What is the largest cargo plane. The largest passenger planes in the world

26.03.2020

The An-225 Mriya is a unique transport aircraft characterized by its ultra-high payload capacity. It was developed by the OKB im. Antonova. The project was led by Viktor Ilyich Tolmachev.

From 1984 to 1988, this unique aircraft was competently designed and created at the Kiev Mechanical Plant. It made its first flight on December 21, 1988. At the beginning of the development of the project, 2 aircraft were laid down, and now one Mriya is used by Antonov Airlines. As for the second car, its readiness is estimated at only 70%.

Technical characteristics of An-225

This aircraft model has a six-engine turbojet high-wing aircraft with a swept wing and two-tail tail, as well as 6 D-18T aircraft engines. They were developed by ZMKB "Progress" named after. A. G. Ivanchenko.

The An-225 Mriya is a jet transport aircraft with a huge payload capacity, which received the name Cossack according to NATO coding. It was designed back in the days Soviet Union chief designer Tolmachev V.I. at OKB im. Antonov. First flew on December 21, 1988. Nowadays, only one copy of the Mriya is in working flight condition, another is 70% ready, but due to a lack of funding (about $100 million is required), work is not being carried out. The operator of the one-of-a-kind giant aircraft is the Ukrainian airline AntonovAirlines.

History of creation

The need to construct a transport jet aircraft of enormous scale arose in connection with the maintenance of the Buran spacecraft. The functions of such an aircraft included transporting individual heavy elements of the spacecraft and launch vehicle from the place of its assembly to the launch site. The fact is that rockets and spaceships are launched mainly in the equator region, where the value of the Earth’s magnetic field is minimal, and, accordingly, the risks of accidents during takeoff are reduced.

Also, the An-225 was tasked with carrying out the first stage of the air launch of a spacecraft, and for this its payload must be at least 250 tons.

Since the dimensions of the Buran and the launch vehicle exceeded the dimensions of the Mriya’s cargo compartment, external fastenings were adapted to the transport aircraft for transporting cargo from the outside. This specificity led to a change in its tail unit. It was necessary to replace the tail of the aircraft with a double fin to avoid the heavy impact of aerodynamic currents.

All this suggests that the An-225 was designed as a highly specialized heavy transport aircraft, but some features that were taken from the An-124 made it universal in its qualities.

Many sources mistakenly call P.V. Balabuev the chief designer of the An-225, but this is not so. Balabuev was the chief designer of the entire Antonov Design Bureau in 1984-2005, but V.I. Tolmachev was appointed head of the An-225 project.

Cooperation ties during the creation of Mriya

Since 1985, the leadership of the CPSU Central Committee has outlined a short time frame for the development of the An-225. Therefore, during the design and creation of the transport heavyweight, hundreds of thousands of designers, scientists, engineers, technologists, pilots, military personnel and workers from all republics of the former USSR were involved.

Let's consider the work of individual enterprises to create the An-225

"OKB im. Antonov" (Kyiv) – main project work. Production of most of the components, fuselage parts, fairings and fairings, nose section, etc. Assembly: fuselage and overall assembly of the aircraft.
“Tashkent Aircraft Production Association named after. Chkalov" - production of central and end parts of wings based on the An-124.
"Ulyanovsk Aviation Industrial Complex" - production of large-sized milled power frames, fuselage brackets, some serial components and aircraft parts.
"Kiev Aircraft Production Association" - production of the nose of the fuselage, nose and horizontal tail, front landing gear, ball screw mechanisms for the fuselage struts.
"Moscow Institute of Automation and Electromechanics" - design and production of the A-825M aircraft control complex.
"Zaporozhye Engine Plant" - production of serial D-18 engines.
"Gidromash" ( Nizhny Novgorod) – production of new chassis.
"Voronezh Aviation Plant". Specialists were painting the aircraft in Kyiv.

Capabilities of the An-225 aircraft

Transportation of general purpose cargo (heavy, large, long) with a total weight of up to 250 tons.
Inland non-stop transportation of cargo with a total weight of 180-200 tons.
Intercontinental transportation of goods up to 150 tons.
Transportation of external monocargoes attached to the fuselage with a weight of up to 200 tons.
"Mriya" is a promising base for the design of aerospace systems.

Let's look at the volume of the fuselage cargo compartment using examples.

Passenger cars (50 pcs.).
Universal aviation containers UAK-10 (16 pcs.).
Large monocargoes with a total weight of up to 200 tons (generators, turbines, dump trucks, etc.)

Exploitation

The first flight of the Mriya dates back to December 21, 1988.

The aircraft was created to transport the Buran spacecraft and Energia launch vehicles. However, before the completion of work on its release, the launch vehicles had already been transported by the Atlant aircraft, and the An-225 was only involved in moving the Buran itself. In May 1989 it was presented at the Paris Air Show and conducted several demonstration flights over Baikonur in April 1991.

After the collapse of the USSR, in 1994, the only unit of the Mriya stopped flying. The engines and some other pieces of equipment were removed from it and installed on the Ruslan. But by the beginning of the 2000s, it became clear that the need for a working An-225 was very great, so they tried to restore it at Ukrainian enterprises. In order to adjust the aircraft to modern certificates civil aviation, also required minor modifications.

On May 23, 2001, the An-225 Mriya received certificates from the International Aviation Committee and the State Department of Aviation Transport of Ukraine. They made it possible to carry out commercial activities involving the transportation of goods.

Currently, the owner of the only copy of the An-225 is Antonov Airlines, which carries out commercial cargo transportation as part of a subsidiary of ANTK named after. Antonov.

