd TBAP. On the evening of 10 August, eight M-40-engined Pe-8s of the 432nd TBAP, accompanied by Yermolaev Yer-2s of the 420th Long-Range Bomber Aviation Regiment (DBAP), attempted to bomb Berlin from Pushkino Airfield near Leningrad. One heavily loaded Pe-8 crashed immediately upon take off, after it lost an engine. Only four managed to reach Berlin, or its outskirts, and of those, only two returned to their base. The others landed elsewhere or crash-landed in Finland and Estonia. The aircraft of the commander of the 81st Long-Range Bomber Division, Combrig Mikhail Vodopianov, to which both regiments belonged, was attacked mistakenly by Polikarpov I-16s from Soviet Naval Aviation over the Baltic Sea and lost an engine; later, before he could reach Berlin, German flak punctured a fuel tank. He crash-landed his aircraft in southern Estonia. Five more Pe-8s were lost during the operation, largely due to the unreliability of the M-40s. Seven Pe-8s were lost during the month of August alone, rendering the regiment ineffective. During this period, the surviving aircraft were re-equipped with AM-35As, which gave them a shorter range, but a more reliable engine.

By 1 October 1941, the regiment mustered fourteen Pe-8s after having been replenished by new aircraft from the factory. It spent the rest of the year conducting night raids on Berlin, Königsberg, Danzig and as well as German-occupied cities in the Soviet Union. The regiment was re-designated as the 746th Separate Long-Range Aviation Regiment (Otdel'nyy Avia Polk Dahl'nevo Deystviya—OAPDD) on 3 December. No aircraft were reported on hand two days later after this designation, but eleven were on strength on 18 March 1942. During the winter of 1941–42, the regiment was assigned the destruction of a railroad bridge over the Volga River, near Kalinin. In April 1942, one aircraft flew diplomatic personnel and mail on a non-stop flight from Moscow to Great Britain. This was a test run for a flight carrying Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov and his delegation from Moscow to London and then to Washington, D.C., and back, for negotiations to open a second front against Nazi Germany (19 May – 13 June 1942). The flight crossed German-controlled airspace on the return trip without incident. From August 1941 to May 1942, the regiment flew 226 sorties and dropped 606 t of bombs. In the course of these missions, they lost 14 bombers, five in combat, and the rest from engine malfunction. The regiment received 17 Pe-8s as replacements. Sixteen aircraft were on hand on 1 May 1942, but the number had increased only to seventeen two months later; the regiment was losing aircraft almost as fast as they were being replaced.

The 890th Long-Range Aviation Regiment (Avia Polk Dahl'nevo Deystviya—APDD) was formed on 15 June 1942 and both regiments were used to bomb German-held transportation centers of, among others, Orel, Bryansk, Kursk and Poltava. The pace of activity increased and the regiments flew as many missions in August as they had in the first ten months of the war. By the eve of the Soviet counterattack at Stalingrad, Operation Uranus, on 8 November the regiments had fourteen Pe-8s on hand. Under the command of the 45th Long-Range Bomber Aviation Division (Dal'nebombardirovochnaya Aviatsionnaya Diviziya—DBAD), they did not participate in the Stalingrad air attacks.

In 1943, from the division's primary airfield at Kratovo, southeast of Moscow, the regiments bombed transportation centers, airfields and troop concentrations. The railroad yard at Gomel was a favorite target and the regiment dropped approximately 606 t of bombs there between February and September 1943. It is not clear if these sorties were made by Pe-8s alone or in combination with other aircraft. In addition, the regiment dropped the first FAB-5000 bomb on Königsberg in April 1943, continuing the pin-prick attacks against targets deep in the German rear. In May 1943, efforts shifted to disrupt the German concentration of forces for the Battle of Kursk. In one sortie, the 109 bombers of the 45th DBAD struck the rail junction at Orsha during the evening of 4 May, most of which were not Pe-8s; the German High Command reported the destruction of 300 rail wagons and three ammunition trains.

By 1 July, the regiment had 18 Pe-8s for deployment during the early phase of the Battle of Kursk. The long-range aviation units continued to attack targets in the German rear areas at night, supporting the Soviet ground offensive in the Orel Bulge, called Operation Kutuzov, that began on 12 July. The Germans had transferred the nightfighters of the Fourth Group of the 5th Night Fighter Wing (IV./Nachtjagdgeschwader 5), flying a mix of Junkers Ju 88 and Dornier Do 217 aircraft, to counter the Soviet raids near the Orel area. Initially, the night fighters were ineffective against the Soviet raids, until the deployment of their ground radar "eyes". Once the Germans had use of their radar, after the night of 17–18 July, Soviet losses increased sharply. Although the Germans flew only fourteen sorties that night, they claimed eight kills (of course, throughout the war, night or day, the number of kills claimed was inevitably significantly higher than the actual number shot down, regardless of nationality or aircraft type). On the night of 20–21 July, Captain (Hauptmann) Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein, commander of IV./NJG 5, claimed to have shot down three himself. The exhaust plume of the ASh-82 engine may have been a contributing factor; the engines lacked flame dampening exhausts, making their plume visible from a distance. Despite its losses, the 746th was re-designated as the 25th Long-Range Guards Aviation Regiment (GAPDD) on 18 September 1943 in recognition of its achievements.

Removal from combat
The loss of Pe-8s to all causes—mechanical, combat, friendly fire—had steadily increased from one aircraft per 103 flights in 1942 to one per 46 sorties in 1944. Despite the losses, production kept pace with need. The number of aircraft belonging to the 45th DBAD continued to rise; 20 were on hand on 1 January 1944 and 30 on 1 June. The Pe-8s flew 276 sorties in 1944 against such targets as Helsinki, Tallinn and Pskov. Aviation historian Yefim Gordon maintains that the Pe-8 flew its last mission on the night of 1–2 August 1944, but the Statistical Digest of the VVS contradicts this claim, showing 31 Pe-8s assigned to 45th DBAD on 1 January 1945 and 32 on hand on 10 May 1945. However, during this period the 45th DBAD only had three regiments, none of which used the Pe-8 as their primary aircraft, so while the 45th DBAD may have had Pe-8s, these may not have been in use as the primary combat aircraft.

The 890th began to fly Lend-Lease B-25 Mitchells in the spring of 1944 and was itself re-designated as the 890th Bomber Aviation Regiment on 26 December 1944. The 362nd APDD was formed in early 1944 with four Pe-8s received from the other two regiments, but these were returned in the spring of 1944, when the regiment began to convert to the Lend-Lease Mitchells.

