The Antonov An-225 Mriya is the largest plane in the world. Designed and built by the Antonov Design Bureau in Ukraine, it was originally developed to transport the Buran space shuttle for the Soviet space program. Today, it is used primarily for heavy cargo transport.
Antonov An-225 Mriya, The Largest Plane in the World
The Antonov An-225 Mriya (Ukrainian: Антонов Ан-225 Мрія, lit. ’dream’ or ‘inspiration’; NATO reporting name: Cossack) was a strategic airlift cargo aircraft designed and produced by the Antonov Design Bureau in the Soviet Union.
It was originally developed during the 1980s as an enlarged derivative of the Antonov An-124 airlifter for the express purpose of transporting Buran-class orbiters. On 21 December 1988, the An-225 performed its maiden flight; only one aircraft was ever completed, although a second airframe with a slightly different configuration was partially built. After a brief period of use supporting the Soviet space program, the aircraft was mothballed during the early 1990s.
Towards the turn of the century, it was decided to refurbish the An-225 and reintroduce it for commercial operations, carrying oversized payloads for the operator Antonov Airlines. Multiple announcements were made regarding the potential completion of the second airframe, however its construction has largely remained on hold due to a lack of funding. By 2009, it had reportedly been brought up to 60–70% completion.
With a maximum takeoff weight of 640 tonnes (705 short tons), the An-225 held several records, including heaviest aircraft ever built and largest wingspan of any aircraft in operational service. It was commonly used to transport objects once thought impossible to move by air, such as 130-ton generators, wind turbine blades, and diesel locomotives. Additionally, both Chinese and Russian officials had announced separate plans to adapt the An-225 for use in their respective space programmes. The Mriya routinely attracted a high degree of public interest, attaining a global following due to its size and its uniqueness.
The only completed An-225 was destroyed in the Battle of Antonov Airport during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. On 20 May 2022, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced plans to complete the second An-225 to replace the destroyed aircraft; Antonov announced plans to rebuild the destroyed aircraft in November 2022.
Antonov An-225 Mriya:
The An-225 Mriya is a six-engine aircraft with a wingspan of 88.4 meters (290 feet) and a length of 84 meters (275 feet). It stands over 18 meters (60 feet) tall and has a maximum takeoff weight of 640 metric tons (1.4 million pounds). The plane is so large that it requires 32 wheels to support its weight, and it has a cargo hold that measures 43 meters (141 feet) long, 6.4 meters (21 feet) wide, and 4.4 meters (14 feet) high.
The An-225 Mriya is powered by six turbofan engines, each producing 51,600 pounds of thrust. It has a cruising speed of 800 kilometers per hour (500 miles per hour) and a range of up to 15,400 kilometers (9,560 miles) when fully loaded. The plane’s cockpit is located at the front of the upper deck, giving the pilots a clear view of the runway during takeoff and landing.
One of the An-225 Mriya’s most impressive feats was transporting the Buran space shuttle. In 1988, the plane carried the shuttle from the Soviet Union to the Paris Air Show, where it was put on display. The An-225 Mriya also holds several world records, including the heaviest single-item cargo ever transported by air (a 187.6-ton generator) and the longest-ever air cargo transport (a 117-meter wind turbine blade).
Today, the An-225 Mriya is used primarily for heavy cargo transport, such as oversized machinery and equipment, as well as relief supplies for humanitarian aid efforts. The plane has been in service since 1988 and has made over 300 flights to more than 150 airports around the world. Despite its enormous size, the An-225 Mriya is still considered a remarkable feat of engineering, and it remains one of the most awe-inspiring aircraft in the world.
Development:
Work on what would become the Antonov An 225 would begin in 1984 with a request from the Soviet government for a large airlifter as a replacement for the Myasishchev VM-T. The specifics of this request included the ability to carry a maximum payload of 231,838 kilograms (511,116 lb), both externally and internally, while operating from any runway of at least 3,500 metres (11,500 ft).
As originally set out, the mission and objectives were broadly identical to that of the United States’ Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, having been designed to airlift the Energia rocket’s boosters and the Buran-class orbiters for the Soviet space program. Furthermore, a relatively short timetable for the delivery of the completed aircraft meant that development would have to proceed at a rapid pace.
Accordingly, the Antonov Design Bureau decided to produce a derivative of their existing Antonov An-124 Ruslan airlifter, although its payload capacity was almost half of what was required. The aircraft was stretched via the addition of fore and aft fuselage barrel sections, while a new enlarged wing centre was designed that facilitated the carriage of an additional pair of Progress D-18T turbofan engines, increasing the total from four to six powerplants.
A completely new tail was also required to handle the wake turbulence generated by the bulky external loads that would be carried on the aircraft’s upper fuselage. Despite the novelty of its scale, the design of the An 225 was largely conventional. The lead designer of the An-225 (and the An-124) was Viktor Tolmachev.
On 21 December 1988, the An-225 performed its maiden flight. It made its first public appearance outside of the Soviet Union at the 1989 Paris Air Show where it was presented while carrying a Buran orbiter. One year later, it performed a flying display for the public days at the Farnborough Air Show. While two aircraft had been ordered, only a single An-225, (registration CCCP-82060, later UR-82060) was finished. It could carry ultra-heavy and oversized freight weighing up to 250,000 kg (550,000 lb) internally or 200,000 kg (440,000 lb) on the upper fuselage. Cargo on the upper fuselage can be up to 70 m (230 ft) in length.
