The Beriev Be-200 Multirole Amphibian Aircraft

MMAG Excluesive:Having had the pleaure to have met and converse in detail with the Be-200 lead designer, Mr. Vladimir V. Ignatenko (shown above) the MMAG has learned the following. The Beriev Be-200 is an amphibious multirole turbofan aircraft designed by the Berieva Aviatsionnyi Kompaniya (Beriev Aviation Company), with the Russian Irkutsk Aircraft Production Association (IAPO) responsible for the production engineering development phase of the program. The first flight took place in 1998 and the aircraft was first seen in the west at the 1999 Paris Air Show.
IAPO (now part of the Irkut Corporation) and EADS signed a memorandum of understanding in May 2002 to jointly carry out a market study and to define the conditions and costs of international certification and the logistics of setting up a worldwide after-sales service.
The study was completed in July 2003 and the two companies, with Rolls-Royce Deutschland, plan to obtain Western certification and offer the aircraft for Western markets. It is planned to power the aircraft with Rolls-Royce BR715 engines. I trully look foward to seeing the B-200 in action at next year 2008 Hydr0-Aviation Airshow in Russia.

Maritime Aviation, It All Started In France

In The Beginning: The first seaplane was invented in March 1910 by the French engineer Henri Fabre. Its name was Le Canard ('the duck'), and took off from the water and flew 800 meters on its first flight on March 28, 1910. These experiments were closely followed by the aircraft pioneers Gabriel and Charles Voisin, who purchased several of the Fabre floats and fitted them to their Canard Voisin airplane. In October 1910, the Canard Voisin became the first seaplane to fly over the river Seine, and in March 1912, the first seaplane to be used militarily from a seaplane carrier, La Foudre ('the lightning').

MMAG Hosted the Russian Beriev Design Bureau 2007 Miami Visit In Support of Miami Be-103, N13KL

Miami Dec 2007: Mr. Robbie Peres of Sea Planes of Key West and Founder of Sea Planes of Miami along with Mr. Benny Benitez of the MMAG / 94th AeroClaims-Aviation Consulting Group, hosted a technical delegation visit from the Russian Beriev Design Bureau, a world leader in Hydro-Aviation design and manufacturing to Miami.

The seven day visit by Beriev was primarily focused to establish technical and personal ties between the Design Bureau and the above organizations and individuals, so as to support the operation and proper upkeep of the sole Beriev Be-103 operating within Miami and establish the ground work for future joint projects into the region.

With only three Be-103 operating within the United States (N13KL, N30KL, & N29KL) both Robbie, Benny as well as Mr. Richard Osborne (Be-103 Pilot) liaised and established excellent communication and relationship with the Beriev personnel, thus beneficial to the technical care of the three U.S. / Beriev airframes.

The visit also laid the preliminary ground work for both Benny and Richard to visit the Beriev facility in Russia during the early part of 2008, so as to ascertain factory certification in the Be-103, as well to get initial technical and operation exposure to Beriev bigger project, the Be-200, the world only jet power amphibian aircraft in operation.

The MMAG to Introduce the Piper Aztec On Floats to Miami in 2008

The Miami Maritime Aviation Group (MMAG) announces the Aztec Nomand, Inc. exciting new aircraft that leaves the competition far behind. The incredible Aztec Nomad, available on straight or amphibious floats offers MORE. More useful load, speed, rate of climb, range, comfort, safety and value. If you have ever flown a Piper Aztec, you will understand the outstanding performance of this rugged aircraft. It is no surprise that when floats are installed, the remarkable performance continues. Recent modifications including 3 foot wing extensions, vortex generators, seaplane propellers and a 500 lb. increased gross weight have made the Aztec Nomad even more impressive. Stall speed a meagre 49 KTS; rate of climb 950 ft/min; cruise 135 KTS for up to 7 hours; all this with an 1800 lb. useful load on amphibs. and 2200 lbs. on straight floats. This is a true six place aircraft.
We are convinced there is nothing that compares to the Aztec Nomad. In 2008, the (MMAG) hopes to have the opportunity to show demo flight in Miami as we expand and establish our relationship with Aztec Nomand, Inc.

Pan American World Airways "Sikorsky's" at Dinner Key

Dinner Key History: From 1933-1945, Dinner Key in Coconut Grove (Miami), Florida was Pan American Airways Latin American Hub for its Flying Boat fleet. Dinner Key was so named because many families used to come out and have picnic dinners and watch the Sikorsky’s, Martin’s, and Boeing’s leave for exotic ports. In 1950, the terminal became Miami’s City Hall with the surrounding area becoming a marina.

Today two of the four former Pan Am maintenance hangers belong to Grove Key Marina. The tracks used to tow the Clippers out of the water are still visible today, still devoid of rust, in the boat basin to the right of the main terminal. Inside and out, the City Hall still posses wonderful Pan Am iconography.

Dinner Key is in the Coconut Grove section of Miami, Florida, adjacent to Biscayne Bay, at 25°43′41″N, 80°14′05″W. It was originally an island, but was connected to the mainland in 1914 by filling in the intervening space. An early source attributes the name to the fact that the island was a convenient place to stop to eat while traveling by boat between the mouth of the Miami River and the "Hunting Grounds" south of Miami.
A United States Naval Air Station was established on Dinner Key in 1917. The Air Station was closed shortly after the end of World War I and taken over by commercial operators. The Navy return to Dinner Key during World War II, operating there from 1943 until 1945.
Dinner Key served as a base for Pan American World Airways' flying boats during the 1930s and 1940s. It was one of the world's largest airports and the main hub for air traffic between North and South America. After the technological advances of World War II and the construction of suitable airports in South America made seaplanes largely obsolete, Pan Am transferred its operations to Miami International Airport.
The United States Coast Guard operated an Air Station at Dinner Key from 1932 until 1965, when operations were transferred to the Opa-locka Airport. The former barracks and mess building were added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on August 10, 1995.
One of Pan Am's hangars was used for many years as an exhibition hall and auditorium, the Dinner Key Auditorium. This was the site of the incident in 1969 in which Jim Morrison of the Doors was arrested for exposing himself to the audience. On December 19, 2002, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
Today, Dinner Key is used primarily as a marina. Three of Pan Am's original four hangars remain in use for boat storage. The old Pan Am terminal building has served as the Miami City Hall since 1954. It was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on February 20, 1975.

It All Started With Seaplanes, Smuggling and Booze

The airline was founded by Arthur "Pappy" Chalk, and started ad-hoc charter operations as the Red Arrow Flying Service in 1917. After "Pappy" Chalk served in the Army Air Corps in World War I, he returned to Miami and commenced scheduled service between Miami and Bimini in the Bahamas in February 1919 as Chalk's Flying Service. During prohibition, Chalk's was a major source of smuggling alcohol from the Bahamas to the United States.
Chalk's first base was a beach umbrella on the Miami shore of Biscayne Bay. In 1926 a landfill island, Watson Island, was created in Biscayne Bay close to Miami. Chalk's built an air terminal there, and operated from the island for the next 75 years. After the September 11, 2001 attacks, the company had to relocate operations due to concerns about port security. Chalk continued to be involved in the daily operations of the airline until he retired in 1975. He died in 1977 at the age of 88.