Russia's Forgotten WW2 Flying Boat | Beriev Be-4 [Aircraft Overview #95]

[@RexsHangar]

F.A.Q Section Q: Do you take aircraft requests? A: I have a list of aircraft I plan to cover, but feel free to add to it with suggestions:) Q: Why do you use imperial measurements for some videos, and metric for others? A: I do this based on country of manufacture. Imperial measurements for Britain and the U.S, metric for the rest of the world, but I include text in my videos that convert it for both. Q: Will you include video footage in your videos, or just photos? A: Video footage is very expensive to licence, if I can find footage in the public domain I will try to use it, but a lot of it is hoarded by licencing studies (British Pathe, Periscope films etc). In the future I may be able to afford clips :) Q: Why do you sometimes feature images/screenshots from flight simulators? A: Sometimes there are not a lot of photos available for certain aircraft, so I substitute this with digital images that are as accurate as possible.

[@Тонилед]

Have a good rest. By the way, maybe tell us about the MK-1 (ANT-22) created by Tupolev. Also a flying boat, with a very unusual one.

[@Hugh.Gilbert]

How about looking into the shipbourne versions of the Hurricane and Spitfire? I know of a couple of interesting stories involving the Sea Hurricane being launched from merchant ships. I also like the RN's attitude to the armament, not messing around and putting cannon on their aircraft. Now I'm thinking about it there are quite a few aircraft that could making interesting videos and I wouldn't be surprised if are on your list already; Typhoon / Tempest, IL-2, FW-190 and that US attacker that when asked how many forward firing .50s it needed the the answer was simply "yes". Might be the A26 but I'm not sure

[@egocyclic]

Supermarine Seagull (the Griffon-powered flying boat of the later ‘40s)

[@willefixit]

pbm-3 martin mariner /my dad was a crew chief on one ww2 thankx in advance

[@darrylviljoen6227]

Any chance we could get a video on the "Tsetse" the surprisingly effective de Haviland mosquito armed with a 2 pounder gun Edit: it's a 57mm 6-pounder

[@admiraltiberius1989]

I do absolutely love flying boats. I really wish they'd make a comeback. Or at least that some mad billionaire would commission a new and updated replica of the famous Clippers.

[@AkX1353]

We can dream, right!?! 😉 Gee, I wonder why this reminds me of my favorite plane of all time, the PBY Catalina. Hmm... 🤔 Both designed in the 1930's. Hmmm..... 😚 Could be USSR had spies in America pre-war. Hmmm... 😂

[@mineplow1000]

Amen. And bring back zeppelins too. I'm serious.

[@admiraltiberius1989]

@William Nelson imagine drone blimps hunting submarines together with helicopters. The submarines do the dipping then the blimps carry the weapons.

[@AkX1353]

@Marc van den Boogaard You and me both. Carbon fiber, double hull, with high pressure foam to give both rigidity and flotation which would also be light weight. Keep the pressure bulkheads. Keep and heighten the engineer's/wing mount of the PBY. Turbo props, with a third engine (probably electric motor there) draft distributed down for a hovercraft effect to break suction on take off. I could go on. I might have thought about this already 😉 Including the camper conversion.

[@hughgordon6435]

Sunderland pretty pkease!

[@Vinemaple]

All of those old Beriev flying boats just looked gorgeous. Such flair and sense of style, in the least likely of places. And the modern ones are really impressive, even if they don't have the same nice lines.

[@nickcook2775]

Finally, more Soviet flying boats are getting their long overdue coverage!

[@CAP198462]

Hope the Soviet Rocket planes are coming soon. They built some adventurous designs.

[@SKILLED521]

This one is beautifully Russian and strange.

[@jesuschrist2284]

Look out for them being deployed to ukraine soon

[@WindFireAllThatKindOfThing]

I need more hot Flying Boat on Flying Boat action in my life You almost have to wonder if the both the German and Russian pilots were laughing at the absurdity of it at the time, but neither were noted for their humor

[@petesheppard1709]

It's a great example of 1930s aircraft design. My first visual impression was a baby PBY, and the photo at 10:00 illustrated how small the plane was.