Post-war use
After the war, the Pe-8 was used extensively as a testbed for trials involving Soviet derivatives of the German V-1 flying bomb and it was designated as the Pe-8LL for prototype piston engine trials. It was also used as a mother ship for the experimental rocket-engined Bisnovat 5 in 1948–49. Aeroflot received several of the surviving Pe-8s for polar exploration. Their military equipment removed, they had additional fuel tanks installed, were painted orange, and had their engines upgraded to either ASh-82FNs or Shvetsov ASh-73s. One landed at the North Pole in 1954 and others helped to monitor the drift ice stations NP-2, NP-3 and NP-4 during the late 1950s.

Operators

 * Soviet Air Forces
 * Soviet Air Forces

title: Petlyakov Pe-8


text:
The Burning World (novel)

The Burning World is a 1964 science fiction novel by British author J. G. Ballard. An expanded version, retitled The Drought, was first published in 1965 by Jonathan Cape.

Plot
In contrast to Ballard's earlier novel The Drowned World, The Burning World describes a world in which water is scarce. After an extensive drought, rivers have turned to trickles and the earth to dust, causing the world's populations to head toward the oceans in search of water. The drought is caused by industrial waste flushed into the ocean, which form an oxygen-permeable barrier of saturated long-chain polymers that prevents evaporation and destroys the precipitation cycle.

The main focus of the book is on the surrealistic landscapes forming a changing setting symbolising the developing psychological conflicts and alienation of the principal character.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: The Burning World (novel)


text:
Talk:Petlyakov Pe-8

the only four-engined bomber the USSR used during the war
didn't they also used extensively the old TB-3 which also had 4 engines?
 * Yes, they did. Pe-8 was the only 4-engine bomber built during the war. While TB-3 were extensively used in the early days of the war, their role reduced to cargo flights during it. --jno 11:14, 17 July 2006 (UTC)

Data
Data quoted from http://www.aviation.ru/Pe/#8 by the owner of aviation.ru

TB-3
I feel that the TB-3 should be mentioned somewhere in the article.

"BAP" term
Folks, I aint sure it's right to translate "BAP" as "bomber wing".

BAP is a transliteration of russian БАП which is stand for Bombardirovochny Avia Polk (бомбардировочный авиаполк). Hence, P here is for polk which is usually translated to english as regiment.

On the other hand, the term wing as couple of squadrons will match the polk in this meaning...

--jno 11:16, 11 Apr 2005 (UTC)

4 vs 5 tons of bombs
I believe, "it's not a bug, it's a feature". 4 tons was the normal load. 5 tons stated for the fact of 5-tons bombs using, I think. --jno 19:55, 3 June 2006 (UTC)

Early history of the Pe-8
Actually, the Pe-8 was orignally developed as the ANT-42/TB-7 by the Tupolev Design Bureau in 1934. When production rights were granted to Petlyakov, it was redesignated the Pe-8. The Pe-8 made her first flight on December 27, 1936; the second protoype first flew a year later. Therefore, add this information to this article.
 * Hm... Petlyakov was the leader of TB-7 project being an emploee of Tupolev, then separated to the production plant. It should be rephrased in english... --jno 12:10, 16 October 2006 (UTC)
 * The aircraft was known as the TB-7 until Petlyakov's death in 1942 when it was renamed in his honor. - Emt147 Burninate!  02:31, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

Soviet Air Raid on Berlin, 1941
http://zhukov.mitsi.com/sovietbombers.htm

We should consider doing a whole Wikipedia topic on this battle. It's a fantastic read and very little known about the Soviet strategic bomber force in World War II.

PS-42?
1) While Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation does claim that it is "believed" that there was a 70 passenger version of the TB-7, the claim appears to have not been made by John W. R. Taylor, who is not listed as the editor or a contributor to the book, which was edited by Michael Taylor (definately a different person).

2) There is a reference to what appears to be this project on p85 of, although the designation PS-42 is not mentioned and it is suggested that the aircraft was not built.Nigel Ish (talk) 15:25, 28 November 2009 (UTC)
 * I've dropped all mention of it for reasons outlined in the GAR.--Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 15:49, 28 November 2009 (UTC)

FAC comments

 * don't "they" usually want 3 paragraphs in a lead? I don't have a problem with what you've done, although if "they" want 3, I'd take the first sentence as is, and split it there.
 * Nobody's asked to stretch the lead.
 * very good! Auntieruth55 (talk) 14:32, 4 February 2010 (UTC)
 * first sentence of first section leaves me breathless. I realize these are the qualifications, but could you make this more readable?*
 * this still needs work. What was wrong with the Tupelov?  Auntieruth55 (talk) 14:32, 4 February 2010 (UTC)
 * Can you be a little more clear? I'm not sure exactly what the problem is.
 * Why did the tupelov need replacing? Development of the Pe-8 began in response to a demanding Soviet Air Forces (VVS) requirement that was issued in July 1934 to replace the Tupolev TB-3 heavy bomber.
 * forex: By 1934, the  Soviet Air Force's existing Tupelov TB-3 heavy bomber was insufficient for its needs. The Tupelov could not carry a sufficient payload, it was too slow, and its range too short.  In July of that year, the VVS issued specifications for a new heavy bomber. These specified a bomber that could carry....  Or something.  What was wrong with the Tupelov that they needed an entirely new one...  Auntieruth55 (talk) 17:06, 4 February 2010 (UTC)
 * The bombardier sat in the nose with a prominent chin gondola, nicknamed the 'beard', and a turret armed with a 20-millimeter (0.79 in) ShVAK cannon that covered a 120° cone ahead. the nose had a prominent chin gondola?  and the nose had a turret armed with a 20-millimeter cannon?   The bombardier sat in the nose, which had a a turret armed with a 20-millimeter (0.79 in) ShVAK cannon that covered a 120° cone ahead; a prominent chin gondola nicknamed the 'beard' distinguished this bomber from other aircraft  ???  something needs to happen with that sentence--I read it 4 times before I figured out what it meant...and I'm still not entirely sure.*
 * How is it now?
 * very nice. Auntieruth55 (talk) 14:32, 4 February 2010 (UTC)
 * It was built... The bomber was built?
 * That pronoun's antecedent is pretty clear I think.
 * yes, it is, but to begin a paragraph with "it"...... Auntieruth55 (talk) 14:32, 4 February 2010 (UTC)
 * Not a rule of writing I was ever taught, I'm afraid. Now if you want to discuss nominalizations, I'm your boy!
 * Mikulin AM-34FRN engines...looks like a space is missing. Perhaps add FRN to the bluelink?
 * Done
 * This engine problem was identified by wind tunnel testing to be a problem with the aerodynamics of the radiators and their nacelles. awk.  Subsequent wind tunnel testing identified a problem with the aerodynamics of the radiators and nacelles.  rudder was redesigned with a smooth skin and enlarged  awk. enlarged rudder redesigned with a smooth skin.
 * Bless you! I've struggled a lot with these sentences and your version is better than anything I could come up with. How does it read now?
 * Factory No. 124 in Kazan needs a comma
 * I set off in Kazan with commas before and after. Does that work? I go back and forth on such short subordinate clauses.
 * yes it's fine. Another way to deal with it would be  ,located in Kazan..
 * which gave a shorter range.... gave them a shorter range, or had a shorter range....
 * Done
 * strike targets... (jargon). strike at targets or strike in the ...During the early part of the battle, the long-range aviation units continued to strike targets in the German rear areas at night, but this was focused in support of Soviet forces conducting their counterattack against the Orel Bulge. ..
 * Done
 * constant raids against German railroad ....constant Soviet raids...
 * Done
 * Soviet losses skyrocketed immediately; as the Germans flew only fourteen sorties that night, but claimed eight kills
 * Good catch
 * you often use "as" where you could either make a new sentence, or use a semi-colon.
 * Good to know these little habits.
 * Three Pe-8s were lost on the night of 20–21 July, one to the guns of Captain (Hauptmann) Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein, commander of IV./NJG 5,[27] a very high percentage of the eighteen that had been available on 1 July.[16]
 * Done