On the basis of the aircraft, a flying complex is being designed for the launch of various aviation and space systems. One of the promising projects in this direction is MAKS (Ukrainian-Russian multi-purpose aerospace system).

Records

During its short existence, the An-225 set hundreds of aviation records.

The An-225 Mriya is the heaviest lifting aircraft that has ever taken to the air. The wingspan is second only to the HuglesH-Herkules, which made only one flight in 1974.

The An-225 set especially many records in terms of carrying capacity. Thus, on March 22, 1989, lifting a cargo with a total weight of 156.3 tons into the sky, he broke 110 world aviation records. But this is not the limit of his capabilities. August 2004 - the Mriya aircraft transports cargo consisting of Zeromax equipment in the direction Prague - Tashkent with refueling in Samara, with a total weight of 250 tons.

Five years later, in August 2009, the name of the Ukrainian aircraft once again entered the Guinness Book of Records, this time for transporting the heaviest monocargo in the cargo compartment. It turned out to be a generator that weighed 187.6 tons together with the auxiliary unit. The cargo was sent from German city Frankfurt to Yerevan at the request of one of the Armenian power plants.

The absolute record for carrying capacity of 253.8 tons belongs to the An-225 Mriya.

10.06. In 2010, this aircraft transported the longest cargo in the history of air transportation - two blades of a screw windmill, each 42.1 m in length.

If we sum up all the Mriya’s world records, there are over 250 of them.

Second copy of "Mriya"

The second An-225 is currently only 70% complete. Its assembly began during the Soviet Union at the aircraft plant named after. Antonov. According to the plant management, when a customer appears, it will be able to be brought to operational flight readiness.

Based on the statement general director Kyiv "Aviant" Oleg Shevchenko, now about $90-100 million investments are required to lift the second copy of the An-225 into the air. And if we also take into account the amount required for flight testing, the total cost could rise to $120 million.

As you know, the development of this aircraft is based on the An-124 Ruslan. The main differences between the AN-225 and the An-124 aircraft are as follows:

two additional engines,

increase in fuselage length as a result of inserts,

new center section,

replacement of the tail unit,

no tail cargo hatch,

external cargo fastening and pressurization system,

increasing the number of main landing gear struts.

As for other characteristics, the An-225 Mriya almost completely corresponds to the An-124, which significantly facilitated and reduced the cost of developing a new model and its use.

Purpose of An-225 "Mriya"

The reason for the development and creation of the An-225 was the need for an aviation transport platform designed for the Buran spacecraft. As is known, the main purpose of the aircraft within the project was to transport the space shuttle and its components from the production site to the launch site. In addition, the task was set to return the Buran spacecraft to the cosmodrome if it was suddenly forced to land at alternate airfields.

The An-225 aircraft was also supposed to be used as the first stage of the space shuttle air launch system. That is why the aircraft had to withstand a load capacity of more than 250 tons. Since the Energia carrier blocks and the Buran spacecraft itself had dimensions that were slightly larger than the dimensions of the aircraft’s cargo compartment, external cargo fastening was provided on it. This, in turn, required the replacement of the aircraft's basic tail unit with a two-fin one, which avoided aerodynamic shading.

As you can see, the aircraft was created to perform a few specialized transport tasks that were very responsible. However, its construction on the basis of the An-124 “Ruslan” endowed the new aircraft with many qualities transport aircraft.

An-225 has the ability to:

transportation of general purpose cargo (large, long, heavy), the total weight of which is up to 250 tons;

intracontinental transportation of cargo weighing 180-200 tons without landing;

intercontinental transportation of goods, the total weight of which is up to 150 tons;

transportation of heavy monocargoes with a total weight of up to 200 tons and large dimensions.

The An-225 is the first step in the creation of an aerospace project.

The model features a spacious and roomy cargo compartment, making it possible to transport a wide variety of cargo.

For example, it can be translated:

fifty passenger cars;

monocargoes with a total weight of up to 200 tons (dump trucks, turbines, generators);

sixteen ten-ton UAK-10, which are universal aviation containers.

Cargo compartment parameters: 6.4 m – width, 43 m – length, 4.4 m – height. The cargo compartment of the An-225 is sealed, which expands its capabilities. Above the cargo compartment there is a room intended for a replacement crew of 6 people and for 88 people who can accompany the transported cargo. Moreover, all control systems have quadruple redundancy. The design of the front cargo hatch and on-board equipment allow loading/unloading cargo as conveniently and quickly as possible. The aircraft can carry large cargo on the fuselage. The dimensions of these cargoes do not allow them to be transported using other land or air vehicles. A special fastening system ensures that these cargoes are securely located on the fuselage.

Flight characteristics of An-225

800-850 km/h - cruising speed

1500 km - flight distance with maximum fuel reserve

4500 km - flight range with a load of 200 tons

7000 km - flight range with a load of 150 tons

3-3.5 thousand m - required runway length

Dimensions

88.4 m - wingspan

84 m - aircraft length

18.1 m - height

905 sq. m - wing area

Today, the An-225 Mriya is the largest aircraft in the world, as well as the most load-bearing. Moreover, the giant put a large number of world records, many of which are in terms of carrying capacity, take-off weight, length of cargo, etc.

Possible competition

The president of Antonov Airlines claims that launching satellite satellites from the An-225 will cost much less than using the cosmodrome infrastructure. Moreover, the aircraft will not compete with the Polet project, which involves launching from Ruslan. All this is because the “Flight” project has planned the launch of so-called light satellites, weighing up to 3.5 tons. But with the An-225 it is possible to produce medium-type structures weighing up to 5.5 tons.

