China's domestically developed AG600 "Kunlong" amphibious aircraft has achieved a significant milestone by officially entering mass production. This development followed the issuance of a production certificate by the Civil Aviation Administration of China on Wednesday, June 11, 2025, as confirmed by the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), the aircraft's developer and the nation's leading aircraft manufacturer.

The production certificate validates that AVIC's quality system complies with all airworthiness regulations and ensures that the AG600 aircraft can be produced consistently in adherence to its approved design standards. This step is crucial for the large-scale manufacturing of this special-purpose aircraft.

The AG600 "Kunlong" is a formidable aircraft, slightly larger than mainstream single-aisle airliners. According to AVIC data, it measures 38.9 meters in length, 11.7 meters in height, and has a wingspan of 38.8 meters. The aircraft boasts a maximum takeoff weight of 60 tonnes and a maximum practical range of 4,500 kilometers. A key capability for its designated roles is its capacity to carry up to 12 tonnes of water for firefighting missions.

Huang Lingcai, the chief designer of the AG600 series, described the aircraft poetically as "a plane that can swim and a ship that can fly." This reflects its unique hybrid design, featuring an integrated aircraft-shaped upper body and a ship-bottom-shaped lower body. For stability and safety during water surface taxiing, each of its large wings is equipped with a float over 4 meters long to prevent overturning.

The development of the AG600 was a massive undertaking, involving hundreds of supporting units and tens of thousands of components. This extensive collaboration underscores China's comprehensive capabilities in complex project management, including collaborative design, advanced manufacturing, sophisticated supply chain management, and stringent process consistency control for large special-purpose aircraft. The project has also generated replicable management experience and technical standards vital for future domestic large special-purpose aircraft endeavors.

An AVIC expert highlighted that the AG600's successful development has forged China's core technology system for large amphibious aircraft. It pioneered a "small core, large collaboration" development model and established a complete framework encompassing design, production, system integration, flight testing, and support services. This achievement equips China with the technological and industrial capacity to independently develop large amphibious aircraft, marking a historic breakthrough in the country's civil aviation sector for large special-purpose aircraft.

Looking ahead, AVIC experts stated that future efforts will be prioritized to meet China's pressing emergency rescue and natural disaster prevention needs. This includes advancing the AG600's serialized development, enhancing the national aviation emergency rescue service network, and ultimately building a comprehensive rescue equipment system with the AG600 aircraft at its operational core.

The journey of the AG600 to mass production has been marked by several key achievements since its development was initiated in 2009. It successfully completed its maiden flight in 2017, followed by its first takeoff from a reservoir in 2018, and a maiden flight over the sea in 2020. By 2023, the AG600 was deemed capable of effectively carrying out fire-fighting tasks, demonstrating its readiness for operational deployment. An earlier flight test was notably observed in Jingmen, Central China's Hubei province, in April 2023.