Pictures have emerged of the damaged wreckage of the world’s largest plane after it was burnt during a Russian attack on a Ukrainian airfield.
The images show the destroyed Ukrainian-made Antonov-225 Mriya, meaning the dream, at the Hostomel airport near Kyiv after it came under fire on Sunday.
The cargo plane, which has six engines and weighs 314 tonnes, could cost more than $3billion (£2.24billion) to repair, a sum Ukraine’s state arms manufacturer Ukroboronprom said it would try to get Russia to front up.
‘The Russian occupiers destroyed the flagship of Ukrainian aviation – the legendary An-225 Mriya. It happened at the Antonov airfield in Hostomel near Kyiv,’ Ukroboronprom said on its Facebook page.
Since the attack on the plane, images and footage have emerged showing the severely burnt plane, with black smoke billowing from the wreckage.
Pictures have emerged of the damaged wreckage of the world’s largest plane after it was burnt during a Russian attack on a Ukrainian airfield
This close-up image of the plane shows the extent of the damage caused by the Russian attack
The cargo plane (pictured in Poland in April 2020), which has six engines and weighs 314 tonnes, could cost more than $3billion (£2.24billion) to repair, a sum Ukraine’s state arms manufacturer Ukroboronprom said it would try to get Russia to front up
The ‘legendary’ plane was originally designed by the Soviet Union when it controlled Ukraine as a Socialist republic.
The Antonov An-225 Mriya was designed and built in Ukraine in the 1980s by the Antonov Corporation. The massive craft measures 275 feet (84 meters) long, with a 288-foot (88 meters) wingspan – almost twice the width of a traditional football field.
And it is capable of carrying a payload equivalent to ten battle tanks or some 418,000 pounds (189,601 kg).
The airfield near Kyiv could play a key role for Russia to send more arms to Ukraine.
In a statement retweeted by the Ukrainian President’s office, the country said: ‘We will rebuild the plane.
‘We will fulfill our dream of a strong, free, and democratic Ukraine.’
Since the attack on the plane, images and footage have emerged showing the severely burnt plane, with black smoke billowing from the wreckage
A satellite image collected over Antonov Airfield shows the destroyed former hangar of the Antonov An-225 Mriya sitting north of military vehicles clustered around main hangars and a static aircraft to south, as well as nearby warehouse engulfed in flames on February 28
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, also known as Soviet Ukraine, was one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union.
At the time of the invasion the plane was unable to fly to safety as it was undergoing repairs at the airport.
NASA’s Fire Information for Resource Management System detected multiple fires at the airport, including at the hangar where the plane is stored, CNN reports.
A fire broke out at the hangar where the plane is kept and was detected at 11.13am local time on Sunday, according to the NASA data.
The plane has a vast history, and was used in 1991 to bring two children, then aged 10 and 11, who were victims of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster to the US for treatment.
The An-225 was once was used to transport a Soviet space shuttle on its roof.
Ukroboronprom boss Yuri Gusev, 42, said: ‘The Russians destroyed An-225 ‘Dream’, it will be restored at the expense of the occupant
‘Russian invaders destroyed the flagman of Ukrainian aviation – the legendary An-225 ‘Dream’.
‘This happened at Antonov Airport in Gostomel near Kiev, where the plane was.
‘Its restoration will cost more than $3billion and will take a long time. Ukraine will put all its efforts to make these work paid by the state-agresor.
‘The invaders destroyed the plane but they can’t destroy our common dream. She will surely be reborn.’
It said estimations put the cost of restoring the plane at more than $3billion in a timeframe of more than five years.
He added: ‘Our task is to make these costs covered by the Russian Federation, which caused deliberate damage to Ukrainian aviation and freight aviation sector.
‘Russia destroyed our ‘Dream’, but the dream of free from occupant Ukraine is impossible to destroy.
‘We will fight for our land and our home to a victorious end.’
The maker of the plane, the Antonov Company, said: ‘Currently, until the AN-225 has been inspected by experts, we cannot report on the technical condition of the aircraft.’
The plane was designed and built in Ukraine in the 1980s and is used to move heavy cargoes. An enormous 117 tonne power generator was picked up from the Czech Republic in 2017 and delivered to an aluminium-ore mining company in western Australia, where it will be used to power large drills and excavating machinery.
Without a load, the colossal Antonov An-225 Mriya can fly for up to 18 hours without stopping to refuel.
The unloading phase of the generator on board could take up to 10 hours.
The plane carried the world’s longest piece of air cargo in 2010, two 42.1m test turbine blades from Tianjin, China to Skrydstrup, Denmark, according to stuff.
And in 2011 the plane transported the heaviest single cargo item sent by air freight.
It was a generator for a gas power plant in Armenia which weighed 189 tonnes.
In May 2016 more than 15,000 spectators came to Perth Airport in western Australia to witness Mriya arrive.
In 2018 the aircraft paid a flying visit to the UK to deliver cargo to RAF Brize Norton before flying off to Greece.
The Antonov An-225 Mriya (pictured in Ukraine in 2011) was designed and built in Ukraine in the 1980s by the Antonov Corporation. The massive craft measures 275 feet (84 meters) long, with a 288-foot (88 meters) wingspan – almost twice the width of a traditional football field
The aircraft’s operator opened a new base at Stansted Airport, but the jet is a frequent visitor to the UK as well as around the world.
In 2020 the plane was used to carry medical supplies to Poland during the Covid-19 pandemic in Europe.
The An-124-Ruslan, a smaller version of the aircraft, made an appearance in Auckland in 2020 as it was delivering new engines for Air New Zealand’s Dreamliner fleet.
In 2021, Ukrainian strongmen athletes attempted a world record for pulling the plane at an airfield in the settlement of Hostomel outside Kyviv, Ukraine.
The eight strongmen beat the previous record, pulling the plane by 4 metres 30cm in 1 minute and 13 seconds.
