China unveils largest amphibious aircraft

China has completed production of a massive amphibious aircraft that it plans to use to fight forest fires and perform marine rescue missions.

The AG600 rolled off a production line in the southern city of Zhuhai on Saturday, in what aviation observers see as a milestone for the country.

The aircraft has a maximum takeoff weight of 53.5 metric tons, a maximum cruising speed of 500 kilometers per hour, a maximum flight range of 4,500 km, and a maximum endurance of 12 hours, according to state aircraft maker Aviation Industry Corp of China.

The 37-meter-long AG600, with a wing span of 38.8 meters, is by far the world's largest amphibian aircraft, about the size of a Boeing 737, according to Geng Ruguang, AVIC deputy general manager.

In addition to taking off and landing like an ordinary plane, the AG600 can also take off from and land on stretches of water that are at least 1,500 meters long, 200 meters wide and 2.5 meters deep.

It is expected to become an important part of China's resources for dealing with emergencies. According to the original design, it can collect 12 tons of water in 20 seconds, and transport up to 370 tons of water on a single tank of fuel.

With excellent maneuverability and a relatively wide range-of-search scope, the AG600 is capable of rescuing up to 50 people far offshore.

It also is useful in developing and exploiting marine resources given that it can be adapted for marine environmental monitoring, resource detection and transportation.

The plane is the result of nearly seven years of work by a group of 70 aircraft component manufacturers and research teams with over 150 institutes from 20 provinces and municipalities in China. The development and production of the plane received government approval in 2009.

"The AG600 is like a ship that can fly, with advanced gas-water dynamic engineering and underwater corrosion resistance technology," said Huang Lingcai, chief designer of the plane.

According to AVIC, the AG600 will mainly target the domestic market.

Seventeen orders have been placed for the plane.