An AG600M firefighting aircraft gathers water during a gathering and dropping water test in Jingmen, central China's Hubei Province, September 27, 2022. /Xinhua
China has further enhanced capabilities of its AG600M firefighting aircraft, part of the homegrown AG600 large amphibious aircraft family, according to the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), China's leading aviation manufacturer.
AVIC has improved the AG600M by developing an upgraded aircraft platform and stronger capabilities for this large amphibious aircraft, enabling it to better carry out firefighting and other emergency rescue operations, said the company.
The AG600M aircraft is aiming to obtain the required type certificate by the end of 2024, and will be delivered to operators for firefighting and other rescue operations in 2025, said AVIC.
An AG600M firefighting aircraft drops water during a gathering and dropping water test in Jingmen, central China's Hubei Province, September 27, 2022. /Xinhua
Advanced aircraft family
China's independently-developed AG600 series is an advanced large amphibious aircraft currently in the development stage, featuring a unique configuration consisting of an integrated aircraft-shaped upper body and ship-bottom-shaped lower body.
Compared with the technology demonstrator AG600 aircraft, the firefighting-specialized AG600M has an upgraded maximum take-off weight of 60 tonnes, and a maximum water-dropping capacity of up to 12 tonnes.
Multiple other improvements have also been made to this aircraft, from its cockpit, cabin, and wings to its unique ship-bottom-shaped belly, giving it more comfort and better economic performance, said the developer.
The AG600M aircraft features the fly-by-wire flight control system, an integrated avionics system and other related systems.
The optimized ship-bottom-shaped belly enhances the large amphibious aircraft's operational performance when faced with ocean waves and expands its capabilities in terms of water-rescue operations.
"The AG600M firefighting aircraft is capable of carrying and dropping up to 12 tonnes of water on the fire site. It showed a strong capacity for combating fires in a comprehensive emergency air rescue drill held in central China's Jingmen City in late October," said Huang Lingcai, AG600 aircraft series' chief designer and chief engineer of the AVIC General Huanan Aircraft Industry Co., Ltd.
Crew members of an AG600M firefighting aircraft disembark from the plane after a water gathering and dropping test in Jingmen, central China's Hubei Province, September 27, 2022. /Xinhua
Emergency-rescue capabilities
Codenamed Kunlong, or "water dragon" in Chinese, the AG600 aircraft family is being developed as vital aeronautical equipment to strengthen China's emergency-rescue capabilities. Its developers are aiming for these aircraft to be effective in combating forest fires, conducting maritime search and rescue, and other rescue missions.
The AVIC is endeavoring to sustain China's building of its national emergency-rescue system by developing more aeronautical equipment tailored to meet the country's demands through achieving excellent performance, according to the AVIC.
The AG600 aircraft family is on track to expand with more models designed for specialized emergency-rescue missions.
"We are planning the serialized expansion of the AG600 aircraft family according to the needs of users," said Huang.
(With input from Xinhua)