Well, as for the updated projects of the West, we are talking about the Airbus A3XX-100F aircraft and the Boeing 747-X aircraft model, their carrying capacity is no more than 150 tons, and they are beginning to compete with the An-225. Moreover, they have quite a lot of chances to win.

The last modernization of the An-225 aircraft took place in 2000, as a result of which it received navigation equipment that meets international standards.

At this stage of aviation development, the largest aircraft that is mass-produced in post-Soviet space, is an An-124 aircraft. The second name for this vehicle- Ruslan. This airliner is the most successful project Antonov design bureau. The plane set more than 2 dozen records, including the longest flight and the largest payload.

An-124 aircraft

The An-124 is a long-range transport aircraft. This is a heavyweight in its lineup. The aircraft was created during the Cold War primarily for military needs. The ship was originally intended to transport armed forces and armored vehicles over long distances.

The model was created according to a standard plan. But the designers introduced an innovative feature at that time: instead of one cargo hatch - two. The hatches are divided into compartments that are completely sealed. The design includes:

cargo compartment;
compartment for people who must accompany the cargo.

The loading and unloading of the aircraft's contents was also quite carefully thought out:

front (located in the bow) and rear hatches for self-propelled cargo;
overhead crane with winches - for non-propelled cargo;
various fasteners.

To improve takeoff and landing functions, as well as to facilitate loading operations, the Ruslan aircraft is equipped with a multi-post landing gear that fully provides the functions of turning and subsidence. Thanks to this, the vessel can be operated both on standard concrete runways and on unpaved ones (which is not the easiest task, taking into account its dimensions).

Taking into account the fact that the vessel is designed for very large-scale transportation, half of the cargo compartment is made of titanium. This allows you to withstand significant loads. In addition, the vessel is equipped with a special system that regulates the height of the bottom of the cargo compartment. This, in turn, greatly simplifies the check-in and check-out processes.

Passenger airliners can be transported inside the An-124 aircraft

Aircraft design

Technical equipment of the An-124 Ruslan aircraft:

The automated steering system is carried out using 24 computers).
Ultra-precise power supply system.
One of the most reliable life support systems for passengers and crew of a ship.
Powerful hydraulic complex.
Complex of automated radio navigation equipment.
Modern navigation system with increased reliability.
Precise navigation and sighting system.

All of the above equipment allows you to fly regardless of the time of day and weather conditions. To improve the aerodynamic properties of the An-124 Ruslan aircraft, the wings of the aircraft are quite thick and arrow-shaped. The plane's crew can accommodate up to 6 people. Plus 88 accompanying cargo.

The maximum carrying capacity of the Ruslan aircraft is 150 tons. With such a load, the ship can fly with a range of up to 5,600 km. With a load of less than 50 tons, the flight range of the An-124 will already be 11,000 km.

An-124 easily accommodates a train

Aircraft weight and dimensions

How much does the Ruslan aircraft weigh with such a carrying capacity? Actually less than you might think. The weight of the Ruslan aircraft (completely empty, without fuel and cargo with the crew on board) is about 180 tons. In this case, the maximum weight of fuel that can be in the gas tank is 230 tons.

We have already mentioned that the An-124 is on the list of the largest aircraft in the world. Dimensions of the Ruslan aircraft:

The length of the vessel is 69 meters.
The wingspan of the An-124 is just over 73 meters.
The plane is slightly smaller in height - 21 meters.

The plane can reach a speed of 865 km/h. At the same time, the standard cruising speed of the vessel is in the range of 750-800 km/h.

According to the world records that we mentioned earlier, the aircraft can load more than 170 tons to an altitude of 10 km (cruising altitude of the ship). And the longest flight along a closed route was more than 20,000 km.

Compared to the time the model was developed and launched, sales figures have dropped to the limit today. The government has planned to establish mass production, but so far without obvious results. The cost of the An-124 Ruslan aircraft reaches $100 million.

Modifications of the An-124 Ruslan aircraft

The first modified model of the vessel was released back in 1992. It was no longer intended for military purposes, so special equipment for military equipment and landing, was removed. In addition, the radio navigation system, cargo compartment, crew compartment and the ship's engines underwent changes. The model was intended for large passenger transport and was named An-124-100 Ruslan.

Specifications An-124-100:

The length, height of the vessel and wingspan remained unchanged (69 meters, 73 meters and 21 meters, respectively).
The empty weight of the vessel decreased to 173 tons.
The maximum carrying capacity dropped to 120 tons.
The maximum fuel weight also became smaller - 212 tons.

This modification of the Ruslan aircraft retained its maximum speed. But the cruising speed has increased significantly - 800-850 km/h.

The An-124-100 Ruslan aircraft has a sad reputation. It was this model that crashed on February 6, 1997 in Irkutsk. The plane crashed immediately after takeoff. The cause of the plane crash is believed to be the failure of three engines at once. The ship crashed onto residential buildings, causing the number of casualties to increase significantly.

Other models

In addition to the An-124-100, there are two more modifications of the Ruslan aircraft:

An-124-100M. This model is equipped with more modern onboard equipment, which helps reduce the crew to 4 people. Another innovation was the installation of powerful sound-absorbing elements. The An-124-100M model features more accurate navigation and increased safety.
An-124-102. This model is under development. According to sources, it is planned to significantly improve the takeoff and landing characteristics of the vessel. And also reduce the number of aircraft crew to 3 people and install the most modern flight control system.

According to the latest data, the An-124 Ruslan aircraft is planned to be used in a system for launching small satellites into low orbits. To do this, a two-stage rocket mechanism will be placed inside the vessel. After the aircraft delivers this mechanism to the place required for launch, it will land and start the first stage of the engines. This scope of application will be able to ensure demand for this model, which will contribute to mass production.

