First flight of the Tu-160 was in 1981, with the type entering Russian Air Force service in 1987. Thirty-six aircraft were built. Moscow is slowly upgrading the current fleet, with money allocated for three of the remaining 16 Blackjacks. The improvements were to include comm/nav gear and
better engines.
Tu-160s are based at Engels Airbase near Saratov in the heart of the former Soviet Union, relatively close to the Russian border with Kazakhstan. The Blackjacks fly with a crew of four.
The Russians have been working on Tu-160 upgrades for a long time (10 years). What they have finally been able to deliver is a
partial upgrade to the avionics, but not the engine upgrade which was one of the key upgrades. My guess is that restarting the production line will take much longer.
[July 5, 2006]
At last, the Air Forces received the Tu-160 bomber that was undergoing overhaul at the Kazan Aviation Plant (this plane was expected to be back in 2005, but this was delayed several times ). The aircraft was christened "Valentin Bliznyuk", after the Chief Designer of the plane.
As it was reported earlier, the overhaul did not seem to include upgrade of avionics. However, the aircraft was reportedly given the capability to use conventional weapons.
Tu-160 returns from overhaul - Blog - Russian strategic nuclear forces
[December 9 2014]
Further delays for modernisation of Russian Air Force Tu-160 bombers
The modernisation of 16 Tupolev Tu-160 'Blackjack' strategic bombers, which according to the long range plans of the Russian Air Force (VVS) should have been completed in 2017, may be delayed to 2019 or beyond, IHS Jane's has been told by some of the specialists assigned to the project.
At present there is still no finalised configuration as to what Soviet-era components will be replaced on these aircraft. Additionally, the manufacturer of the aircraft's Kuznetsov NK-32 engines is unable to come to an agreement with the United Aero-Engine Building Corporation (ODK) on the question of financing.
A source close to ODK has relayed to IHS Jane's that the current work on the modernisation of the Tu-160 and the re-opening of the production line that would manufacture the necessary components for these aircraft is "at a phase when it is difficult to project a timeframe in which this process would be completed".
The delays and problems plaguing this programme are not new. Just prior to the Moscow MAKS air show in August 2011, Russian news outlets stated that of the 16 Tu-160s still in VVS inventory only four were flightworthy. The main limiting factor is that most of the NK-32 engines had at that point reached the end of their service life. The Kuznetsov Design Bureau (OKB) that developed the engine and the KMPO production plant that built them during the Soviet period have not produced any new engines in more than a decade. The enterprises no longer have either adequate personnel or the machine-tooling to be able to manufacture them.
Further delays for modernisation of Russian Air Force Tu-160 bombers - IHS Jane's 360