Tupolev A-3 Aerosledge
Soviet amphibious transport vehicle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Tupolev A-3 Aerosledge is an all-metal amphibious aerosledge, designed to transport passengers and light freight in remote areas of the Soviet Union. Officially known as the A-3 "Hope" ("Nadezhda" in Russian), it uses a single pusher propeller mounted behind the enclosed cabin to propel the craft over snow or water.[1] A prototype was constructed in 1961, and the A-3 entered into production in 1964.[2]
 N007 in July 2013 | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | A-3 Aerosledge |
| Builders | Tupolev Design Bureau |
| Operators | Soviet Union |
| Completed | Over 800 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Aerosled |
| Tonnage | 1,779 lbs |
| Length | 13 feet 2 inches |
| Beam | 7 feet |
| Height | 4 feet 5 inches (cabin) |
| Draft | 2 inches |
| Propulsion | 1 AI-14R five-cylinder radial engine producing 260 horsepower and driving a single 6 foot 2 inch twin-bladed propeller |
| Speed | 74.6 mph (snow), 40.4 mph (water) |
| Capacity | 1,433 lbs (snow) 661 lbs (water) |
| Troops | 4 |
| Crew | 1 |
Survivors
- A 1978 A-3, registered N007 (possibly the only one imported to the U.S.), was offered at a Barrett-Jackson auction in 2007.[3] This specific A-3 was upgraded to a 9-cylinder Vedeneyev M14P engine, which drove the standard twin parallel-rotating propellers. This A-3 was sold at Barrett-Jackson's 2015 Scottsdale auction for $220,000[4] and again at the 2020 edition of the same auction for $143,000.[5]