Ever since people learned to design flying vehicles, they began to be used to transport heavy and bulky cargo. Over the history of aeronautics, many transport aircraft have been created that impress with their enormous size. In today's selection we present to your attention the 11 largest cargo aircraft in the world.

11 PHOTOS

An-225 on this moment is the largest aircraft in the world, it has an ultra-high payload capacity and can lift about 250 tons into the air. The An-225 was originally designed and built to transport components of the Energia launch vehicle and the Buran reusable spacecraft.

This transport aircraft is a modified version of the Boeing 747, it was built and used exclusively to transport parts of the Boeing 787 aircraft. What makes the Dreamlifter special is its unusual appearance.

The Super Guppy cargo plane was produced in five copies and today only one of them is in use. It is owned by NASA and is used to deliver large cargo and spacecraft parts.

The An-124 is a heavy military transport aircraft for long-distance transport, the largest of all serial commercial cargo aircraft in the world. It was developed primarily for air transportation launchers of intercontinental ballistic missiles, as well as for transporting heavy military equipment. The carrying capacity of the An-124 is 120 tons. Aircraft maintenance can only be carried out in a special hangar built for the company that owns the An-124 from metal structures (a similar principle http://ctcholding.kz/uslugi/bystrovozvodimye-zdaniya/iz-metallokonstruktsij/promyshlennye-zdaniya).

American military transport aircraft, second in terms of payload capacity after the An-124. The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is capable of carrying six helicopters or two large tanks in its cargo bay. The total weight that the aircraft can transport is more than 118 tons.

A jet cargo aircraft for transporting large cargo, which was developed on the basis of the Airbus A300 series. The main purpose of the A300-600ST is to replace the Super Guppy transport aircraft. Beluga owes its name to its body shape, which resembles a beluga whale. The Beluga's carrying capacity is 47 tons.

Soviet-made heavy transport aircraft, the largest turboprop aircraft in the world. Currently, the aircraft is used by the Russian Air Force and the Ukrainian cargo airline Antonov Airlines. The carrying capacity of the An-22 is 60 tons.

The C-17 Globemaster III is one of the most common military transport aircraft of the US Air Force and is still in use today. The aircraft is designed to transport military equipment and troops, as well as perform tactical missions. The C-17's carrying capacity is more than 76 tons.

The A400M Atlas was designed and built as an international project for the air forces of France, Germany, Italy, Great Britain and several other countries. It is a four-engine turboprop aircraft with a payload capacity of up to 37 tons.

A twin-engine military transport aircraft of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, created as a replacement for the Kawasaki C-1 and Lockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft. The C-1's lifting capacity is 37 and a half tons.

The aircraft was designed in the USSR and built in 1988 at the Kiev Mechanical Plant.

"Mriya" set a world record for take-off weight and carrying capacity. On March 22, 1989, the An-225 flew with a cargo of 156.3 tons, thereby simultaneously beating 110 world aviation records, which is a record in itself.

Since the start of operation, the aircraft has flown 3,740 hours. Assuming that average speed flights (taking into account take-off, climb, cruising flight, descent, approach) is about 500 km/hour, then you can calculate the approximate value of the kilometers traveled: 500 x 3740 = 1,870,000 km (more than 46 orbits around the Earth along the equator) .

The scale of the An-225 is amazing: the length of the aircraft is 84 meters, the height is 18 meters (like a 6-story 4-entrance house)

A visual comparison of the Mriya and the passenger Boeing 747.

If we take the largest of the Boeing 747-800 as a basis, then the length of the An-225 will be 8 meters longer, and the wingspan will be 20 meters longer.
Compared to the Airbus A380, the Mriya is 11 meters longer, and its wingspan is almost 9 meters longer.

It happens that the airport does not have adequate parking for such big plane, and it is placed directly on the runway.
Of course, we are talking about an alternate runway, if the airport has one.

The wingspan is 88.4 meters and the area is 905 m²

The only aircraft superior to the An-225 in terms of wingspan is the Hughes H-4 Hercules, which belongs to the class of flying boats. The ship took off only once, in 1947. The history of this aircraft was reflected in the film "The Aviator"

Since the Buran spacecraft itself and the blocks of the Energia launch vehicle had dimensions exceeding the dimensions of the Mriya’s cargo compartment, the new aircraft provided for securing cargo from the outside. In addition, it was planned that the aircraft would be used as the first stage for the launch of a spacecraft.

The formation of a wake from a large cargo attached to the top of the aircraft required the installation of tail unit double keel to avoid aerodynamic shading.

The aircraft is equipped with 6 D-18T engines.
At takeoff mode, each engine develops a thrust of 23.4 tons (or 230 kN), i.e. the total thrust of all 6 engines is 140.5 tons (1380 kN)

It can be assumed that each engine develops about 12,500 horsepower at takeoff!

The D-18T engines of the An-225 aircraft are the same as those on the An-124 Ruslan.
The height of such an engine is 3 m, width 2.8 m, and weight more than 4 tons.

The starting system is air, with electrical automatic control. The auxiliary power unit, consisting of two TA-12 turbo units installed in the left and right fairings of the chassis, provides autonomous power to all systems and engine starting.

The mass of fuel in the tanks is 365 tons, it is placed in 13 wing caisson tanks.
The aircraft can remain in the air for 18 hours and cover a distance of over 15,000 km.

The refueling time for such a vehicle ranges from half an hour to a day and a half, and the number of tankers depends on their capacity (from 5 to 50 tons), i.e. from 7 to 70 tankers.

