The world's ugliest plane hit by lightning. There is a recording
An Airbus Beluga, one of the largest cargo planes in the world, was struck by lightning shortly after take-off.
The incident occurred near Hawarden Airport in Flintshire, Wales. Just after take-off, the plane was hit by lightning, which was recorded by the camera of one of the cars passing by.
“This is a routine aviation incident, the plane continued its journey to Hamburg as planned. Due to applicable procedures, the condition of the machine will be checked before the next flight,” Airbus said in a statement.
The ugliest plane in the world
Airbus Beluga is used by the company to transport aircraft parts (including fuselages) between the company's factories in Toulouse, Hamburg and Tianjin in China.
The appearance of the plane was based on a survey conducted by Airbus among 20,000 employees. They were asked how to decorate the new plane. 40 percent of them were in favor of making it look like a large whale. However, what was more important was that the plane fulfilled its transport function. Thanks to the characteristic bubble located in the upper part of the fuselage, it is possible to transport two fully functional wings to the A350 model at the same time. The predecessor could only fit one such wing. The machine's odd nose affects its aerodynamic properties.
Largest cargo capacity
The Airbis Belug is 7.1 meters high, 6.7 meters wide and 39 meters long. For comparison, the largest transport plane in the world, the An-225 Mrija, which transported medical equipment to Poland at the beginning of the pandemic, has a cargo hold of 4.4 × 6.4 × 43 meters. So it is 4 meters longer, but 2.7 meters lower. However, the Mrija can carry heavier loads, up to 250 tons, while the Beluga can only take 40 tons on board.
Airbus has so far used its Beluga aircraft mainly for transport for its own use. Airbus exceptionally undertook transport for other partners, e.g. in the 2000s it transported elements of rockets and satellites from Europe to the United States.