Most of these are simple smoothing out of sentences. I wouldn't fall on the sword for any of them, except maybe the two marked with an asterisk at the end. Auntieruth55 (talk) 01:08, 4 February 2010 (UTC)
 * Many thanks for these comments; they were just the kind of stuff that I was looking for. If these have been resolved satsifactorily please comment on the actual FAC page as your comments here will go unnoticed.--Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 03:22, 4 February 2010 (UTC)
 * Always glad to help out. Please fix that first sentence of the first section.  Auntieruth55 (talk) 14:32, 4 February 2010 (UTC)
 * Thanks again.--Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 15:23, 4 February 2010 (UTC)
 * Check through it again as I made some tweaks to your text.--Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 21:08, 9 February 2010 (UTC)

rationale for the stamp
I think you can make a better case of the use of the postage stamp if the caption describes the plane better, and links the stamp to the development of the aircraft. This is an exemplar of the bomber after the beard is removed, yes? What design features should we look for in this picture? Auntieruth55 (talk) 16:39, 8 February 2010 (UTC)
 * Not much other than it's got inline engines, which could be AM-35, ACh-30 or M-40s. The beard was removed before production so that's not help. The stamp is really just a bonus, AFAIC, as it's stylized enough only orient a reader to general shape, etc. I'm not much worried about it as it is under the proper license as shown here --Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 22:18, 8 February 2010 (UTC)
 * sounds good then. I'm not the image expert, and I noticed there was a burp about it on the review page. :) Auntieruth55 (talk) 22:33, 8 February 2010 (UTC)

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title: Talk:Petlyakov Pe-8


text:
AirBridgeCargo

AirBridgeCargo Airlines, LLC (Russian: ООО Авиакомпания «ЭйрБриджКарго»), part of Volga-Dnepr Group, is the largest Russian cargo airline with its head office in Moscow. It operates scheduled cargo services on routes between Russia, Asia, Europe and North America, covering more than 30 destinations worldwide. All flights connect to their hub at Sheremetyevo International Airport in Moscow and Krasnoyarsk. It was forced to suspend all operations in the wake of sanctions against Russia as of March 2022.

History
The company entered the scheduled cargo market on 1 April 2004, when the first AirBridgeCargo branded Boeing 747 made its inaugural commercial flight on route from Beijing to Luxembourg.

As of March 2022, AirBridgeCargo was forced to suspend all operations due to sanctions against Russia which rendered the entire fleet unusable. In July 2022, the airline announced it will comply with sanctions and prepare to return 14 leased aircraft - which make out the majority of its fleet - to its lessors.

In March 2023, it became known that the company planned to resume flights using Ilyushin Il-96 aircraft. Volga-Dnepr has already begun searching for pilots with appropriate training. However, by late 2023 these plans were abandoned with two Il-96 formerly stored and already prepared for AirBridgeCargo being delivered to Sky Gates Airlines instead.

Destinations
Prior to the suspension of all services, ABC had been present in Asia, Europe and North America. It operates a scheduled freighter route network of 37 destinations as of November 2019 focused on Europe, Asia and the United States.

Current fleet
As of March 2024, AirBridgeCargo currently no longer operates any aircraft after returning their fleet to its lessors.

Former fleet
AirBridgeCargo formerly operated the following aircraft:

Accidents and incidents

 * On September 11, 2012, an AirBridgeCargo Boeing 747-8F experienced a major engine malfunction that spread a significant amount of metallic debris on the runway. Like in a similar event during pre-flight taxi tests, the low pressure turbine shaft separated and moved the low pressure turbine (by design to avoid turbine overspeed) backwards braking on surrounding hardware.
 * On July 31, 2013, an AirBridgeCargo Boeing 747-8F experienced core engine icing that caused engine malfunctions and damage to three engines near Chengdu, China, while en route to Hong Kong; the aircraft landed safely at its destination. Boeing and General Electric are working on software changes to mitigate the effects of core engine icing.

title: AirBridgeCargo


text:
Tupolev TB-1

The Tupolev TB-1 (development name ANT-4) was a Soviet bomber aircraft, an angular monoplane that served as the backbone of the Soviet bomber force for many years, and was the first large all-metal aircraft built in the Soviet Union.

Design and development
In 1924, the Soviet Air Force instructed TsAGI, (Центра́льный аэрогидродинами́ческий институ́т (ЦАГИ) – Tsentralniy Aerogidrodinamicheskiy Institut or Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute) to design a heavy-bomber. TsAGI gave the task to the division led by Andrei Tupolev. Tupolev's team designed a twin-engined all-metal monoplane with a corrugated Duralumin skin — based on Tupolev's earlier work utilizing the all-metal aircraft design techniques first pioneered by Hugo Junkers in 1918 — powered by two Napier Lion engines, and named the ANT-4.

The first prototype was built during 1925 on the second floor of Tupolev's factory in Moscow, it being necessary to knock down a wall to allow the aircraft to be taken out of the building in pieces. After reassembly at Moscow's Khodynka Aerodrome, it was flown on 26 November 1925.

Testing was successful, and it was decided to put the ANT-4 into production as the TB-1. Production was delayed, however, by shortages of aluminium, and by the need to find a replacement for the expensive imported Lion engines, the BMW VI (and later the Soviet licence-built version, the Mikulin M-17). Production eventually started at the ex-Junkers factory at Fili, Moscow in 1929, 216 following the two prototypes, production continuing until 1932. It was produced in both wheel- and float-gear variants (a total of 66 ANT-4 seaplanes built).

