Among the displays at the current Le Bourget air show, there is to be the Be-200ChS amphibian aircraft brought to Paris by its developer and manufacturer Beriev company. The full-rate production and sales of the Be-200 amphibian is a priority for Beriev, even more so that new prospects are facing the programme now. In September 2010, the Be-200ES-E was issued its long-awaited type certificate by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which paved the way to the Western market for it. Very recently, on 25 May 2011, the Russian Emergencies Ministry awarded Beriev a long-term order for six more Be-200ChS amphibians, with the aircraft to be built in Taganrog this time. Beriev launched manufacture of parts for its own production-standard Be-200ChS amphibians.

The baseline model of Beriev Be-200 is designed to put out forest fires using water or flame extinguisher liquid. It has spawned the Be-200ChS derivative for the Russian Emergencies Ministry, the launch customer for the amphibian. Under the contract awarded by the Emergencies Ministry, the Irkutsk Aircraft Plant, a subsidiary the Irkut corporation, made and delivered four production amphibians from 2003 through 2006, while the fifth aircraft made in 2007 was exported a year later to Azerbaijan where it has been in service with the Azeri Emergencies Ministry ever since.

In the wake of the forest fires raging all over Russia last summer, the Russian government decided to beef up the air arm of the Emergencies Ministry with more Be-200ChS amphibians. An agreement on delivery of eight more Be-200ChS’s to the ministry was signed in a ceremony during the Gydroaviasalon show in Gelenjik in September 2010. The agreement provided at Phase I for Beriev to bring the two previously-ordered final aircraft under construction in Irkutsk up to snuff with the requirements specifications and deliver them and then launch deliveries of Be-200ChS of its own make.

The sixth production-standard Be-200ChS (c/n 301) made its maiden flight in Irkutsk in July last year and ferried to Taganrog last August. Now, it is sitting in a Beriev assembly shop, receiving customer-approved improvements that were applied to the previously-acquired Emergencies Ministry amphibians as part of scheduled overhauls after they had kicked off their operations. The final, seventh Irkut-built Be-200ChS (c/n 302) was completed this spring: its maiden flight took place in the city of Irkutsk on 3 April, and the aircraft was ferried to Taganrog the same month to be given the same improvements Aircraft 301 is being given prior to the delivery. Both aircraft are to enter service with the Emergency Ministry’s air branch until late November 2011 under the governmental contract signed last November.

Construction of the remaining Be-200ChS’s will be handled by Beriev that has since April this year been a single company uniting the previously independent TAVIA production plant and Beriev company proper situated on the same premises. For the purpose of construction, part of the production tools has been moved form Irkutsk to Taganrog, new assembly jigs have been made and cutting-edge processing centres and other high-tech gear have been imported. The governmental contract for six production Be-200ChS amphibians to be made and delivered to the Emergencies Ministry prior to 2014 was signed on 25 May 2011. The aircraft shall be fielded with air units of the Siberian and Far Eastern regional centres of the Emergencies Ministry.

The first Taganrog-built aircraft is to be complete in the second quarter of 2013. Overall, Beriev is to manufacture three Be-200ChS’s in 2013, according to Director General – General Designer Victor Kobzev. Three more aircraft are be made in 2014 under the order the Emergencies Ministry placed recently. The first export Be-200ES-E is to be completed at the same time. Victor Kobzev said the plans provided for an increase in the Taganrog output up to six Be-200ChS aircraft a year with a possible subsequent increase up to 10–12 units per annum. According to the Beriev head, there may be demand for 30–35 aircraft of the type in Europe alone, with potential customers including France, Spain and Greece. High expectation also is pinned on the Asian market, particular, India, where the Be-200 is bidding in several tenders at once.

Also important is that the assembly jigs set up in Beriev’s shops to make the Be-200 amphibians are fit for manufacturing the non-amphibian Be-300 plane as well. According to Victor Kobzev, both aircraft have 75–85% commonality. Essentially, the Be-300 and Be-200 differ only in the shape of the lower fuselage that has the conventional aeroplane shape, rather than that of a boat. Owing to the engines mounted on top of the wing (a solution borrowed from the Be-200), the Be-300 can operate from unpaved airfields to handle a wide range of missions in the regions lacking a developed airfield network).

The common aerodynamic configuration and flight performance similar to that of land-based aircraft provided the Be-200 with a high degree of upgradeability. This offers excellent opportunities for deriving a whole range of Be-200 versions, both amphibian and land-based, to accomplish a variety of civilian and military missions in an effective manner. The Be-210 passenger amphibian has been derived from the Be-200 and provision has been made for developing a cargo/passenger and patrol derivatives. In addition, the Be-200 and its Be-300 land-based version could be of interest as a versatile platform for specialist aircraft for military and civilian roles.
Last spring, the Be-200ChS amphibian has proven its top-notch characteristics yet again during the FIDAE 2010 international air show in Chile, after which it toured several Latin American countries and the United States for the demonstration purpose. Overall, the aircraft covered upwards of 56,000 km within a total of 121 flying hours. The Be-200ChS flew over 14 countries on three continents. Earlier this year, the Be-200ChS has performed a series of demonstration flights in India and Israel.