scorecardThe world's largest cargo aircraft was reportedly destroyed in Ukraine during a Russian attack. Take a look at the plane, which was big enough to carry 50 cars.
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The world's largest cargo aircraft was reportedly destroyed in Ukraine during a Russian attack. Take a look at the plane, which was big enough to carry 50 cars.

Marielle Descalsota   

The world's largest cargo aircraft was reportedly destroyed in Ukraine during a Russian attack. Take a look at the plane, which was big enough to carry 50 cars.
An Antonov An-225 Mriya cargo airplane with a delivery of protective masks from China lands on April 27, 2020 at the airport of Leipzig, eastern Germany.Ronny Hartmann/AFP/Getty Images
  • Ukraine's Antonov An-225 Mriya was the largest cargo aircraft in the world.
  • It was in service for over 30 years before reportedly being destroyed by Russian forces in Ukraine.

This is the Antonov An-225 Mriya, the world's largest cargo aircraft.

This is the Antonov An-225 Mriya, the world
Indian Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and airport personnel stand near the world's largest aircraft, the Antonov AN-225 Mriya, at Rajiv Gandhi International airport in Hyderabad on May 13, 2016.      Noah Sheelam/AFP via Getty Images

The Soviet-made An-225 Mriya was reportedly destroyed in an attack amid Russia's continued siege of Ukraine.

The plane was burned in Hostomel airport near Kyiv on February 27, Reuters reported, citing Ukrainian state arms manufacturer Ukroboronprom.

The plane was in service for over 30 years. Designed by Kyiv-based Antonov in the 1980s, it first took flight in 1988. It was constructed to transport the Soviet space shuttle Buran, per Belgian industry website Aviation24. Only one copy of the plane has ever been produced.

Plans to construct a modernized version of the plane were devised in the 1980s and abandoned two decades later, per UK aviation website Air Charter Service.

The aircraft was in use for international cargo charter flights and operated by Antonov Airlines until its destruction, per The Aviationist.

The plane's design dwarfs most other aircraft, measuring around 84 meters (275 feet) long, per Eurocontrol-run aviation website SKYbrary.

The plane
This picture shows the wing and three of the six turbofans of the Ukrainian Antonov An-225 Mriya coming from China to deliver 8,6 million face masks and 150 tons of sanitary equipment ordered by a private customer, at the Paris-Vatry airport in Bussy Lettree, on April 19, 2020, on the 34th day of a strict lockdown in France to stop the spread of COVID-19 (novel coronavirus).      Francois Nascimbeni/AFP/Getty Images

The plane is big enough the carry twice the cargo of a Boeing 747 freighter, per aviation website Air Charter Service.

Its six ZMKB Progress Lotarev D-18T turbofan jet engines (pictured above) enabled the plane to cruise at a maximum speed of around 849 kilometers per hour (528 miles per hour), the site reported.

The plane could accommodate up to 250 tonnes of cargo, the weight of roughly 247 Toyota Corolla cars.

The plane could accommodate up to 250 tonnes of cargo, the weight of roughly 247 Toyota Corolla cars.
A Bundeswehr soldier unloads from an Antonov An-225 Mriya cargo airplane boxes with protective masks delivered from China on April 27, 2020 at the airport of Leipzig in eastern Germany.      RONNY HARTMANN/AFP Ronny Hartmann/AFP/Getty Images

The nose of the plane (pictured above) allows cargo to be loaded from the front. In contrast, many other cargo planes are loaded from the plug doors on their sides.

While the plane was capable of carrying tanks and wind turbine blades, it also sent humanitarian aid around the world.

The plane transported relief goods in the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake and medical equipment in early 2020 to help with the fight against COVID-19, per CNN.

The plane weighed about 330 tonnes, according to automotive news website Autoevolution.

The plane weighed about 330 tonnes, according to automotive news website Autoevolution.
Ukrainian Antonov An-225 "Mriya" aircraft is seen in the assembly shop of the Antonov aircraft plant in Kiev, Ukraine on September 07, 2016.      Vladimir Shtanko/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Because of its weight, the plane had 32 wheels.

The design of the aircraft was derived from the An-124 Ruslan, another Antonov-constructed plane, industry website Aerospace Technology reported.

Its compartment, which measures 43 meters by 6.4 meters by 4.4 meters (pictured below), was big enough to hold 50 cars, according to Aerotime Hub.

Its compartment, which measures 43 meters by 6.4 meters by 4.4 meters (pictured below), was big enough to hold 50 cars, according to Aerotime Hub.
Ukrainian Antonov An-225 "Mriya" aircraft is seen in the assembly shop of the Antonov aircraft plant in Kiev, Ukraine on September 07, 2016.      Vladimir Shtanko/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

The industry website estimates that the plane has set more than 200 world records. These include airlifting the world's heaviest cargo, as well as transporting by air the world's longest cargo, the website reported.

While the plane's parts were historically produced in Kyiv, production moved to China in 2016, per Aviation International News. At the time the plane was dormant and unused, and the Chinese takeover to complete the then-unfinished airframe reportedly cost $300 million, the industry news site reported.

When it was still in service, the plane could be chartered for around $30,000 an hour, according to the BBC.

When it was still in service, the plane could be chartered for around $30,000 an hour, according to the BBC.
Crew members in protective suits stand inside an Antonov An-225 Mriya cargo airplane during a delivery of protective masks from China on April 27, 2020 at the airport of Leipzig, eastern Germany.      Ronny Hartmann/AFP/Getty Images

If the aircraft were to be rebuilt, it take over five years and would cost $3 billion, Ukrainian state defense company Ukroboronprom said in a statement on February 27.

The statement also said the plane was under repair when Russia invaded the country on February 25, and therefore could not leave Ukraine.

"Our task is to ensure that these costs are covered by the Russian Federation, which has caused intentional damage to Ukraine's aviation and air cargo sector," the statement said.

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