[@zachsmith1676]

When the “turret” was mentioned I was thinking a turret akin to the patrol bomber consolidated’s blister turrets

[@matthewlok3020]

I share your view on being a baby PBY

[@paulwoodman5131]

Grumman Duck

[@davef.2329]

A bit of Widgeon in that hull's profile, too...

[@konstantinriumin2657]

Smol

[@airmakay1961]

Russian/ Soviet aviation history is fascinating and delightfully obscure. Keep the star-birds coming!

[@markfryer9880]

An interesting aircraft that we wouldn't normally hear about in the West. Thank you Rex for adding to our knowledge of WWII aircraft. I hope that you have enjoyed your holiday away from your channel and have recharged your batteries. Mark from Melbourne Australia

[@ridleymain9234]

I love weird seaplanes and I’m glad you cover them all the time. It’s makes me happy for seaplanes to be covered in such detail because other than the PBY most of them go unappreciated.

[@cottond62]

Oh my, you've picked a good one. I love all the Beriev aircraft. Please do more. Be 6, Be 12, mbr-2. Bring it on!

[@jonathan_60503]

That is a neat looking little plane. I'd be a bit nervous about having having that prop so close to the cockpit - reminiscent of the Italian one that had that tendency to prop strike the hull on hard landings), but still a nice looking plane. (I do wonder if/how the crew was expected to bail out if one got disabled though)

[@johnladuke6475]

Bail? Nyet, comrade. Parachutes are for cowards and traitors.

[@scrubsrc4084]

You should see the Italian ones that if you landed too hard the propncutnin to the nose and could remove pilots legs.

[@Arhpeco]

That is a feature. Prop is conveniently at arms lenght from the cockpit. If it stops, the pilot can easily manualy restart the engine by turning the prop.

[@jamespfp]

Yes, I kept thinking about Howard Hughes as well. Had to look it up online to verify it, but I thought I recalled he used an amphibious 1 engine; now the Internet tells me it was a 2-engine Sikorsky S-38 and danged if Hughes didn't later crash an S-43 on a checkout flight in Lake Mead, killing 2 other people.

[@Snake-ms7sj]

Well the engine placement definitely blocked the pilots upwards vision.

[@Mishn0]

Beriev made/makes some nice looking aircraft. I've always thought they shared a lot of their good looks with some of the Japanese maritime aircraft of the war. One thing though: Tell your talented model maker that he's made the water rudder on his Be-2 look like a giant iron hook. He probably misunderstood what the object was.

[@scottfw7169]

Looking at Be-4 images, primarily pics of real ones, plus a few plastic model kits, there seem to be 3 different water rudder shapes used, certainly at least 2 different shapes. Are photos of actual aircraft having a water rudder very much that shape in a 2019 on a forum named massimotessitori in its Sovietwarplanes section -- difference being the actual airplane has a hinge in what is that vacant notch on this video's model. Looking at this video's 3:35 point, position water rudder a bit higher relative to fuselage, where that notch is at existing lower hinge and make notch a hair smaller, & it looks like there is a rudder shaft from top of rudder up in to fuselage, that should do it.

[@Mishn0]

@@scottfw7169 And maybe not so thick. But I really have no place to talk. I couldn't draft up a model as nice as that if my life depended on it.

[@dpeter6396]

It's called a "balanced" rudder with the part forward on the hinge line providing a force to offset the larger part of the rudder, thus greatly reducing the effort to move the rudder.

[@cxcgamer1603]

I will always love the looks of flying boats Unsurprisingly porcco Rosso is May favourite aviation movie

[@JosephKano]

Great movie.

[@ヒロシ-s7z]

I think so too.

[@billpostscratcher2025]

Probably the most attractive single engine Flying Boat of the War.

[@maciek_k.cichon]

It is very slick. Right there with Fairchild 91.

[@anarchopupgirl]

MBR-2 wants a word

[@marckyle5895]

I was going to reply with the Curtiss Seahawk, but then I remembered that was a 'seaplane' and not a flying boat.

[@Kurogumo]

​@@anarchopupgirl MBR 2 is uglier.

[@kkang2828]

I just love seaplanes in general. Thanks for covering this one.

[@billwebb5256]

I love the models! They really let you see the airplane better than the old photos of the same plane! Keep up the good work!

