Myasishchev M-50

The Myasishchev M-50 was a large Soviet prototype bomber of the late 1950s, designed to reach supersonic speed while carrying a heavy strategic payload over intercontinental range, at a time when Soviet planners were racing to field an aircraft that could rival the reach of American strategic bombers. Powered by four engines mounted in a mixed underwing and wingtip arrangement, it was among the largest supersonic aircraft flown anywhere at the time of its first flight in 1959. Persistent difficulties meeting its performance and range targets, combined with the Soviet military's shifting emphasis toward intercontinental ballistic missiles, meant the M-50 never entered production, and only a single flying prototype was built.