Operational history
The first production aircraft was completed as an unarmed civil aircraft, named Strana Sovyetov (Land of the Soviets) for a propaganda flight from Moscow to New York, taking an  eastward course via Siberia, reaching its destination on 3 November 1929, flying 21,242 km (13,194 mi) in 137 flying hours. The TB-1 became the Soviet Air Forces' first standard heavy bomber, also being fitted with floats for use as a torpedo bomber (TB-1P), and for aerial survey operations.

It was also widely used for experimental purposes, being the first mothership used in the Zveno project carrying two Tupolev I-4 fighters over the aircraft's wings as parasite aircraft.

The TB-1 was replaced as a heavy bomber by the similar, but much larger, four-engined Tupolev TB-3, with many aircraft being converted to civil freighters (designated G-1) for use by Aeroflot and Aviaarktika, Aeroflot's polar division. One Avia Arktika ANT-4, flown by Anatoly Liapidevsky, played a key role in the rescue of the crew of the steamship Chelyuskin, which sank on 12 February 1934 after being trapped in ice near the Bering Strait. Liapidevsky was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. G-1s continued in use with Avia Arktika until 1948.

Variants

 * TB-1 : Twin-engined heavy bomber aircraft. Also known as the ANT-4.
 * ANT-4bis : Third prototype.
 * TB-1P : Twin-float torpedo-bomber seaplane.
 * G-1 : Twin-engined transport aircraft.
 * ANT-19 : Proposed passenger aircraft. Not built.

Survivors
One ANT-4, an ex-Aviaarktika Tupolev G-1, survives, being preserved at the Ulyanovsk Aircraft Museum.

Operators

 * Aeroflot
 * Soviet Air Force
 * Soviet Naval Aviation
 * Soviet Naval Aviation

title: Tupolev TB-1


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Cerro Volcánico

Cerro Volcánico (also known as Fonck) is a cinder cone in Argentina, located southeast of the massive stratovolcano of Tronador. The cone produced a single andesite lava flow, which has been bracketed in age between 70,000 and 14,000 years ago.

title: Cerro Volcánico


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Tupolev TB-3

The Tupolev TB-3, OKB designation ANT-6, was a monoplane heavy bomber deployed by the Soviet Air Force in the 1930s and used during the early years of World War II. It was one of the world's first cantilever wing four-engine heavy bomber. Despite obsolescence and being officially withdrawn from service in 1939, the TB-3 performed bomber and transport duties throughout much of World War II. The TB-3 also saw combat as a Zveno project fighter mothership and as a light tank transport.

Development
In 1925, the Soviet Air Force approached TsAGI with a requirement for a heavy bomber with total engine output of 2000 PS and either wheeled or float landing gear. Tupolev OKB started design work in 1926 with the government operational requirements finalized in 1929. The Tupolev TB-1 was taken as the basis for the design and the aircraft was initially powered by 600 PS Curtiss V-1570 "Conqueror" engines, with the intent of switching to Mikulin M-17s (modified BMW VIs) in production. The mock-up was approved on 21 March 1930 and the first prototype was completed on 31 October 1930. The aircraft flew on 22 December 1930 with Mikhail Gromov at the controls and with ski landing gear. Despite almost crashing owing to vibration causing the throttles to close, the test flight was a success. On 20 February 1931, the Soviet Air Force approved mass production of the ANT-6 with M-17 engines.

The prototype was refitted with 730 PS BMW VIz 500 engines, larger radiators, and wooden fixed-pitch propellers of TsAGI design. Single-wheel landing gear was deemed too weak and was replaced by tandem bogies with 1350 × tires. The first pre-production TB-3 4M-17 flew on 4 January 1932 with Andrey Yumashev and I. F. Petrov at the controls. Unexpectedly, subsequent mass-produced aircraft were found to be 10–12% heavier than the prototype, which significantly hampered performance. The discrepancy was discovered to be due to high positive tolerances on raw materials which resulted in steel sheetmetal, pipes, and wires being much thicker than on the carefully constructed prototypes. The aircraft were also more crudely painted with a thick layer of camouflage and lacquer. The factories asked the workers for suggestions on reducing the weight, paying 100 roubles for each 1 kg removed from the aircraft. In combination with OKB efforts, this resulted in weight savings of almost 1000 kg. Despite this, production aircraft could differ from each other by as much as several hundred kilograms.

In 1933, a single TB-3 4M-17F was streamlined with the removal of turrets and bomb shackles, covering all openings, and fitting wheel spats. This resulted in only a 4.5% increase in top speed and a similar increase in the range. Tupolev concluded that streamlining was minimally beneficial for large and slow aircraft. To study the effect of corrugated skin, in January–February 1935 a single TB-3 4AM-34R had the corrugations incrementally covered with fabric. This resulted in a 5.5% gain in top speed and a 27.5% increase in the ceiling. The same aircraft demonstrated a significant increase in climb rate when fitted with experimental four-blade propellers.

 * Record flights
 * TB-3 4M-34R set a flight endurance record of 18 hours and 30 minutes.
 * TB-3 4AM-34FRN with Andrey Yumashev at the controls set a number of payload-to-altitude records:
 * 11 September 1936 – 5000 kg to 8116 m, improved to 8980 m on 28 October.
 * 16 September 1936 – 10000 kg to 6605 m
 * 20 September 1936 – 12000 kg to 2700 m

Design

The TB-3 was an all-metal aircraft of steel construction, as one of the designs from Andrei Tupolev's design bureau to be based on the 1918-onward all-metal aircraft design practices and technology pioneered by Hugo Junkers. The frame was composed of V-section beams covered with non-stressed corrugated skin ranging from 0.3 mm to 0.8 mm in thickness. The corrugations were 13 mm deep and 50 mm apart. The cantilever wing was supported by four tube-section spars. In 1934, thanks to the development of stronger steel alloys, the wingspan was increased from 39.5 to 41.85 m with a concurrent wing area increase from 230 to 234.5 m2. Any part of the aircraft could be walked on in soft shoes without damaging the skin, and the leading edges of the wings swung down to form walkways for engine maintenance. Controls were cable-actuated with a variable-incidence tailplane and a trim compensation system in case of engine failures on one side. Fixed main landing gear was not fitted with brakes. The fuel tanks did not have fire or leak protection, although the engines had an internal fire-extinguishing system. The M-17 engines were tuned to provide a maximum theoretical range of 3250 km without spark plug or carburetor fouling. Defensive armament consisted of light machine guns in five turrets — one in the nose, two on top of mid-fuselage, and one retractable "dustbin" under each wing between the engine nacelles. Later variants moved one of the top fuselage turrets aft of the tail fin.