[@anarchopupgirl]

My absolute favourite plane is the Beriev MBR-2. Single engine seaplanes are a magical kind of beautiful

[@stevekirk8546]

Another fascinating piece on an obscure subject and I agree it's a good looking aircraft, and as ever the 3D model is brilliant. Thank you.

[@jaws666]

A great day when a new video from Rexy lands

[@Rabbit_AF]

Neat flying boat. In War Thunder, I find the MBR-2 a joy to fly. It's dual turrets have surprised quite a few fighter pilots.

[@anarchopupgirl]

It's so good in naval oh my god 😭 You just fly level 10m off the water and hit PT boats with the gunner view

[@Rabbit_AF]

@@anarchopupgirl Are you trying to get me to play WT naval!?! 😛

[@anarchopupgirl]

@@Rabbit_AF just. Try capping a point with a seaplane once. It feels real nice

[@BrockvsTV]

I don’t need sleep, Rex is worth my sanity

[@jaws666]

Mine too.

[@IgnatSolovey]

M-62 engine, with certain alterations, exists and is being used to this day, as ASh-62IR on The Eternal Biplane, the one and only An-2.

[@goatflieg]

I'm amazed at the level of research done on this aircraft (and many others) and that's what really hooked me on your channel. I wish I could be a Patreon supporter as I am with a few other aviation content creators, but I'm now flying the RV-8 I spent seven years building and the incurred debt is keeping me cash-poor for now. BTW I flew the RV-8 to the Kalamazoo Air Zoo recently and thought of you when I visited the Curtiss-Wright XP-55 Ascender in their collection. You mentioned hoping to visit the museum in the future; it would pretty cool to get a chance to meet you there and give you a tour. Thanks for all your hard work and great content; now I got to get back to the Rex Rambles episode... Oops, just found out your trips are on hold for the house. Makes sense. Maybe someday...

[@GaldirEonai]

I've always loved the WW2 flying boats. As a kid I dreamed about travelling around coastlines and islands in one...and that was before encountering Talespin, even :D.

[@Parocha]

I’ve always loved the Goose

[@thestrangegreenman]

This is really fascinating! I'm looking forward to learning more from your channel!

[@cliffmcilwee9123]

Lovely small float plane......up there with the Kingfisher. Thx for the video!

[@Parocha]

Flying boat, not floatplane

[@spikeyflo]

What a really beautiful aircraft. Thanks for digging this one up.

[@TheDkeeler]

I see there a 1/48 scale kit of it by Mars. Looks a lot like the Fairchild F-91 which only 7 were produced . It has a interesting history as well. Thanks another fine video.

[@JosephKano]

That is a nice looking plane. Seaplanes/flying boats generally look goid however this looks nice.

[@kevintemple245]

Pretty little plane. I'd love to have one. Looks like a scaled down PBY Catalina

[@slavasandsglam]

Excellent presentation and information! Very professional. Thank you very much

[@Abdullah-mn6sw]

Just when I wondered what a baby Catalina would look like, I see this thing.

[@deepwoods_dave7368]

What a gorgeous machine! Great job as always Rex.

[@petergray7576]

Next, do the "Flying Mullet" that was the Sikorsky S-38. It's probably the most awkward looking flying boat ever to be built, and yet it was the plane that put Sikorsky on the map.

[@kevintemple245]

That is a really cool plane

[@garyhooper1820]

This one was unknown to me , Thanks Rex

[@johnstirling6597]

It is very reminiscent of the Grumman Widgeon , but with a single central engine.

[@crabby7668]

Reminds me of one of the grumman offerings. Nice looking aircraft. It's a lot smaller than it first appears. The photo with the rowing boat was quite a surprise!

[@pavelrak8906]

Thx for another very good video and mostly enjoy recharging 😊

[@plasmaburndeath]

Wait Data has another Brother, BE-4? Doctor Soong's penchant for whimsical names seems to have no end.

[@chriskortan1530]

I'm hoping this "break" means another collaboration with Drachinifel. Rex recently spoke of airships. I think not so coincidentally, Drachinifel in a recent Dry Dock, laid out a plan for a multi-video( or long format) coverage of Naval airships. Hmmmm....

[@joshstanton267]

Hell yes that's exactly what I thought, big collab with drach!

[@jacksavage4098]

Really enjoy the new aircraft visuals in 3D.

