Russia's Rostec Aerospace Industries made an announcement on January 12 stating that the first new production of the strategic bomber Tupolev Tu-160M made its first flight.
The company said: “The flight took place at an altitude of 600 meters and lasted about 30 minutes. The crew of test pilots of Tupolev performed maneuvers to test the stability and controllability of the aircraft in the air." The flight took place at Kazan Aviation Plant.
The Tu-160 first entered into Soviet service in the late 1980s, with production running up to 1995. In May 2015, TASS reported that the Russian President Vladimir Putin made the decision to revive the production of Tu-160 and the Russian Air Force would purchase at least 50 new-build Tu-160M variants.