Operational history

The TB-3 was used operationally during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol against Japan and in the Winter War with Finland. Although it was officially withdrawn from service in 1939, at the start of the Great Patriotic War on 22 June 1941, the Soviet Air Force had 516 operational TB-3s, with an additional 25 operated by the Soviet Navy. Stationed far from the USSR's western border, the ТB-3s avoided catastrophic losses during the first German air strikes, after which TB-3s from 3rd TBAP (Heavy Bomber Regiment) began flying night bombing missions on 23 June. A shortage of combat-ready aircraft also required daytime use of TB-3s without fighter escort and in this role the bombers, operating at low-to-medium altitudes, suffered heavy losses to enemy fighters and ground fire. By August 1941, TB-3s made up 25% of the Soviet bomber force and, operated by elite air force crews, were flying up to three combat missions per night. The aircraft participated in all major battles through 1943, including the first Battle of Smolensk, the Battle of Moscow, the Battle of Stalingrad, the Siege of Leningrad, and the Battle of Kursk. On 1 July 1945, 18th Air Army still had ten TB-3s on the active roster.

The TB-3 served extensively as a cargo and paratroop transport, carrying up to 35 soldiers in the latter role. In the first five months of the war, the aircraft transported 2797 t of cargo and 2,300 personnel.

The TB-3 was also used in several special projects as a fighter mothership in the Zveno project and for delivering light T-27, T-37, and T-38 tanks. On 1 August 1941, a pair of TB-3s in Zveno-SPB configuration, each with two Polikarpov I-16 fighters carrying a pair of 250 kg bombs, destroyed an oil depot with no losses in the port of Constanța, Romania. On 11 and 13 August 1941, Zveno-SPB successfully damaged the King Carol I Bridge over the Danube in Romania. Zveno operations ended in the autumn of 1942 due to the vulnerability of the motherships.

In recognition of the role TB-3 played during the war, three aircraft were included in the first post-war air parade on 18 June 1945.

Variants

Source: Shavrov
 * TB-3 4M-17F
 * The first production version, comprised about half of all TB-3s built.

 * TB-3 4M-34
 * Mikulin AM-34 engines with revised radiators, added oil coolers, several dozen built.

 * TB-3 4M-34R
 * Mikulin AM-34R engines with reduction gearboxes providing significantly improved performance, additional turret aft of the tail fin, tail wheels with hydraulic brakes, aerodynamic refinements of the wing-fuselage join and radiators, retractable wind generators.

 * TB-3 4AM-34RD
 * A series of long-range demonstration aircraft with streamlined fuselages and wheel brakes. Some aircraft had single main gear wheels 2 m in diameter and three-blade metal propellers. Used for flights to Warsaw, Paris, and Rome in 1933–1934.

 * TB-3 4AM-34RN
 * High-altitude version with AM-34RN engines, four-blade propellers on inboard engines and two-blade on outboard, 2 m single main wheels, turrets upgraded to ShKAS machine guns, top speed 288 km/h at 4200 m, service ceiling 7740 m. Tested in August–October 1935 but did not enter production as the basic TB-3 design was becoming obsolete.

 * TB-3 4AM-34FRN/FRNV
 * AM-34FRN/FRNV engines with increased power output and four-blade propellers, aerodynamic refinements including streamlined turrets, 2 m main wheels with brakes, top speed over 300 km/h.

 * TB-3D
 * Proposed variant with Charomsky AN-1 diesel engines of 750 PS and projected range of 4280 km, did not enter production as other performance characteristics were inferior to TB-3 4AM-34RN.

 * G-2
 * Retired TB-3s with M-17 and M-34 engines converted for freight duties with Aeroflot

 * ANT-6-4M-34R "Aviaarktika"
 * TB-3 modified for the 1937 expedition to the North Pole with enclosed cockpit, single 2 m main wheels, three-blade metal propellers.

Operators

 * undefined
 * Chinese Nationalist Air Force
 * Aeroflot
 * Soviet Air Force
 * Soviet Naval Aviation
 * Soviet Naval Aviation

Accidents and incidents

 * 17 March 1938
 * A Polyarnaya Aviatsiya G-2 (CCCP-N210) crashed on landing at Bukhta Teplits; ground fog forced the crew to perform a go-around. As a result of poor CRM the aircraft re-entered the fog. Descent was continued until the left landing ski struck snow, ripping off the landing gear and causing the aircraft to crash; all seven on board survived, but the aircraft was written off.

 * 14 March 1941
 * An Aeroflot G-2 (CCCP-L1496) stalled and crashed near Begovat, Uzbekistan after the pilot attempted to climb following a loss of altitude caused by severe turbulence, killing the six crew. The aircraft was operating a Tashkent–Fergana cargo service.

 * 27 August 1941
 * An Aeroflot G-2 (CCCP-L1996) struck a hill near Kizyl-Arvat, Turkmenistan while attempting to make a forced landing after the crew failed to locate their destination, killing six of nine on board. The aircraft was operating a Tashkent–Ashgabat cargo service.

 * 26 December 1941
 * An Aeroflot G-2 (CCCP-L3043) crashed near Dmitriyevka (now Bayserke), Kazakhstan after the aircraft lost altitude while turning, killing 26 of 34 on board. The aircraft was operating an Alma-Ata (now Almaty)–Karaganda–Kazan passenger service with high-ranking Kazakh party and state officials. This crash is the deadliest involving the G-2.

 * 29 December 1941
 * An Aeroflot G-2 (CCCP-L2010) crashed in the Amu Darya River near Chardzhou Airport after the aircraft rapidly lost altitude due to spatial disorientation of the pilot, killing seven of 36 on board. The aircraft was operating a Chardzhou–Urgench passenger service.

title: Tupolev TB-3


text:
Talk:Tupolev TB-3

Old talk
Data quoted from http://www.aviation.ru/Tu/#ANT-6 by the owner of aviation.ru
 * Article completely rewritten with data from Shavrov. - Emt147 Burninate!  00:44, 17 April 2007 (UTC)

Proposal to delist from A-class
This article lacks page numbers to its citations and is missing a few cites, neither of which is acceptable for an A-class article. I propose to drop it to a C-class unless someone fixes its problems.--Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 23:45, 19 October 2009 (UTC)
 * Actually, it will drop to Start because MILHIST doesn't use C. -MBK004 23:52, 10 November 2009 (UTC)

Rockets and People
by Boris Chertok, now in English as NASA SP-2005-4110 has some information about this plane's development and production 207.195.18.171 (talk) 11:20, 19 April 2020 (UTC)

title: Talk:Tupolev TB-3


text:
Margarita Island

Margarita Island (Isla de Margarita, ) is the largest island in the Venezuelan state of Nueva Esparta, situated off the northeastern coast of the country, in the Caribbean Sea. The capital city of Nueva Esparta, La Asunción, is located on the island.

