4 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Beriev Be-6 Kyiv 2009: VargaA· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 2. Be-6 Ukrainian State Aviation Museum: Original uploader was Dima Sergienko at en.wikipedia· Public domain
- 3. Beriev Be-6: Ronidong· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 4. Be-6-2006Donuzlav: Vyacheslav Stepanyuchenko from Rostov-on-Don , Russian Federation· CC BY 2.0
what is it?
The Beriev Be-6 (USAF/DoD reporting name "Type 34", NATO reporting name "Madge") is a flying boat produced by the Soviet Beriev OKB. It was capable of accomplishing a wide variety of missions, such as long-range maritime reconnaissance, coastal and supply line patrols, torpedo/bombing strikes, mine-laying, and transport operations.
How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · shoulder wing · 33 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 77 years ago, in 1949.
- Top speed is 3.2× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 33 m: about 7 cars parked nose to tail.
- Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 5 African elephants (~6 t each).
- Range of 4,800 km: 27× Amsterdam to Brussels.
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1949
- introduced
- 1949
- number built
- 123
- role
- maritime reconnaissance and patrol aircraft
- makers
- Beriev
- engines
- 2× Shvetsov ASh-73TK / Shvetsov ASh-73
- crew
- 8
- length
- 23.5 m
- wingspan
- 33 m
- height
- 7.6 m
- max take-off weight
- 29 t
- top speed
- 414 km/h
- cruise speed
- 280 km/h
- range
- 4,800 km
- ceiling
- 6,100 m
- wings
- shoulder wing
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q598126, Wikipedia: Beriev Be-6 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.