China flies its first home-made large amphibious aircraft

China's first home-made large amphibious aircraft finished its first ever flight on Sunday in south China's Guangdong Province.

According to Xinhua, the aircraft AG600, code-named "Kunlong," successfully winged above the clouds from the Jinwan Civil Aviation Airport in the city of Zhuhai at 9:39 am. It remained in the high sky for about one hour.

"Its successful maiden flight makes China among the world's few countries capable of developing a large amphibious aircraft," said Huang Lingcai, chief designer of AG600.

State-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) which developed the aircraft said, "The aircraft is powered by four domestically-built turboprop engines, has a 39.6-meter-long fuselage and a 38.8-meter wingspan."

If the AVIC sources are to be believed, the new aircraft can fly for 12 hours at a time with a maximum take-off weight of 53.5 tonnes and a top cruising speed of 500 kilometers per hour.

It is also believed to be the world's largest aircraft of its type.