Age of Exploration
Christopher Columbus was the first European to arrive on Margarita Island in 1498. The local natives were the Guaiqueries people. The coast of the island was abundant in pearls, which represented almost a third of all New World tribute to the Spanish Crown. Margarita Island was fortified against the increasing threat of pirate attacks, and some fortifications remain today. It was the center of Spanish colonial Margarita Province, established in 1525.

In 1561, the island was seized by Lope de Aguirre, a notoriously violent and rebellious conquistador who killed the governor Juan Villadrando. Around 1675, the island was captured again, this time by Red Legs Greaves, a pirate known for his humanity and morality. He captured a fleet of Spanish ships off port, before turning the guns on the forts which he stormed and claimed a large booty of pearls and gold. The story of Greaves' capture of the island does not appear in historical Spanish records and may be fictional.

Construction of the Santa Rosa de la Eminencia castle was ordered by the governor, Juan Muñoz de Gadea, after the French buccaneer Marquis de Maintenon attacked the island in early 1676.

Independence era
The island gained independence from the Spanish in 1814, after the collapse of the First Republic of Venezuela. It became the first permanently free territory in Venezuela. In the same year, Luisa Cáceres de Arismendi was detained in a dungeon of the Fortress of Santa Rosa on the island in an attempt to put pressure on her husband Juan Bautista Arismendi, who was fighting for independence. Her detention lasted for over three years. In 1815 the general Pablo Morillo with a fleet of 18 warships and 42 cargo ships disembarked in Island Margarita with the mission to pacify the revolts against the Spanish monarchy in the American colonies. Simón Bolívar was confirmed as Commander-in-Chief of the Second Republic of Venezuela on the island in 1816. From there, he started a nine-year campaign to free Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia from the Spanish Crown.

Contemporary history
In modern times, Margarita Island has been primarily a tourist destination. The island's status as a duty-free port was established in 1974 to promote commercial and tourism industries, with lower-priced imports driving increased visitors and the development of hotels. The island was the host venue for the Caribbean Series in 2010 and 2014.

Geography

Located in the Caribbean Sea between latitudes 10°52'N and 11°11'N and longitudes 63°48'W and 64°23'W, the island, along with the islands of Coche and Cubagua, comprises the state of Nueva Esparta. The island is split into two peninsulas joined by an 18 km long isthmus and covers an area of 1,020 km2. It is 78 km long and measures roughly 20 km at its widest. The climate is sunny and dry, with average temperatures ranging from 24 °C to 37 °C.

Most of the island's 420,000 residents live in the more developed eastern part of the island, which includes the large cities of Porlamar and Pampatar, along with the state capital of La Asunción. The island can be reached by direct flights from Caracas or ferries from Puerto la Cruz, Cumaná, and La Guaira. There are no international flights to the island at present.

The Macanao peninsula to the west has a central mountain range in the east–west direction. The highest altitude is 760 m at Pico de Macanao. Several smaller ranges derive from this axis following a north–south orientation with deep valleys between them. The most notable of these valleys is San Francisco in the north-central part of the peninsula. The Paraguachoa peninsula to the East is formed by a mountain range in the north–south direction from Porlamar to Cabo Negro. The highest peaks are San Juan or Cerro Grande at 920 m and El Copey 890 m. The peninsulas are connected by the La Restinga isthmus, on which the La Restinga lagoon is located. There are also two breast-shaped hills known as Tetas de Maria Guevara on the isthmus.

Beaches
There are at least 70 beaches on the island, which has a 106 mi coastline. Popular beaches include Playa El Yaque, Playa Parguito, Playa Caribe, Playa Punta Arenas, Playa El Agua and Playa Puerto Cruz.

Terrain
Macanao peninsula consists of mountainous spine of the central west–east, with several culminations, including Macanao Peak, which is the highest, with an altitude of 760 meters above sea level stands. This axial region several side brackets oriented north–south off, including deep valleys are dissected; the most important is San Francisco in the north central of Margarita. The central massif is surrounded by foothills forming a more or less continuous, narrow strip, which reaches almost to the coast north and south of the peninsula.

Mountains
Isla Margarita eastern is formed by a mountain range which runs roughly north–south, from northern Porlamar to Cabo Negro; north from the town of El Espinal, the massif rises steeply to the culminations of San Juan and Copey hills, at heights of 920 and 890 m, respectively. The hills are Matasite and Guayamurí Los Andes foothills. To the north stands the Tragaplata hill. Among the higher elevations found on the island, are cited:

The highest portion of the Serranía de Macanao forms a wide arc as a semicircle or amphitheater open to the northwest, surrounding a protected valley, extremely picturesque, where the town of S. Francisco is settled. From the highest hill, Los Cedars, which occupy a central position, and Towards the northwest, the Serranía loses altitude gradually into a continuum in which alternating downward and small slopes climbs to the Guarataro hill, which from the east it stands out as a small pyramidal stone projection but from the north is projected as an isolated hill whose profile of steep and long slopes offers one of the most striking perspectives of the silhouette of the entire Serranía. Following the Guarataro and going north, there is a wide valley with rounded hills, crossed or separated by ravines or ravines. Partial view of the Serranía. On the right the hill "Guarataro". The road ascends and runs through this wide It is a valley with numerous curves, crossing the mountain through some trenches that have been artificially dug to avoid too steep a slope. To the north, on the right of the road when you go to San Francisco the ground rises again forming a kind of mini mountain range with three or four elongated hills separated from each other by valleys that together form a continuous ridge in a northeasterly direction that occupies the geomorphological overhang that breaks the uniformity of the rectangular perimeter of the peninsula, which, in this area projects as a rocky promontory that falls abruptly to the sea, forming cliffs Slope hills northwest of the Serranía, "the miniserranía", which fall to the sea in the area of "The Maguey". In the foreground, view of the desolate plain to the northwest of it.

Of very steep slopes and in some places practically vertical. From the northwest, This small mountain range stands out clearly as two elongated hills of similar height, separated by a well-defined watercourse. On the eastern slope, the main mountain range loses height sharply, however, until almost Boca del Río it extends in a sequence of rounded hills of little height that in their majority are of reddish sandstones and sparse, xerophilic, or absent, vegetation of aspect, but that at sunset acquires tonalities of surprising serenity and singular beauty. All of them are crossed by more or less deep ravines. To the north, the valley formed by the amphitheater of the high hills opens up to sea, but its lateral slopes also descend in hills of reddish sandstone until Partial view of the slope western part of the Serranía.

The coast leaving between the road and the sea a wide strip of coastline in which cliffs and coves. These last ones, because they are protected from the direct action of the dominant winds, allow the sands to be deposited forming beaches like those of Tunar, La Wall or The Mule. In some cases, already over the sea, there are isolated hills that stand out of the rest of the landscape as in La Pared and La Mula. The main mountain range has a relief of steep slopes and sharp peaks, forming a cut profile of steep slopes extremely characteristic and unmistakable, with a strong personality. From west to east, the names of some of these hills, of evocative and sonorous indigenous names, are: Cerro de Narciso, La Soledad, Risco Blanco, The Congo, Los Cedros (the highest), followed by Sacamanteca on the south side, Although according to the farmers their real name and without a doubt the original is Guainamal, others call it Macanao.