[@nilo70]

Thank you for sharing this with us ! And CHEERS From California 😊

[@alexandergustafsson4245]

you have a very pleasant voice, perfect for audio books and such

[@maxhill7065]

I agree, it actually looks really good!

[@MothaLuva]

There is a beautiful model kit of it in 48 scale from Mars Models.

[@IdeasBox]

Great video, thanks, and keep them coming. One quick thought... is it just me or, from the front view, does it look like an F4 Corsair mounted on floats.👍

[@MrCenturion13]

I have a model of this. I love the looks, as well as the Be-6.

[@motorbikemuso]

Almost the perfect combination of the beauty of boats and aircraft. One niggle regarding the commentary; (t makes sense because it's correct,) it's compare with/contrast to. Over and out!

[@xcharke3126]

wooo great video!! keep them coming, as long as it isn't at your expense!!

[@LostShipMate]

I love how anything to do with the Soviets has words like "supposedly", "Unknown", "Lost", etc. It gives the impression of slapdash production, with little care given too recording anything.

[@johnforsyth7987]

Thank you for another informative video about an aircraft that I did not know about.

[@carmenopramolla5262]

'Do believe that the M. Rex would perform well as a elegantly sarcastic defense barrister. 'Would be wonderfully entertained by usage of obscure, oblique and re-searchable wordage. Cheers

[@ABrit-bt6ce]

Beriev, yum. Beriev Be-200 has been on my wish list for a long, long time.

[@b1laxson]

Front view looks like a Corsair with a boat underneath! lol. love it!

[@123qwe171]

Great video, I love your attention to detail and really appreciate almost perfect pronunciation of Russian surnames and localities. I'd like to add my 2 cents: other sources list the crew as 2 and, interestingly enough, the second set of controls as removable. The difficulty of landing with flaps closed was not the high speed in itself, but 2-step construction that caused the plane to jump 1-1.5m after the first touchdown.

[@glypnir]

I never thought I’d see a Beriev in person, but in 2011 I visited the China Aviation Museum outside Beijing and saw a BE 6. I recommend visiting the museum.

[@DanetteScheel]

I think it’s a really nice looking flying boat!

[@davydatwood3158]

This is like the airplane version of mini-discs: small, sexy, and coming along just as the technology gets superseded.

[@Mephistopholies]

It looks like a wicked sweet boat! Good show!

[@bengrindell7693]

I agree with you. I think she looks rather slick!

[@ヒロシ-s7z]

It wouldn 't look like a Soviet aircraft without the Red Star. It looks so stylish (^^♪

[@JGCR59]

I totally expected to see the Omsk bird when Omsk was mentioned :)

[@kenwebster5053]

Somehow it reminds me of the Catalina model that I built as a kid in the 60s.

[@MrFlintlock7]

It's a nifty looking craft! Kinda looks like a Widgeon and Catalina got it on.

[@datathunderstorm]

😂😂😂😂👍🏾

[@pissedoff-is1mt]

Great stuff mate!

[@Hugh.Gilbert]

The Royal Navy's reaction to the shipbuilding plan can probably be summer up pretty well by that Spiderman meme with the fellow laughing.

[@benjaminbarrera214]

Did they all get scrapped? I can't find any recent pictures of these planes on the internet.

[@Rincypoopoo]

Fantastic. Thanks matey.

[@Hcb37]

Thanks, enjoyed this history on an obscure Soviet seaplane and it’s significance in Soviet seaplane development!

[@skydive1424]

Excellent review!

[@warhawk4494]

I won't lie. Flyboats are pretty awesome and I wish the coast guard would get a new one for Air/sea rescues and patrols. In some ways they are way better then helos and in others not and helos are better. But but sea planes would be a handy asset.

[@williamlloyd3769]

Wonder if design was an inspiration for flying boats in Studio Ghibli - Porco Rosso (1992), the Japanese animated adventure-fantasy film by Hayao Miyazaki?

[@River1955]

Just plain beautiful. The Anita Ekberg of aircraft.

[@MisterOcclusion]

It would not look out of place next to a Catalina. I think it’s a very nice little boat I had also never heard of this design bureau before.

[@joeyjojojrshabadoo7462]

As with most Soviet interventions the answer is yes.