A second An-225 was partially built during the late 1980s for the Soviet space program, however, work on the airframe was suspended following the collapse of the Soviet Union. By 2000, the need for additional An-225 capacity had become apparent; during September 2006, it was decided that the second An-225 would be completed, a feat that was at one point scheduled to occur around 2008. However, the work was subject to repeated delays. By August 2009, the aircraft had not been completed and work had been abandoned.
In May 2011, the Antonov CEO reportedly stated that the completion of the second An-225, which would have a carrying capacity of 250 tons, requires at least $300 million; upon the provision of sufficient financing, its completion could be achieved in three years. According to different sources, the second aircraft was 60–70% complete by 2016.
The revival of space activities involving the An-225 was repeatedly announced and speculated upon throughout its life. During the early 2000s, studies were conducted into the production of an even larger An-225 derivative, the eight-engined Antonov An-325, which was intended to be used in conjunction with Russia’s in-development MAKS space plane. In April 2013, the Russian government announced plans to revive Soviet-era air launch projects that would use a purpose-built modification to the An-225 as a midair launchpad.
In May 2017, Airspace Industry Corporation of China (AICC)’s president, Zhang You-Sheng, informed a BBC reporter that AICC had first contemplated cooperation with Antonov in 2009 and made contact with them two years later. AICC intends to modernize the second unfinished An-225 and develop it into an air launch to orbit platform for commercial satellites at altitudes up to 12,000 m (39,000 ft).
The aviation media cast doubt on the production restart, speculating that the ongoing Russia–Ukraine conflict would prevent various necessary components that would have been sourced from Russia from being delivered; it may be possible that China could manufacture them instead. That project did not move forward but UkrOboronProm, the parent company of Antonov, had continued to seek partners to finish the second airframe.
On 25 March 2020, the first An-225 commenced a series of test flights from Hostomel Airport near Kyiv, after more than a year out of service, for the installation of a domestically designed power management and control system.
Design:
The Antonov An-225 was a strategic airlift cargo aircraft that retained many similarities with the preceding An-124 airlifter that it was derived from. It has a longer fuselage and cargo deck due to the addition of fuselage barrel extensions that were fitted both fore and aft of the wings. The wings, which are anhedral, also received root extensions to increase their span.
The flight control surfaces are controlled via fly-by-wire and powered by triple-redundant hydraulics.[25] Furthermore, the empennage of the An-225 is a twin tail with an oversized, swept-back horizontal stabilizer, having been redesigned from the single vertical stabilizer of the An-124. The use of a twin tail arrangement was essential to enable the aircraft to carry its bulky external loads that would generate wake turbulence, disturbing the airflow around a conventional tail.
The An-225 is powered by a total of six Progress D-18T turbofan engines, two more than the An-124, the addition of which was facilitated by the redesigned wing root area. An increased-capacity landing gear system with 32 wheels was designed, some of which are steerable; these enable the airlifter to turn within a 60-metre-wide (200 ft) runway.
Akin to its An-124 predecessor, the An-225 incorporated a nose gear designed to “kneel” so cargo can be more easily loaded and unloaded. Additional measures to ease loading and unloading activities included the four overhead cargo cranes that could move along the whole length of the cargo hold, each of which was capable of lifting up to 5,000 kilograms (11,000 lb). To facilitate the attachment of external loads, such as the Buran orbiter, various mounting points were present along the upper surface of the fuselage.
Unlike the An-124, the An-225 was not intended for tactical airlifting and was not designed for short-field operations. Accordingly, the An-225 does not have a rear cargo door or ramp, as are present on the An-124, these features having been eliminated in order to save weight. The cargo hold was 1,300 m3 (46,000 cu ft) in volume; 6.4 m (21 ft 0 in) wide, 4.4 m (14 ft) high, and 43.35 m (142 ft 3 in) long – longer than the first flight of the Wright Flyer. The cargo hold, which is pressurized and furnished with extensive soundproofing, could contain up to 80 standard-dimension cars, 16 intermodal containers, or up to 250,000 kilograms (551,150 lb) of general cargo.
The flight deck of the An-225 is at the front of the upper deck, which is accessed via a ladder from the lower deck. This flight deck is largely identical to that of the An-124, save for the presence of additional controls to manage the additional pair of engines. To the rear of the flight deck is an array of compartments which, amongst other things, accommodate the crew stations for the aircraft’s two flight engineers, navigator, and communication specialist, along with off-duty rest areas, including beds, which facilitate long range missions to be flown. Even when fully loaded, the An-225 was capable of flying non-stop across great distances, such as between New York and Los Angeles.
As originally constructed, the An-225 had a maximum gross weight of 600 t (660 short tons), however, between 2000 and 2001, the aircraft received numerous modifications at a cost of US$20 million, such as the addition of a reinforced floor, which increased the maximum gross weight to 640 t (710 short tons). Both the earlier and later takeoff weights establish the An-225 as the world’s heaviest aircraft, exceeding the weight of the double-deck Airbus A380 airliner. Airbus claims to have improved upon the An-225’s maximum landing weight by landing an A380 at 591.7 t (652.2 short tons) during testing.[
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