★ FAMOUSAviation history
Tu-144LL
The first supersonic airliner to fly, and the last one to land
Tail number RA-77114
Retired. This one lives in the history books now.
The story
Concorde's rival got into the air first — by two months — and through the sound barrier first as well. Soviet passenger service lasted barely a year. This airframe got a second life in the 1990s as a supersonic research testbed flown jointly by Tupolev and NASA, and made the last flight any Tu-144 has ever made, in 1999.
Fun fact
The Tu-144 had small canard wings that swung out from behind the cockpit on approach — no other airliner has ever looked like it.
Quick answers
What is the tail number of Tu-144LL?
RA-77114 (Tupolev Tu-144D, retired).
What kind of aircraft is Tu-144LL?
Tupolev Tu-144D.
Is it still flying?
No. It no longer flies.
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