Bartini Beriev VVA-14 Soviet prototype

The VVA-14 was a wing-in-ground-effect aircraft designed by Italian-born designer Robert Bartini and developed in the Soviet Union during the early 1970s. The first VVA-14 prototype was completed in 1972. Its first flight was from a conventional runway on 4 September 1972. In 1974, inflatable pontoons were installed, though their operation caused many problems. Flotation and water taxi tests followed, culminating in the start of flight testing of the amphibious aircraft on 11 June 1975. The inflatable pontoons were later replaced by rigid pontoons, while the fuselage was lengthened and the starting engines added. This incarnation was given the designation 14M1P.