Antonov An-225 Mriya

Antonov An-225 Mriya

The Antonov An-225 Mriya (Ukrainian: Антонов Ан-225 Мрія, Dream, NATO reporting name: 'Cossack') is a strategic airlift cargo aircraft, designed by the Soviet Union's Antonov Design Bureau in the 1980s. The An-225's name, Mriya (Мрiя) means "Dream" (Inspiration) in Ukrainian. It is generally acknowledged as the largest airplane in the world; it is the heaviest aircraft with a gross weight of 640 tonnes and the biggest heavier-than-air aircraft in terms of length and wingspan in operational service.

The An-225, originally developed specifically to transport the Buran orbiter, was an enlargement of the successful Antonov An-124. The first An-225 was completed in 1988 and a second An-225 has been partially completed. The completed An-225 is in commercial operation with Antonov Airlines carrying oversized payloads. Among its many records, it holds the absolute world record for airlifted payload at 189,980 kilogram (418,834 pounds).