World's Largest Amphibious Aircraft Goes Into Production In China 85
stephendavion (2872091) writes "Chinese aircraft manufacturer China Aviation Industry General Aircraft (CAIGA) has started trial production of its TA600 amphibious aircraft, claimed to be the world's largest of its kind. With an expected maiden flight late next year, the Chinese plane would replace Japan's ShinMaywa US-2 short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft as the largest of its kind globally."
Take a look at a side profile illustration of the CA-600, on this Korean language page. The TA600 has a huge maximum takeoff weight of 53.5 tons, but looks a bit puny compared to Howard Hughes' H-4 Hercules.
Re:Why? (Score:5, Informative)
The Hercules, aka Spruce Goose, is not amphibious: it's a seaplane, period.
This is an amphibian: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wi... [wikimedia.org]
Re:The Spruce Goose is your comparison? (Score:5, Informative)
The Goose never flew again because the war was over and the government had stopped paying for it. Hughes made the one flight only to prove he had actually built a working airplane and not defrauded the taxpayers with a phony project.
Re:Spruce Goose (Score:4, Informative)
Yeah, except this piece of junk is tiny. It is not large at all. The Martin JRM-1 Mars in 1942 was much heavier. It's a squeaking mosquito next to the Hughes H-4 Hercules of 1947. Yes, shut up, I know those are straight flying boats - because sometimes you just have to make up your mind.
Technically, sure, it's the heaviest amphibian in the world. Amphibians as a class are practically dead.