Largest tactical cargo plane completes US-Turkey trip

The world's largest military transport plane A400M (known also as Atlas) has completed a 12-hour round trip between Turkey and the US on Friday.
After making its maiden flight from the final assembly line in Seville, Spain, on December 11, 2009, the four-engine turboprop plane carried out more than 300 flying hours to Britain, Spain, France, Afghanistan and Equatorial Guinea.
The Turkish Air Force took delivery of its first A400M from the multinational consortium - Airbus Defence and Space, on January 11, 2014, and the second on December 23, 2014, AA reported, citing an insider of the country's top defense industry procurement agency.
Turkey holds a 5.5 percent stake in the A400M program, the official noted.
The plane was designed by Airbus Defence and Space as a tactical airlifter with strategic capabilities to replace older transport aircraft, such as the Transall C-160 and the Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules.
It can fly at a speed of 800 km/h and an altitude of 11.3 kilometers, carry up to 37 tons, and perform mission roles other than transportation, including electronic surveillance, aerial refuelling and an air hospital with a capacity of 66 beds.