The aircraft's fuel consumption is 15.9 tons/h (in cruising mode)
When fully loaded, the aircraft can remain in the sky without refueling for no more than 2 hours.

The chassis includes a two-post nose and 14-post main (7 posts on each side) supports.
Each stand has two wheels. Total 32 wheels.

Wheels require replacement every 90 landings.
Tires for Mriya are produced at the Yaroslavl Tire Plant. The price of one tire is about $1000.

On the bow strut there are wheels measuring 1120 x 450 mm, and on the main strut there are wheels measuring 1270 x 510 mm.
The pressure inside is 12 atmospheres.

Since 2001, the An-225 has been performing commercial cargo transportation as part of Antonov Airlines.

Dimensions of the cargo compartment: length - 43 m, width - 6.4 m, height - 4.4 m.
The cargo cabin of the aircraft is sealed, which allows for the transportation of goods various types. Inside the cabin you can place 16 standard containers, up to 80 cars and even heavy-duty BelAZ dump trucks. There is enough space here to fit the entire body of a Boeing 737.

Access to the cargo compartment is through bow aircraft that tilts up.

The process of opening/closing the cargo compartment ramp takes no more than 10 minutes.

To unfold the ramp, the aircraft performs the so-called “elephant bow.”
The nose landing gear tilts forward, and the weight of the aircraft is transferred to auxiliary supports, which are installed under the front threshold of the cargo compartment.

Auxiliary support.

Control panel for the aircraft's "squat" system.

This loading method has a number of advantages compared to the Boeing 747 (which is loaded through a compartment in the side of the fuselage.

"Mriya" is a record holder for the weight of cargo transported: commercial - 247 tons (which is four times the maximum payload of a Boeing 747), commercial monocargo - 187.6 tons, and absolute record load capacity - 253.8 tons. On June 10, 2010, the longest cargo in the history of air transportation was transported - two windmill blades, each 42.1 m long.

To ensure a safe flight, the center of gravity of an aircraft with cargo must be within certain limits along its length. The load master performs loading in strict accordance with the instructions, after which the co-pilot checks the correct placement of the cargo and reports this to the crew commander, who makes a decision on the possibility of carrying out the flight and is responsible for this.

The aircraft is equipped with an on-board loading complex consisting of four lifting mechanisms, each with a lifting capacity of 5 tons.
In addition, two floor winches are provided for loading non-self-propelled wheeled vehicles and cargo on the loading ramp.

This time, the An-225 was chartered by the French engineering company Alstom to transport 170 tons of cargo from Zurich, Switzerland to Bahrain with refueling in Athens and Cairo.

This is a turbine rotor, a turbogenerator for producing electricity and components.

Flight manager Vadim Nikolaevich Deniskov.

To tow the An-225 aircraft, it is impossible to use the carrier of aircraft from other companies, so the carrier is transported on board the aircraft.

And since the aircraft is not equipped with a rear cargo hatch and the towing carrier is unloaded and loaded through the front cargo hatch, which requires a full cycle of squatting of the aircraft onto the front support, as a result, at least 30 minutes are lost and the resource of the aircraft structure and squatting system is unjustifiably consumed.

Technician-foreman for aircraft maintenance.

To ensure turns when the aircraft moves on the ground, the last four rows of the main support struts are made orientable.

Aircraft maintenance technician: specialization: hydraulic system and landing gear.

The heavy weight of the aircraft causes the landing gear to leave marks on the asphalt.

Ladder and hatch to the cockpit.

The passenger compartment is divided into 2 parts: in the front there is the aircraft crew, and in the rear there are accompanying and maintenance personnel.
The cabins are sealed separately - they are separated by a wing.

The rear part of the accompanying cabin is intended for eating, working with technical documentation and holding conferences.
The aircraft has 18 seats for rest of crew members and members of the engineering and technical team - 6 seats in the front cabin and 12 in the rear.

Staircase and hatch to the attendant cabin at the rear of the aircraft.

Technical compartment located at the rear of the cockpit.

On the shelves you can see the blocks that ensure the operation of various aircraft systems, and the pipelines of the pressurization and air conditioning system and the anti-icing system. All aircraft systems are highly automated and require minimal crew intervention during operation. Their work is supported by 34 on-board computers.

Wall of the front center section spar. It is installed (from top to bottom): the slats transmission and air bleed pipelines from the engines.
In front of it are stationary cylinders of the fire protection system with the fire extinguishing agent "Freon".

Stickers are souvenirs from numerous visitors on the panel on the plane's emergency exit hatch flap.

The farthest point from the base airport that the plane managed to visit is the island of Tahiti, which is part of French Polynesia.
The distance along the shortest arc of the globe is about 16,400 km.

Rynda An-225
Vladimir Vladimirovich Mason mentioned in the engraving is an aircraft operation engineer who worked at Mriya for many years.

The aircraft commander (PIC) is Vladimir Yuryevich Mosin.

To become an An-225 commander, you must have at least 5 years of experience flying an An-124 aircraft as a commander.

Weight and alignment control is simplified by installing a load-measuring system on the chassis.

The aircraft crew consists of 6 people:
aircraft commander, co-pilot, navigator, senior flight engineer, aviation equipment flight engineer, flight radio operator.

ORES

To reduce efforts on the throttles and increase the accuracy of setting engine operating modes, a remote engine control system is provided. In this case, the pilot makes a relatively small effort to use cables to move the lever of an electromechanical device mounted on the engine, which reproduces this movement on the fuel regulator lever with the necessary force and accuracy. For the convenience of joint control during takeoff and landing, the throttle levers of the outermost engines (RUD1 and RUD6) are linked, respectively, with RUD2 and RUD5.

