The first new build Tupolev Tu-160 "Blackjack" strategic bomber to be produced since 2007 was rolled off the production line at the Kazan Aviation Plant on November 16, 2017. The aircraft is the first of fifty that Russia has plans to procure beginning in 2023. The first test aircraft is due to begin test flights in 2019.

The new aircraft will be built to "M2" standard, which includes new Kuznetsov NK-32-02 engines. The Russian military also plans to upgrade the current sixteen aircraft fleet of Tu-160s up to the same standard.