Mamantón, Cerro de L'aguá, Tapacular and Campanario. Between Manglillo and Guayacancito, Near the edge of the road are the hills of Sabio and Pendejo which are of lesser height. La Soledad or Guainamal is the real Cerro Macanao. On the northern sides The hills of Gavilán and Guarataro stand out.

Macanao Peninsula
With an extension of 330 km2 and a rectangular contour of 23 km in length and 14 km in width, the Peninsula of Macanao, western portion of Margarita Island, is linked to the eastern portion of the island by a sandy cord or restinga which separates the so-called Restinga beach from the lagoon de Arapano, the indigenous name of the body of water, better known today as Laguna de La Restinga, reserving Arapano's for the eastern portion, which is mostly devoid of mangroves. The sandy cord or beach is about 22 km long and the lagoon has an extension of 23 km2. Its western end, which borders the Macanao Peninsula, receives the denomination of El Saco, zone that was habitually visited by the flamingos or tococos that formed a pink stain visible from afar; then, when they lift up their flight they offer a show of incomparable color quality, especially when the sun's rays from the dusk, already oblique, they make stand out, with variety of soft shades, the pink color of the birds and their "jet" plane morphology with the neck stretched out and the wings placed in the center of the fuselage, long and slender. From the geomorphological and landscape point of view, the Peninsula is characterized by presence of a mountain range (whose highest hill reaches 745 m) that occupies the entire portion of the peninsula, leaving free only, to the south, a coastal strip more or less wide that forms cliffs on the sea, terraces of filling, mouth of ravines or extensive salinetas that were ancient lagoons formed as a result of the interaction between sea currents and the contributions of the rivers whose joint action created a restinga or bar.

Later, the sedimentary contribution dragged by the torrents that descend from the hills filled them, leaving only the sandy elevation of the restinga, which separates them from the sea above the level of the clay substrate of the salineta, for that reason, in the season of big rains they fill up again with water and become slippery plains of clay or mud, impassable. In this coastal strip, which is between the road and the sea, There is an abundance of debris: fragments of metamorphic rocks, stones and earth that have been the hills; and on which grows a poor xerophilic vegetation more or less dense. Among the cliffs there are beaches on which the fishermen's ranches settled around which the towns were formed.

Climate
The average temperature is 32 °C with minimum ranging between 22 °C and 23 °C and maximum that can easily exceed 34 °C. Rainfall is common in the winter months and rainy season that begins July–October (although the rain is usually quite rare). Being located in the Caribbean Sea near the Earth's equator, solar rays fall perpendicularly on the island and therefore it is advisable to always use some sort of sunscreen when visiting its beaches.

Cities
La Asunción is the capital of the Federal State of Nueva Esparta with a population of around 28,500. It is the seat of the regional government. The city is overlooked by the Santa Rosa de la Eminencia castle.

The urban area of Pampatar has a population of around 50,000. A number of the island's larger shopping malls are located in the city, namely Sambil Margarita, Rattan Depot, Centro Comercial La Vela, Centro Comercial Costa Azul, Centro Comercial AB (Avenida Bolivar) and La Redoma. The San Carlos de Borromeo Fortress, constructed in the late 17th century, is located in Pampatar. The city also has several beaches.

The largest city on Margarita Island is Porlamar. The population can reach 125,000 in the high season, while in the low season, the population is about 85,000. Two beaches are located within the city. The island's major airport, Santiago Mariño Caribbean International Airport, is located near Porlamar.

Juan Griego is a city on the northern side of Isla Margarita, and is the most northern port in Venezuela. It has a population of 28,256 inhabitants (as per census of 2001) and is the capital of the Marcano municipality of the Nueva Esparta state. Its Gothic-style church, constructed in 1850 by Fray Nicholas de Igualdad, is still, along with the lovely bay, the symbol of the city. The La Galera fortress, where in the early 1820s a fierce battle for independence was fought, is located near the city centre. In 1973, the island become a free port and the city once again become the second city of commercial importance after Porlamar.

Population

The demonym for islanders is Margariteños/as and Neoespartanos/as.

Ethnic minority populations of some significance include descendants of West Africans enslaved by the Spaniards, Lebanese, Syrians, Spanish, Italians, Germans, French, Dutch, Swedes, Norwegians, Danes, Portuguese, Argentines, Chileans, Uruguayans, Colombians, and Chinese.

Immigrants from mainland Venezuela are colloquially called navegaos by islanders.

A little less than 25% of the Neoespartanian population live in Porlamar. Margarita's population is just under 440,000, although this tends to fluctuate during holiday periods and the festive season.

Religion

The predominant religion is Roman Catholicism. Other Christian denominations are also present. Of the churches that present in the Neospartan entity, among the most important are: Basilica of Our Lady of El Valle (in the Valley of the Espíritu Santo), La Asunción Cathedral, Iglesia San Juan Evangelista (Juangriego), Iglesia parroquial de San Juan (San Juan Bautista), Iglesia de San Nicolás de Bari (Porlamar), of the San José de Paraguachi and other churches and chapels minor located in populations of Santa Ana, Punta de Piedras, Porlamar, Pampatar and virtually all the towns of the island. There are also small populations of Jews and Muslims.

Evangelical Christian churches have had a significant growth in recent years demonstrating their presence and impact in the population of the island. One of the fastest-growing is the Centro Cristiano Casa de Alabanza (CCCA), present in Porlamar, Juan Griego, La Asunción and Tubores Municipality.

The patron saint of eastern Venezuela is the Virgen del Valle. In the population El Valle del Espíritu Santo is the Basílica Menor de Nuestra Señora del Valle, which approaching Margarita, Coche and Cubagua islanders visit to honor her on her feast day.

Las Tetas de María Guevara
The Tetas de Maria Guevara ("Maria Guevara's breasts"), located in a coastal plain in the south of the 1,670 hectare Laguna de La Restinga National Park, are two small twin hills with a height of 135 m. The vegetation around the hills is desert, with cacti, prickly pears, yaks, guamaches. The fauna is diverse, including desert lizards, rabbits, rattlesnakes and coral.

The legend told by the inhabitants of the island goes that the name María Guevara comes from a white young girl who was heavily involved in the War of Independence and that upon her death, the hills rose on her grave. Another Margaritan myth says the source of the name also comes from the same woman, but that she was from Cumaná and came to the island to lead a group of men in fishing activities. As she had small breasts, by way of derision whenever they sighted the hills said, "there are the lady's tits" and the name was created. The area was declared a national park on February 27, 1974.

