Earlier today (China time) AVIC’s AG600 made its first flight. You can see a short video here.
Since it is a holiday period, and you probably have the time (and since you’re here today, you must be an Avgeek!) here is a link to a one hour video.
The achievement is impressive. China’s aerospace industry is moving forward on several projects. If there is one issue that caught our eye here, it is the smoky turboprops. You don’t see that on western engines anymore. The closest similar smokiness we have observed is on the Russian IL-18, for example. By comparison, take a look at the Japanese US-2 amphibian and note its Rolls-Royce AE2100J engines generate no smoke. The AG600 and IL-18 engines look similar, but who knows what is under the nacelle?
Nonetheless, a great day for China’s aerospace industry.
