A-40

The Beriev A-40/Be-42 is the world's largest amphibious airplane. It was developed to meet the requirements of the Soviet Union's Navy for a single platform to replace Be-12 and Il-38 maritime patrol and ASW aircraft. The A-40/Be-42 is powered by two D-30KPV turbofan engines rated at 26,500-pound of thrust each, equipped with booster turbojets and mounted over the fuselage between the wings and the tail. Besides its stability and controllability in the water is remarkable due to variable rise hull. Its development began in the early 1980s and by 1989 the aircraft had achieved operational capability within the Soviet Union's Navy. the Beriev design bureau also envisaged the development of new variants powered by turboprop engines in lieu of turbojets. The A-45 was the designation for ASW variant powered by turboprop engines, the Be-40P was a 105-seat airliner and the Be-40PT was a combi cargo/passenger airplane. Apparently, these further developments were put on hold following the Soviet Union collapse. However, Beriev continued development work on a shortened fuselage version intended for the commercial/civil segment and named the Be-200. Approximately 20 to 50 A-40/Be-42/Be-200 aircraft have been produced for the Commonality of Independent States (CIS) and export customers.

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