World's largest amphibious plane makes maiden flight
The world's largest amphibious aircraft, the AG600, made a successful one-hour-long maiden flight today from Zhuhai airport in the Guangdong province on the South China Sea coast. The maiden flight of the AG600, which was developed indigenously by China, was broadcast live on Chinese state television. Part of China's military modernization programme, the AG600 could have strategic applications in the South China Sea conflict.
Technical specifications of the AG600
The AG600 was developed by the state-owned Aviation Industry Corp of China. Roughly the size of a Boeing 737 but fitted with four turbo-prop engines, the AG600 can carry 50 people, has a maximum flight range of 4,500km, and a maximum take-off weight of 53.5 tonnes. The AG600 can also scoop up 12 metric tonnes of water in 20 seconds for fire fighting trips.
The biggest amphibious aircraft ever designed
Despite being the world's largest amphibious aircraft at the moment, the AG600 is dwarfed by the Howard Hughes-designed Spruce Goose. The Spruce Goose had a wingspan of 97.54 metres as opposed to the AG600's 38.8 metres, but only flew once for 26 seconds in 1947.
The AG600 has military applications in South China Sea region
Although the AG600 was touted as a firefighting and/or marine rescue mission plane, it has potential military applications too owing to its amphibious capabilities. As China adopts a more muscular approach to the disputed South China Sea region where it has overlapping territorial claims with Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines, Brunei, and Taiwan, the versatility and range of the AG600 can prove to be strategically important.
