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World's Largest Amphibious Aircraft Goes Into Production In China
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.
So a Chinese spy stumbled across the Spruce Goose exhibit and thought, "Wow, total score! This is better than the Stealth!"?
When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
Most likely to aid in their claim on uninhabited islands in the South China Sea. Amphibious planes would allow for quick small arms transport to distant/remote islands.
I think Taiwan has airports. I actually had in mind all those islands that are in territory dispute with Japan. But regardless of which island it is and what country claims that island, they do exist.
The Hercules, aka Spruce Goose, is not amphibious: it's a seaplane, period.
This is an amphibian: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wi...
But the Martin Mars ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M... ) made several flights, and was actually flown until a few years ago as a firefighting plane. And I still think it is bigger than this plane. Probably their claim is that it is bigger than its Japanese counterpart, the ShinMaywa US2 ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S... )
And are not yet very good at building aircraft carriers and everything that goes with them (suitable aircraft and command and control).
It's not the "next best thing" or even close - there is a good reason why large 'planes such as this were rapidly abandoned (except by the Soviet Union) after WW2. They take up much more of their usable capacity with fuel and equipment , and are extremely vulnerable on both land and sea, (one submerged log or - more likely these days - a lost shipping container) and your transport and its cargo is scrap.
Of course, I'd still want one :)
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.
The Martin JRM Mars has more impressive specs ...
General characteristics
o Crew: four (with accommodations for a second relief crew)
o Capacity: 133 troops, or 84 litter patients and 25 attendants
o Payload: 32,000 lb (15,000 kg) of cargo, including up to seven jeeps
o Length: 117 ft 3 in (35.74 m)
o Wingspan: 200 ft 0 in (60.96 m)
o Height: 38 ft 5 in (11.71 m)
o Wing area: 3,686 ft (342.4 mÂ)
o Empty weight: 75,573 lb (34,279 kg)
o Loaded weight: 90,000 lb (40,820 kg)
o Max. takeoff weight: 165,000 lb (74,800 kg)
o Powerplant: 4 x Wright R-3350-24WA Duplex Cyclone 18-cylinder radial engines, 2,500 hp (1,900 kW) each
Performance
o Maximum speed: 192 knots (221 mph, 356 km/h)
o Cruise speed: 165 knots (190 mph, 305 km/h)
o Range: 4,300 nautical miles (5,000 mi, 8,000 km)
o Service ceiling: 14,600 ft (4,450 m)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M...
Still at work.
http://www.martinmars.com/airc...
Goes to the full August 1946 issue of Popular Science, including a first-hand account of Able - the first atomic bomb test at Bikini Atoll. That glimpse into life as a tech geek in 1946 is more interesting than TFA.
The allegations against him and the plane were politically motivated; Senator Owen Brewster was "bought" by competitor Juan Trippe of Pan Am.
"In 1947, the Senate War Investigation Committee, led by Maine Senator Owen Brewster. The committee alleged that government funds had been misused in both the XF-11 and Spruce Goose Projects, siting the fact that neither project had resulted in a single aircraft delivered to the Air Force. Hughes maintained that there had been no wrong doing, and that Senator Brewster had taken contributions from Juan Tripp, President of Pan Am, a major competitor of Hughes' TWA. Although the hearings featuring Hughes' testimony electrified the nation, the committee disbanded without making a report."
http://www.otrcat.com/howard-h...
Seaplanes only land on water. Amphibious planes usually have retractable landing gear that goes into a water-tight compartment so that they can land on either water or on an appropriate runway.