Made its first flight in 1988, the Antonov AN-225 was the world’s largest plane that was destroyed a few days ago in Ukraine

Antonov AN-225, also known as Mriya, which means ‘Dream’ in the Ukrainian language, was the largest plane in the world. A few days ago, the plane was destroyed in Ukraine’s city of Gostomel because of which, the Mriya grabbed the headlines once again. As a tribute to the unique piece of aviation engineering and industry, we have drafted some facts about the AN-225. 

Into service, designation, and structure

The Soviet Union designed the AN-225 in the 1980s and in 1988, the plane made its maiden flight from the Sviatoshyn aerodrome. Its first flight lasted 74 minutes, and the plane helped the Buran space programme. The plane carried the Buran space shuttle and rocket boosters. The plane had six thrusters with a length of 84 metres and a wingspan breadth of 88 metres. To give you an idea, the Mriya was big enough to carry 50 cars.

Wheels, weight and more

The Mriya weighed 660 tons with a 32-wheel landing gear system. Unlike other cargo planes with rear cargo access, cargo loading in the Mriya was done via the nose. The cargo plane had a fuel carrying capacity of 660,000 pounds, and it still holds the record of carrying a payload of 559,577 pounds. Not to forget, the Mriya used to throw out a total thrust of 300,000 pounds from its six engines. 

A second Mriya

In the 80s, apart from the first Mriya, a second Mriya was partially constructed. In 2000, the government of Ukraine started working on the second unfinished Mriya. However, the government realised that to complete the second Mriya, they would require an amount of 300 million US dollars. Therefore, in 2009, the project was abandoned. Given the present situation, the government of Ukraine is unlikely to work on a new Mriya soon. 

A crew of seven, four years to build

A crew of seven people used to fly the Mriya every time because of its extreme technicality. In the 1980s, when the Mriya project started, it was scheduled to be completed in two years. However, engineers failed to finish in time and therefore, the Mriya was completed in four long years. The Mriya completed several missions and transportation jobs and, in the process, it secured 110 records.