The helm of the largest aircraft in the world.

Aircraft control is booster i.e. The control surfaces are deflected solely with the help of hydraulic steering actuators, if they fail, it is impossible to control the aircraft manually (with an increase in the required effort). Therefore, quadruple redundancy was applied. The mechanical part of the control system (from the steering wheel and pedals to hydraulic steering actuators) consists of rigid rods and cables.
The total length of these cables is: the aileron control system in the fuselage - about 30 meters, in each console (left, right) of the wing - approximately 35 meters; elevator and rudder control systems - about 65 meters each.

When the plane is empty, 2400 m of runway is enough for takeoff and landing.
Takeoff with maximum weight - 3500 m, landing with maximum weight - 3300 m.

At the executive start, the engines begin to warm up, which takes about 10 minutes.

This prevents engine surge during takeoff and ensures maximum takeoff thrust. Of course, this requirement leads to the fact that: takeoff is carried out during a period of minimal airport congestion, or the plane waits a long time for its turn to take off, missing scheduled flights.

The takeoff and landing speed depends on the takeoff and landing weight of the aircraft and ranges from 240 km/h to 280 km/h.

The climb is carried out at a speed of 560 km/h, with a vertical speed of 8 m/s.

At an altitude of 7100 meters, the speed increases to 675 km/h with further continuation of the climb to the flight level.

Cruising speed of An-225 - 850 km/h
When calculating cruising speed, the weight of the aircraft and the flight range that the aircraft must cover are taken into account.

Dmitry Viktorovich Antonov - senior captain.

The middle panel of the pilots' instrument panel.

Backup instruments: attitude indicator and altitude indicator. Fuel lever position indicator (FLU), engine thrust indicator (ET). Indicators of deviation of control surfaces and take-off and landing devices (slats, flaps, spoilers).

Senior flight engineer's instrument panel.

In the lower left corner there is a side panel with controls for the hydraulic complex and a chassis position alarm. Top left panel of the aircraft fire protection system. At the top right is a panel with controls and control devices: starting the APU, the supercharging and air conditioning system, the anti-icing system and the signal panel block. At the bottom is a panel with controls and controls for the fuel supply system, engine operation control and on-board automated system control (BASK) of all aircraft parameters.

Senior onboard engineer - Polishchuk Alexander Nikolaevich.

Instrument panel for monitoring engine operation.

On the left, at the top is a vertical indicator of the position of the fuel levers. Large round instruments are speed indicators for the high-pressure compressor and engine fan. Small round instruments are indicators of oil temperature at the engine inlet. The block of vertical instruments at the bottom - indicators of the amount of oil in the engine oil tanks.

Aeronautical engineer's dashboard.
Controls and monitoring devices for the aircraft's power supply system and oxygen system are located here.

Navigator - Anatoly Binyatovich Abdullaev.

Flight over the territory of Greece.

Navigator-instructor - Yaroslav Ivanovich Koshitsky.

Flight operator - Gennady Yurievich Antipov.
The ICAO call sign for the An-225 on the flight from Zurich to Athens was ADB-3038.

On-board engineer - Yuri Anatolyevich Mindar.

Athens airport runway.

Landing at night on Mriya is carried out instrumentally, i.e. using instruments, from the leveling height and visually before touching down. According to the crew, one of the most difficult landings- in Kabul, which is associated with high mountains and many obstacles. The approach begins at a speed of 340 km/h to an altitude of 200 meters, then the speed is gradually reduced.

Landing is carried out at a speed of 295 km/h with fully extended mechanization. It is allowed to touch the runway at a vertical speed of 6 m/s. After touching the runway, reverse thrust is immediately switched to engines 2 to 5, while engines 1 and 6 are left at idle. The landing gear is braked at a speed of 140-150 km/h until the aircraft comes to a complete stop.

The aircraft's service life is 8,000 flight hours, 2,000 takeoffs and landings, 25 calendar years.

The aircraft can still fly until December 21, 2013 (25 years since the start of its operation), after which a thorough study of its technical condition will be carried out and the necessary work will be carried out to ensure an extension of the calendar service life to 45 years.

Due to the high cost of transportation on the An-225, orders appear only for very long and very heavy cargo, when transportation terrestrial species transport is impossible. Flights are random: from 2-3 per month to 1-2 per year. From time to time there is talk about building a second copy of the An-225 aircraft, but this requires an appropriate order and appropriate funding. To complete the construction, an amount of approximately $90 million is required, and taking into account testing, it increases to $120 million.

This is perhaps one of the most beautiful and impressive aircraft in the world.

Thanks to Antonov Airlines for their help in organizing the photography!
Special thanks to Vadim Nikolaevich Deniskov for his help in writing the text for the post!

For any questions regarding the use of photographs, please email.

People are always attracted by some kind of record - record-breaking aircraft always receive great attention

3rd place: Airbus A380

The Airbus A380 is a wide-body, double-deck jet passenger aircraft created by Airbus S.A.S. (previously Airbus Industry) is the largest production airliner in the world.

The height of the aircraft is 24.08 meters, length is 72.75 (80.65) meters, wingspan is 79.75 meters. The A380 can fly non-stop over distances of up to 15,400 km. Capacity - 525 passengers in three classes; 853 passengers in single-class configuration. There is also a cargo modification of the A380F with the ability to transport cargo up to 150 tons over a distance of up to 10,370 km.

The development of the Airbus A380 took about 10 years, the cost of the entire program was about 12 billion euros. Airbus says it needs to sell 420 planes to recoup its costs, although some analysts estimate the figure could be much higher.
According to the developers, the most difficult part in creating the A380 was the problem of reducing its weight. It was solved through the widespread use of composite materials both in structural structural elements and in auxiliary units, interiors, etc.