[@wehrabooslayer419]

The aircraft looks gorgeous.

[@landak136]

Another beauty of the sea, please: Dornier Do 26

[@ArmedIvan]

Little PBY Catalina. I love it.

[@fredbloggs5902]

It looks like the result of a Stuka mating with a Catalina 😂

[@AkX1353]

Gee, I wonder why this remi.nds me of my favorite plane of all time, the PBY Catalina. Hmm... 🤔 Both designed in the 1930's. Hmmm..... 😚 Could be USSR had spies in America pre-war. Hmmm... 😂 I agree with you. My 1st thought was PBY.

[@jamespfp]

I think the thing which messed with my brain as I watched was not understanding the direct evolution from Be-2 to Be-4; specifically, I did not notice that the flying boat design had no retractable landing gear, as would many amphibious flying boats. So yeah... I don't know if I've ever even imagined a catapult-launched flying boat before.

[@sergeychmelev5270]

How many amphibious (i.e. capable of operating from both land and sea) catapult-launched aircraft do you know? I have not heard of any. There's simply no need for landing gear on a catapult-launched plane.

[@jamespfp]

@@sergeychmelev5270 I can't think of any "flying boat" catapult launchers other than this one, see above. Amphib conversions for flying boats is not that uncommon, let alone having the airframe designed with amphib landing gear from the get-go. There's an obvious reason for it: its easier to maintain the aircraft if there's never a need to lift it out of the ocean with a crane, and then later deposit it either in a hangar or on some kind of rolling frame or cradle that lets the maintenance crews get at it. The smaller the plane, the more likely it only needs 1 or 2 pontoons and some outrigger floats on the wings, and the less the overall thing will weigh. The overall Mass needs to be accounted for when trying to lift it, or when it is "at rest" and pushing back against gravity all on its own. So what's better, hm? Having a single point of contact on the top of the airframe, or having multiple points of contact closer to the surface of the planet?

[@ricardokowalski1579]

The radial engine looks👀a little too large, but that was the state of the art then. Wonder if the propeller wash at idle affected the elevator /rudder control effectiveness

[@drstevenrey]

It is a little bit disproportionate, but I like the look. Great flying camper van. Make it amphibious and I'm sold.

[@deptusmechanikus7362]

That is the most gorgeous flying banana I ever did see

[@jameslawrie3807]

'Pintle' in Russian is frequently translated as 'trestle'.

[@jimsvideos7201]

This is another that'd be fun to replicate in titanium for weekend trips up to a new lake each time.

[@EstorilEm]

Such an awkward cowl/nacelle size ratio to the airframe - similar hp engines from P&W or Wright were much smaller in the same timeframe, definitely puts things in perspective.

[@usa3526]

Best aircraft historian on KZbin. Keep it up rex

[@hugobloemers4425]

It looks like a mini Catalina.

[@brianoneil9662]

It looks...intriguing

[@陳毅恆-v8x]

This aircraft actually reminds me of the Pby Catalina and the supermarine walrus

[@daveyoder9231]

Very nice!

[@sadwingsraging3044]

Nice looking aircraft.

[@ianbell5611]

I agree a nice looking plane

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

​@RexsHangar >>> 👍👍

[@allencummins9297]

I think it’s gorgeous

[@drydogg]

Someone once talked about making a submarine, the same dimensions as a naval boat, but minus all the military equipment, thus leaving plenty of space for luxury accommodations, plus customization of exterior view ports; now, imagine doing that with a large flying boat. Most of the examples of POV flying boats, in the past, weren't that big, and the larger aircraft were often used for trans-oceanic commercial flight. Modernize the Spruce Goose. Revisit the idea of a flying cruise ship or yacht.

[@Sanderford]

Such a beautiful flying banana with an engine on top.

[@TheMajorActual]

Lucky I caught this, seeing as KZbin apparently unsubbed me.

[@jeffkeith637]

Gees, you'd make the ground crew your best friends. Don't want that prop accidentally coming off.

[@marvintpandroid2213]

Oh my that's a BIG engine

[@papalegba6796]

Very streamlined design, would have a long range & high payload for its size/type. Ok for the mild conditions in the black sea I guess, but anywhere rougher it'd be less successful.