... if 'imitation is the sincerest form of flattery' than Boeing should be proud!
At the end of WWII the Soviet Union had no real modern long range bomber. At least nothing that was even close to the Boeing B-29 'Superfortress'. So in a back-braeking feat of 'reverse-engineering' Stalin had several US B-29's, that had landed on Soviet soil because of engine problems, taken apart and copied down to the smallest nut and bolt. 847 copies were made and they were given the NATO code-name 'Bull'.
These bombers could carry an early generation Soviet A-bomb to strike targets in Europe but would not have been able to reach the United States - even on a one-way mission.
As a part of the combined NATO force Being B-29's were loaned to the British. So for a time in the early stages of the Cold War- everyone had the same strategic bomber!
