VVA-14 WITH INFLATABLE PONTOONS

The Bartini Beriev VVA-14 was a prototype heavy seaplane-amphibious vertical take-off from the post-war period. The drive was provided - in the first prototype - by two D30M turbofan engines. The flight of the prototype took place in September 1972 - the machine never entered mass production, only two prototypes were made. Bartini Beriev VVA-14 was developed by the aviation constructor Roberto Bartini, and its production was undertaken by Beriev's aviation plant. The VVA-14 was designed as a long-range ZOP (anti-submarine) aircraft that could land at sea and then take off vertically. The design had a very unusual aerodynamic system and was thoroughly avant-garde. Despite a successful flight, the USSR's armed forces did not express much interest in the construction. It was assumed that the machine would cause a lot of operational problems, and the work on it was definitely prolonged. Finally, at the end of the 1970s, work on this atypical machine was completely discontinued.