To reduce the weight of the aircraft, advanced technologies and improved aluminum alloys were also used. Thus, the 11-ton center section consists of 40% of its mass from carbon fiber reinforced plastic. The fuselage top and side panels are made from Glare hybrid material. Laser welding of stringers and skin was used on the lower fuselage panels, which significantly reduced the number of fasteners.
Airbus claims that the Airbus A380 burns 17% less fuel per passenger than “the current largest aircraft” (presumably referring to the Boeing 747). The less fuel is burned, the lower the carbon dioxide emissions. For an airplane, CO2 emissions per passenger are only 75 grams per kilometer traveled. This is almost half the carbon dioxide emissions limit set by the European Union for cars produced in 2008.

The first A320 aircraft sold was delivered to the customer on October 15, 2007 after a long acceptance testing phase and entered service on October 25, 2007, making a commercial flight between Singapore and Sydney. Two months later, the company's president Singapore Airlines Chew Chong Seng said the Airbus A380 performed better than expected and consumed 20% less fuel per passenger than the company's existing Boeing 747-400.

Upper and lower deck The aircraft are connected by two staircases, at the nose and tail of the aircraft, wide enough to accommodate two passengers shoulder to shoulder. In the 555-passenger configuration, the A380 has 33% more passenger seats than the Boeing 747–400 in its standard three-class configuration, but the cabin has 50% more space and volume, resulting in more space.

The maximum certified capacity of the aircraft is 853 passengers when configured with a single economy class. The announced configurations have a number of passenger seats from 450 (for Qantas Airways) to 644 (for Emirates Airline, with two comfort classes).

2nd place: Hughes H-4 Hercules

Hughes H-4 Hercules (eng. Hughes H-4 Hercules) is a transport wooden flying boat developed by the American company Hughes Aircraft under the leadership of Howard Hughes. This 136-ton aircraft, originally designated the NK-1 and informally nicknamed the Spruce Goose, was the largest flying boat ever built, and its wingspan remains a record to this day. - 98 meters. It was designed to transport 750 soldiers when fully equipped.

At the beginning of World War II, the US government allocated $13 million to Hughes to build a prototype flying ship, but by the end of hostilities aircraft was not ready, which was explained by the shortage of aluminum, as well as the stubbornness of Hughes, who strove to create an impeccable car.

Specifications

Crew: 3 people
Length: 66.45 m
Wingspan: 97.54 m
Height: 24.08 m
Fuselage height: 9.1 m
Wing area: 1061.88 m?
Maximum take-off weight: 180 tons
Payload weight: up to 59,000 kg
Fuel capacity: 52,996 l
Engines: 8? air cooling Pratt&Whitney R-4360-4A 3000 l. With. (2240 kW) each
Propellers: 8? four-blade Hamilton Standard, diameter 5.23 m

Flight characteristics

Top speed: 351 mph (565.11 km/h)
Cruising speed: 250 mph (407.98 km/h)
Flight range: 5634 km
Service ceiling: 7165 m.

Despite its nickname, the plane is built almost entirely from birch, or more precisely from birch plywood glued to a pattern.

The Hercules aircraft, piloted by Howard Hughes himself, made its first and only flight on November 2, 1947, when it rose to a height of 21 meters and covered approximately two kilometers in a straight line over Los Angeles Harbor.

After a long period of storage (Hughes maintained the aircraft in operational condition until his death in 1976, spending up to $1 million a year on this), the aircraft was sent to a museum in Long Beach, California.

The plane is visited by about 300,000 tourists annually. The biography of the aircraft's creator, Howard Hughes, and the aircraft's testing are shown in Martin Scorsese's film "The Aviator."

It is currently on display at the Evergreen International Aviation Museum in McMinnville, Oregon, where it was moved in 1993.

1st place: AN-225 What a plane! Of course, he's Russian!

This machine was designed and built in a very short time: the first drawings began to be created in 1985, and in 1988 the transport aircraft was already built. The reason for such a short deadline can be quite easily explained: the fact is that the Mriya was created on the basis of well-developed components and assemblies of the An-124 Ruslan. For example, the fuselage of the Mriya has the same transverse dimensions as the An-124, but is longer; the span and area of the wings have increased. The wing has the same structure as the Ruslan, but additional sections have been added to it. The An-225 now has two additional engines. The aircraft's landing gear is similar to that of the Ruslan, but it has seven instead of five struts. The cargo compartment has been changed quite seriously. Initially, two aircraft were laid down, but only one An-225 was completed. The second copy of the unique aircraft is approximately 70% complete and can be completed at any time, subject to proper funding. To complete its construction, an amount of 100-120 million dollars is needed.

On February 1, 1989, the aircraft was shown to the general public, and in May of the same year, the An-225 made a non-stop flight from Baikonur to Kyiv, carrying a Buran weighing sixty tons on its back. That same month, the An-225 delivered the Buran spacecraft to the Paris Air Show and created a real sensation there. In total, the aircraft holds 240 world records, including the transportation of the heaviest cargo (253 tons), the heaviest monolithic cargo (188 tons) and the longest cargo.

