China rolls out AG600 amphibian
The AG600, a new amphibian aircraft from the China Aviation Industry General Aircraft Company (CAIGA), enjoyed its official rollout from a factory in Zhuhai, southern China, on 23 July.
The ‘Jiaolong’ (Water Dragon) aircraft is the largest of its type in the world, with a maximum take-off weight of 53.5t. It measures 37m long and has a wingspan of 38.8m, which is comparable to a Boeing 737 airliner.
The AG600 is larger than both the ShinMaywa US-2 from Japan and the Beriev Be-200 from Russia.
China lists missions such as fighting forest fires, maritime search and rescue (SAR), monitoring of
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