The largest ever biplanes were four aircraft built for the US Navy in 1918 by the Curtiss company (designated NC 1-4). They had a wingspan of 38.4 m (126 ft), were 20.8 m (68 ft 3 in) long and had an operational weight of around 12,000 kg (26,400 lb). The aircraft were powered by four 300 kW (400 hp) Liberty engines and had a top speed of 137 km/h (85 mph). They were designed as long-range anti-submarine aircraft, intended to sink German submarines in WWI,
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Aircraft carrying cruisers are the results of attempts to create ‘all round’ warships, capable of ship-to-ship combat as well as carrying aircraft. The largest of these is the Russian Navy’s Admiral Kuznetsov, commissioned in 1990. It measures 302.3 m long with a beam of 72.3 m and displacement of 58,600 tonnes with a maximum load. It has 12 Granit anti-ship missiles, 192 3K95 Kinzhal surface-to-air missiles, an anti-submarine rocket launcher, as well as defensive anti-air guns. It can carry 12 SU-33 ad 5 SU-25 fighters,
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Of the 22 aircraft carriers currently in service worldwide, the US Navy accounts for 11, the USS Enterprise and ten Nimitz-class carriers. Enterprise, commissioned in 1961, was the world’s first nuclear powered aircraft carrier. The other nations which operate carriers are Russia, France, UK, Brazil, India, Italy, Spain and Thailand.
The world´s largest albino plants are the albino coastal redwood trees (Sequoia sempervirens) presently numbering between 25 and 60 in total that exist in secret sites within four separate localities in California. These are: Henry Cowell State Park; an unspecified locality near Aptos; Big Sur State Park; and Humboldt Redwoods State Park. Some are only the size of large bushes, but others are up to 21 m tall. Totally lacking chlorophyll (and hence known as everwhites rather than evergreens), they are a pallid white colour,
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The most people ever carried aboard an airship was 207, in the 239 m (785 ft) long US Navy Akron in 1931. The massive rigid airship had a maximum width of 40.36 m (132.5 ft) and was 46.5 m (152.5 ft) high. Tragically, Akron crashed and sank into the Atlantic off the coast of New Jersey in April 1933, killing 74 of the 77 crewmembers on board. The largest number of people carried on a transatlantic flight is 117, by the German Hindenburg in 1937.
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The world’s largest airships were the 213.9 tonne (471,500 lb) German Hindenburg (LZ 129) and Graf Zeppelin II (LZ 130), each of which had a length of 245 m (803 ft 10 in) long with a hydrogen gas capacity capacity of 200,000 m³ (7,062,100 ft³). The Hindenburg first flew in 1936, exploding and crashing on 6 May 1937, Lakehurst, New Jersey, USA and the Graf Zeppelin II in 1938.
Although not the largest biplanes ever, the biggest double-wing aircraft currently in common use is the Antonov An-2 / An-3, which has a wingspan of 18.8 m (61 ft 7 in) and a maximum take-off weight of 5,800 kg (12,790 lb). It has a 12-person capacity in typical configuration and was first manufactured in 1947. In addition to hundreds in private ownership, it remains in service with more than 20 air forces around the world.
The largest aluminium can of drink had a volume of 8,460 litres (1,860 gal) and was made by the Vitalon Food Co. Ltd (Taiwan) and displayed at the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall Plaza, Taipei, Taiwan on 2 June 2002. The can of drink was a scaled-up version of Vitalon Food’s Super Supau sports drink. The can measured 4.67 m (15.32 ft) tall, 2.32 m (7.61 ft) wide and weighed 4,400kg (9,700 lb when empty.
The largest alfajor weighed 464 kg (1,022 lb 15.11 oz) and was made by Alfajores de Las Sierras de Minas (Uruguay), in the main square of the city of Minas, Lavalleja, Uruguay, on 12 December 2010. The alfajores were created as part of a festival that celebrates the fact that the first alfaor was cooked almost 60 years ago in traditional alfajor factories, in the state of Lavalleja. A traditional clay oven with a special door of 78 inches was created to cook both the
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The largest aletria weighed 357 kg (787 lb 0.8 oz) in a dish measuring 8 x 2.35 m (26 ft 2.96 in x 7 ft 8.52 in) and was achieved by Milaneza (Portugal), in Porto, Portugal, on 10 December 2010. The event took place at Trindade metro station in the centre of Porto and was staged by the board of directors for Milaneza, one of Portugual’s most popular pasta brands, and the completed aletria was given away free of charge to the people of Porto.
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