The An-225 Mriya aircraft was originally created for the needs of the Soviet space industry. In those years, the Soviet Union was building Buran, its first reusable spacecraft, an analogue of the American shuttle. To implement this project it was necessary transport system, with which it was possible to transport large loads. It was for these purposes that “Mriya” was conceived. In addition to the components and assemblies of the spacecraft itself, it was necessary to deliver parts of the Energia rocket, which were also colossal in size. All this was delivered from the production site to the final assembly points. The units and components of Energia and Buran were manufactured in the central regions of the USSR, and final assembly took place in Kazakhstan, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. In addition, the An-225 was initially designed so that in the future it could transport the finished Buran spacecraft. The An-225 could also transport large cargo for the needs of the national economy, for example, equipment for the mining, oil and gas industries.

In addition to participating in the Soviet space program, the aircraft was to be used to transport oversized cargo over long distances. The An-225 Mriya will carry out this work today.

The general functions and tasks of the machine can be described as follows:

transportation of general purpose cargo (large, heavy) with a total weight of up to 250 tons;
intracontinental non-stop transportation of cargo weighing 180–200 tons;
intercontinental transportation of goods weighing up to 150 tons;
transportation of heavy bulky cargo on an external sling with a total weight of up to 200 tons;
use of aircraft for air launch of spacecraft.

The unique aircraft was given other, even more ambitious tasks, and they were also related to space. The An-225 Mriya aircraft was supposed to become a kind of flying cosmodrome, a platform from which spaceships and rockets would be launched into orbit. "Mriya", according to the designers, was supposed to be the first stage for the launch of reusable spacecraft of the "Buran" type. Therefore, initially the designers were faced with the task of making an aircraft with a payload capacity of at least 250 tons.

The Soviet shuttle was supposed to launch from the “back” of the plane. This method of launching vehicles into low-Earth orbit has many serious advantages. Firstly, there is no need to build very expensive ground-based launch complexes, and secondly, launching a rocket or ship from an airplane seriously saves fuel and allows you to increase the payload of the spacecraft. In some cases, this may make it possible to completely abandon the first stage of the rocket.

Various air launch options are currently being developed. They are working especially actively in this direction in the United States, and there are also Russian developments.

Alas, with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the “air launch” project with the participation of the An-225 was practically buried. This aircraft was an active participant in the Energia-Buran program. The An-225 carried out fourteen flights with Buran on the top of the fuselage, hundreds of tons were transported as part of this program various cargoes.

After 1991, funding for the Energia-Buran program ceased, and the An-225 was left without work. Only in 2000 did the modernization of the machine begin for use for commercial purposes. The An-225 Mriya aircraft has unique technical characteristics, enormous payload capacity and can transport large cargo on its fuselage - all this makes the aircraft very popular for commercial transportation.

Since that time, the An-225 has performed many flights and transported hundreds of tons of various cargo. Some transport operations can be safely called unique and have no analogues in the history of aviation. The aircraft took part in humanitarian operations several times. After the devastating tsunami, he delivered power generators to Samoa, transported construction equipment to earthquake-ravaged Haiti, and helped eliminate the consequences of the earthquake in Japan.

In 2009, the An-225 aircraft was modernized and its service life was extended.

The An-225 Mriya aircraft is made according to classic scheme, with high-raised, slightly swept wings. The cabin is located in the front of the aircraft, the cargo hatch is also located in the nose of the vehicle. The aircraft is made according to a two-fin design. This decision is related to the need to transport cargo on the fuselage of the aircraft. The An-225 airframe has very high aerodynamic properties; the lift-to-drag ratio of this aircraft is 19, which is an excellent indicator not only for transport aircraft, but also for passenger aircraft. This, in turn, significantly improved the aircraft's performance and reduced fuel consumption.

Almost the entire internal space of the fuselage is occupied by the cargo compartment. Compared to the An-124, it has become 10% larger (by seven meters). At the same time, the wingspan increased by only 20%, two more engines were added, and the aircraft’s carrying capacity increased by one and a half times. During the construction of the An-225, drawings, components and assemblies of the An-124 were actively used, thanks to which the aircraft was able to be created in such a short time. Here are the main differences between the An-225 and the An-124 “Ruslan”:

New center section;
fuselage length increased;
the single-fin tail was replaced with a double-fin;
lack of a tail cargo hatch;
the number of main landing gear struts has been increased from five to seven;
external cargo fastening and pressurization system;
two additional D-18T engines were installed.

Unlike the Ruslan, the Mriya has only one cargo hatch, which is located in the bow of the aircraft. Like its predecessor, Mriya can change the ground clearance and angle of the fuselage, which is extremely convenient during loading and unloading operations. The chassis has three supports: a front two-post and two main ones, each of which consists of seven posts. Moreover, all racks are independent of each other and are produced separately.

To take off without cargo, the aircraft needs runway 2400 meters long, with cargo - 3500 meters.

The An-225 has six D-18T engines suspended under the wings, as well as two auxiliary engines power plants located inside the fuselage.

The cargo compartment is sealed and equipped with all the necessary equipment for loading operations. Inside the fuselage, the An-225 can transport up to sixteen standard aviation containers (each weighing ten tons), fifty passenger cars, or any cargo weighing up to two hundred tons (turbines, especially large cargo vehicles, generators). On top of the fuselage there are special fastenings for transporting large cargo.D

Technical characteristics of An-225 "Mriya"

Wingspan, m 88.4
Length, m 84.0
Height, m 18.2
Weight, kg

Empty 250000
Maximum takeoff 600000
Fuel weight 300000
Engine 6*TRDD D-18T
Specific fuel consumption, kg/kgf·h 0.57-0.63
Cruising speed, km/h 850
Practical range, km 15600
Range, km 4500
Practical ceiling, m 11000
Crew of six people
Payload, kg 250000-450000.

An-225 is a Soviet transport jet aircraft with an ultra-high payload developed by the Design Bureau named after. O.K. Antonov, is the largest aircraft in the world.