Crime
Since the beginning of the crisis in Venezuela, the primary industry of tourism has declined 90% between 2010 and 2020. The island is currently affected by organized crime and is recognized as an international hub for the illegal drug trade.

Drug trafficking
Multiple international intelligence organizations have focused their investigations on Isla Margarita as being a major center of organized crime. According to the CIA World Factbook, Margarita Island is the location of significant narcotics-related money-laundering activity.

Violent crime
Since 2010, there have been numerous instances of tourist murders. On 27 August 2010, an Italian tourist, Emiliano Astore, was murdered on his boat anchored off Margarita Island in an apparent robbery. Two police officers and a civilian were arrested. A third officer was implicated in the "exploitation of objects" from the crime.

On 18 July 2011, 28-year-old Briton Tom Ossel was killed resisting seven armed robbers who had tricked their way into the Posada Casa Rosa backpackers' hotel in Playa El Agua before they took the guests hostage and raided rooms for valuables.

On 29 March 2011, French tourist Yves Le Bras was murdered in a robbery at the Laguna Mar hotel, while he and his wife dined at the Guacuco restaurant. In March 2011, Belgian tourist Philippe Bonne was murdered while eating in a fast food outlet in Playa El Agua, Margarita.

On 20 January 2012, about 30 or 35 Brazilian tourists were robbed in their hotel in Antolin del Campo, Margarita, by a gang of between 13 and 15 armed robbers.

On 3 September 2013, a Dutch sailor was killed on his yacht while resisting armed robbers attempting to board his boat.

On 7 February 2014, a few hours after arriving on the island, German cruise ship passenger Horst Kurt Fritz was killed by two gunmen on a motorcycle at a shop near the Sambil shopping center.

title: Margarita Island


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Rhaponticum carthamoides

Rhaponticum carthamoides, synonym Leuzea carthamoides, is a species of herbaceous perennial plant in the family Asteraceae. It is known as maral root or rhaponticum. It inhabits the sub-alpine zone (4500 - 6000 ft above sea level) as well as alpine meadows. It can be found growing wild in Southern Siberia, Kazakhstan, the Altay region, and Western Sayan Mountains. Maral root is widely cultivated throughout Russia and Eastern Europe. This plant derives its traditional name maral root (maralu) from the maral deer that fed on it.

R. carthamoides is high in 20-hydroxyecdysone, one of the most common molting hormones in insects, crabs, and some worms and can disrupt their molting and reproduction.

title: Rhaponticum carthamoides


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Cochiquito Volcanic Group

The Cochiquito Volcanic Group is a small volcanic group of volcanoes north of the town of Buta Ranquil in Argentina. The main peak is Volcán Cochiquito, a stratovolcano of estimated Pleistocene–Holocene age. There are eight satellite cones in the volcanic field, including Volcán Sillanegra (a pyroclastic cone complex) and Volcán Ranquil del Sur (a small stratovolcano).

title: Cochiquito Volcanic Group


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TV Chile

TV Chile is a Chilean pay television network that airs from Santiago, Chile. It is the international feed of the National Television of Chile.

History
The first national satellite broadcasts of TVN began in 1986, reaching also some parts of Latin America. TV Chile, as an independent signal from TVN, began officially in 1989.

Things would change radically for the network during the 2000s, when it made a contract with DirecTV, which allowed TV Chile to reach over 140 countries worldwide, which roughly constitutes 66 percent of the world's countries.

The channel's current programming consists basically of variety and music shows, as well as programs dedicated to tourism, comedy and news.

In the year 2000, TV Chile was able to reach Australia for the first time after signing a television contract with TARBS. The service has been intermittently operating, as once TARBS shut down operations in 2004, UBI World TV began carrying it. The channel is currently being distributed in the region via Luso Vision.

title: TV Chile


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User:Babajobu

 "Imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge. '''That's what we're doing." ''' — Jimbo Wales, 2004

title: User:Babajobu


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Thabazimbi

Thabazimbi is an iron mining town in the Limpopo province of South Africa. The town is at the feet of the Ysterberg and is surrounded by the Witfonteinrand and Boshofberg with the majestic Kransberg in the background. The name Thabazimbi means mountain of iron because of the large iron ore reef that was discovered in 1919 by J. H. Williams. The mine boasts one of the largest mining shafts in Africa. More than two million tonnes of ore are mined every year and hauled by train to Mittal's iron and steel works. The railway line from Rustenburg reached the area in the 1930s and full scale iron and steel production began. The town was proclaimed in 1953. Kumba Iron Ore, previously Kumba Resources, is now the principal operator of the iron ore mine. The Marakele National Park about 20 km north-east of the town and in the heart of Waterberg Mountains is characterised by contrasting mountain landscapes, hills and valleys, as well a variety of wildlife. Marakele National Park is also the home of some of the Tuli elephants that were caught up in controversy in 1999 involving animal cruelty in South Africa.

In the post-apartheid era, the town made headlines in 2003 as the site of Kamp Staaldraad, the Springboks' infamous training camp prior to the Rugby World Cup. The excesses of Kamp Staaldraad helped lead to an almost complete housecleaning of the upper administrative levels of South African rugby union.

title: Thabazimbi


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User talk:Czchavez

Welcome!

Hello,, and welcome to Wikipedia! Thank you for your contributions. I hope you like the place and decide to stay. Here are a few good links for newcomers: I hope you enjoy editing here and being a Wikipedian! Please sign your name on talk pages using four tildes (~~); this will automatically produce your name and the date. If you need help, check out Where to ask a question, ask me on my talk page, or place  on your talk page and someone will show up shortly to answer your questions. Again, welcome! JoaoRicardo 12:02, 11 Feb 2005 (UTC)
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Manchester Community College
Hello. I noticed you reverted my edit on the article Manchester Community College. I had replaced the text of the article because it contains a copyright notice. I had explained my reasons at Talk:Manchester Community College. Content contributed to Wikipedia must be licensed under the GFDL. Please see Copyright. Is the copyright holder for the text of the article aware of this? Are you a representative of the MCC? Please drop me a line about this in my talk page. JoaoRicardo 12:06, 11 Feb 2005 (UTC)

 * Thanks for the response. Could you please state what you told me in Talk:Manchester Community College? That way it will be registered in a page associated with the article, in case anyone else would like to know more about it. After that, I can revert the page for you. Or you can do it yourself if you want: see How to revert a page to an earlier version. It is important to know that your text will have to be licensed under the GFDL, meaning other people will be able to use it and change it—even post it in other websites over which Wikipedia has no control. JoaoRicardo 20:14, 11 Feb 2005 (UTC)

title: User talk:Czchavez