Modelsvit – 72037 – Be-12P-200 Experimental firefighting flying boat

Description:

Be-12P-200 Experimental firefighting flying boat

During development of the firefighting variant of a new Be-200 amphibious
multipurpose aircraft, designers had to solve a wide range of technical and
designing problems. One of them was to
develop special water collecting system, which is able to fill entire
water tanks within 12-20 seconds, and in the same time – to reduce fuel
consumption and airframe hydrodynamic load.As a test-bed of such system was used, Be-12’s modified version under
designation Be-12P-200. The system was tested between 1994 and 1996, and for
seasons of 1997-1998, Be-12P-200 was successfully employed for the forest fire
extinguishing in Irkutsk and Khabarovsk regions. In the Be-12P-200’s fuselage was installed 2 water tanks, 6m3 each.
Tanks have flaps for water discharge and drainage channels. The plane was
fitted with control, measurement and aiming equipment.The maiden flight of Be-12P-200 was performed on August 9, 1996. Its tests
continued until October 1996. During the tests, up to 37 water intake and
discharge modes were executed.