Paper Skies

When a Soviet Plane Crashed into a Daycare

A tragic story that took place in the USSR in 1972, when a military plane crashed into a daycare. To cover up the accident, the Soviet authorities built a small park overnight on the site of the destroyed kindergarten.

YouTube Human Review

The Primitive Nature of Russian Propaganda

Unfortunately, this video was marked by YouTube's human review as violating community guidelines. Thus, it won’t be released on YouTube but only here and on Nebula. For YouTube, I guess I’ll be making another 'mild' and 'censored' version.

This time, however, YouTube provided specific parts of the video with explanations of my violations. You can check them for yourself while watching if you’d like.

• 0:17-0:19 - Hateful & Derogatory Content 2024-11-02 18:59:35 +0000 UTC View Post

The Insane Reverse Engineering of the B-29 Superfortress

On May 19, 1947, the Soviet Tupolev Tu-4 bomber made its first flight. The new plane was an exact copy of the most advanced aircraft of the time, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress. Why did the Soviets, instead of creating something original, choose to blatantly copy the American bomber? And most importantly—how did they manage to do it?

The Su-24 Bomber and The Accidentally Ejected Pilot

The story of the Sukhoi Su-24 Bomber development and the 1975 case of the accidentally ejected pilot, which is believed to be the first successful 0-0 ejection from a stationary aircraft. 

How Soviet Pilots Drank Alcohol From Planes

The story of Aviation Alcohol (Air Booze), which Soviet pilots drained from planes and then used for drinking.

When Soviet pilots were forced to stay awake for 24 hours

The story of Aeroflot Flight 5143, which crashed on July 10, 1985, and became the worst air disaster in Soviet aviation history.

When Russian Disarray Almost Started A Nuclear War

The story of the Norwegian Rocket Incident of 1995, although almost unknown to many, is regarded as one of the most dangerous episodes in history. Due to a bizarre coincidence, the Russian military mistook the Norwegian research rocket for an American nuclear missile. The Russian President activated his nuclear briefcase and was on the verge of pressing the red button to launch an attack on the USA in response.

When The Soviets Were To Destroy Their Own Warship

The story of the mutiny on the Soviet frigate “Storozhevoy” in 1975, which later inspired Tom Clancy when writing his debut novel “The Hunt For Red October”.

New Video

A new video is currently rendering and will be ready shortly. I'll add the regular monthly charge to this post to prevent double charging in November (for those who have already entered November 1 due to the time difference).

Why the Soviet Chemical Bomber Failed

The dark side of the legendary record-breaking ANT-25 aircraft, which was adapted to serve as a long-range bomber.

Big Surprise

A huge surprise is coming next week Thursday. I can't give any details yet but this is going to be my first true collaboration on Youtube.

When a Soviet MiG-21 accidently landed on a NATO airfield

Hilarious story of how a Soviet MiG-21 fighter aircraft accidentally landed on a NATO airbase in 1967.

When The Soviets Accidentally Invaded Iran

The hilarious story of how the Soviet Army in Afghanistan in 1982 launched an operation to destroy a mujahedeen base, but due to a navigational error instead attacked an asphalt factory in Iran.

The Ridiculous Downfall of the Soviet Giant: The PS-124 Story

The story of the once-largest aircraft in the world, the PS-124 (ANT-20bis), the lesser-known twin brother of the infamous ANT-20 Maxim Gorky

When a Soviet Bomber Accidently Flew to Iran

The story of the 203rd Heavy Bomber Regiment and its legendary “mirror flight”, when one of the Tu-22 bombers got lost and flew to Iran.

[Exclusive Content] When the Soviet An-12 Flew With an Unconscious Crew

The thrilling story of the Soviet "Ghost Plane" -- the Antonov An-12 that for several hours flew with an unconscious crew.

Why No Russian Soldier Wants to Fly On This Plane

The story of the Soviet Antonov An-12 aircraft, which during the war in Afghanistan received the nickname “Black Tulip” for its grim service.

p.s. My apologies if there are any ads in the video. Normally, I turn them off during Early Access. However, I have to leave them on this time since the video is being checked for monetization suitability.

The "Ghost Flight" video mentioned at the end should be available on Patreon tomorrow. I got behind because YouTube kept age-restric...

[Exclusive Content] The Art of Russian Military Cheating

A Story of Cheating in the Russian Army and Navy

The Backstory of Russian Missiles Hitting Toilets in Ukraine

Hilarious episode of Soviet Aviation history on how the Russians cheated during the Kh-29 missile trials back in the ’70s, which could potentially explain the recent multiple missiles strikes on outdoor toilets in Ukraine.

[Exclusive Content] When The Soviets Tested The Captured F-5 vs MiG-21

Little known story of the flight test conducted by the Soviets with the captured Northrop F-5 Tiger in 1976. Despite being inferior to Soviet MiG-21 and MiG-23 the F-5 results in the mock fights nevertheless unpleasantly surprised the Soviet Air Force Command.

Delayed.

Due to some technical issues, the F-5 video is delayed. I will post it on Sep, 26. Though, with blue screen you can never be sure :(
My apologies. 

[EARLY ACCESS] The Story Of The Soviet TOPGUN Program

This video will be put in open access on the main channel tomorrow on Sep, 24.

The story of the Soviet Center for Combat Employment 1521 “Maryy” (Мары), which became the proving ground where Soviet fighter pilots would master and test their skills to become the best pilots in the world. Though different in some aspects, Soviet Air Base 1521 is often considered a Soviet analog to the US Navy TOPGUN School.

The "F-5 in the USSR" video mentioned in the end, will be posted ...

The Soviet TOPGUN Program [Trailer]

I planned to complete and release this video yet in May but ... plans had to be changed. If all good with YouTube checks for violence etc, the video (almost 1 hour long) will be released this weekend. 

[Exclusive Content] The Soviet Fighter That Couldn’t Shoot Its Guns

The story of the first Soviet jet fighter - the MiG-9

[Early Access] When Perfect Becomes Useless | The Yak-9T and NS-37 story

Amazing story of arming the "anti-tank" Yakovlev Yak-9T fighter aircraft with an excessively powerful NS-37 cannon.

[Exclusive Content] Big Guns on Soviet Fighters | Recoilless Madness of the 1930s

In the early 1930s among the officers of the Red Army, multiple rumors about unusual super-powerful weapons that were currently undergoing military tests began circulating. The stories about mysterious "K"-system cannons sounded so unreal and otherwise would cause nothing more than a smile, if not for the storytellers themselves witnessing a salvo of huge 305-mm howitzers mounted on regular trucks, or small destroyers firing gigantic "battleship size" cannons, or airplanes in the sky shooting...

[EARLY ACCESS] When the Soviets Mounted a Big Gun on Small Aircraft

The MiG-27 and GSh-6-30 story

How One Crash Caused Thousands of Casualties for the French Army in WW1

The story of a little known airplane crash in 1911 that, arguably, cost France the deaths and injuries of tens of thousands of French soldiers on the battlefields of WWI.

[EARLY ACCESS] When the Soviet Navy Lost 16 Admirals in a Single Accident: The Tu-104 Crash at Pushkin

The plane crash at Pushkin airfield on February 7, 1981 became the very last accident in the Tupolev Tu-104 history, after which they were permanently retired from service. But the main reason the disaster at Pushkin airfield went down in history was because this single crash had almost entirely beheaded the Soviet Pacific Fleet. That day, in just a few seconds, the Soviet Navy lost 16 admirals and generals, including the commander of the Pacific Fleet admiral Emil Spiridonov.