The Antonov An-225 Mriya ('Dream' in Ukrainian) is well known for holding the record as the heaviest plane in the world. But did you know it also set some 123 other world records during its lifetime? The giant plane has operated some giant missions, and, before its sad demise, Simple Flying had the opportunity to talk to its operator, Antonov Airlines, to find out more about the achievements of this beast.

A record-breaker from the start

Antonov Airlines was in a unique position in the world, in that it operated the only An-225 'Mriya' aircraft ever built. Certified back in May 2001, the mighty An-225 turned heads wherever it flew, exuding power and poise on all of its missions. So much power, in fact, that it destroyed a fence at the UK's RAF Brize Norton in 2021! The aircraft was leaving after bringing helicopters back from Afghanistan.

With a maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) of 640 tonnes (the equivalent of more than 1.4 million pounds), the Antonov An-225 Mriya was tasked with some of the most challenging and heavy operations in the world. In doing so, it didn't just make headlines and attract attention, but it also set a bunch of new world records in the process. Antonov Airlines explained to Simple Flying in an interview that:

"The AN-225 has set 214 national and 124 world records, including the transportation of the heaviest payload ever airlifted, at 253,820 kg."

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The Airbus Beluga and Boeing Dreamliner outsize freighters expedited supply chains in the world of commercial aircraft manufacturing. In a similar vein, larger objects that had previously been impossible to move by air have been shipped in a matter of hours by the Antonov-225. Although we can't list all 124 world records here, let's take a look at some of the most eventful it was involved with.

The heaviest loads in history

As soon as the Antono AN-225 Mriya was certified, it instantly entered the aviation history books by breaking two world records. Specifically, it was the aircraft with the heaviest maximum takeoff weight in the world, and it also had the largest wingspan of any aircraft ever built at the time. The latter of these has since been exceeded by the 117-meter-wide (384 feet) Scaled Composites Stratolaunch.

Even before the colossal An-225 arrived, Antonov Airlines had already made its way into the Guinness Book of World Records in September 1993, when it carried the heaviest single piece of cargo in history. This saw one of the airline's four-engine An-124-100s fly a 124,000kg (264,555 pounds) power plant generator all the way over from Düsseldorf, Germany, to the city of New Delhi in India.

While this was a mighty figure by most accounts, such payloads actually ended up paling in comparison to the impressive capabilities of the six-engine Antonov An-225 Mriya. In any other world, the An-124 model would have plenty of records under its belt, but August 2009 saw the An-225 supersede this figure by tens of thousands of kilos, on another flight departing from Germany. Antonov Airlines told us that:

“The cargo was a generator and loading frame, weighing a total of 187,600 kg [413,587 pounds]. It was transported from Frankfurt, Germany to Yerevan, Armenia.”

This record was for a single piece of cargo, but the Antonov An-225 Mriya has also shifted even higher total combined loads in its time. For instance, on September 11th, 2001, the aircraft set several world records at once, including one for carrying the heaviest payload in history. The commercial payload weighed in at a staggering 253,820kg (559,577 pounds), and has never yet been exceeded.

As it happens, this was not the first time that the Antonov An-225 Mriya had broken multiple world records in a single flight. Indeed, Afterburner notes that 35 years ago today, on March 22nd, 1989, the enormous cargo jet set 110 world records in a trailblazing single test flight that lasted three hours and 45 minutes.

These included records in terms of altitude, speed, and weight-to-altitude, representing an impressive feat for an aircraft that had only taken its first flight three months beforehand, in December of 1988. Interestingly enough, Afterburner adds that setting 110 aviation records in one go also represented a record in itself. This helped cement its legacy early in its career as it carved a path to fame.

Accommodating the longest items

Aside from being able to transport enormous payloads in terms of size and weight, the Antonov An-225 was built to be incredibly flexible in terms of its cargo. The aircraft's huge 84 m (275 ft 7 in) length was almost all cargo space, giving it an enormous capacity of 1,200 cubic meters. The space was 43.35 m (142.2 ft) long, 6.4 m (21 ft) wide, and 4.4 m (14 ft) tall, accommodating the most awkward items.

It uses the same specially designed nose gear that the AN-124 does, which allows the aircraft to 'kneel' for easier loading and unloading. This makes it the aircraft of choice when something really long needs moving, as well as things that are very heavy. Indeed, its lengthy accommodation helped it to achieve yet another world record in 2010, with Antonov Airlines explaining to Simple Flying that:

“In 2010 the AN-225 carried the world’s longest piece of air cargo – two 42.1 m (137ft 9.5in) test wind turbine blades from Shijiazhuang, China, to Skrydstrup, Denmark.”

The aircraft also had some more surprising records up its sleeve, that did not necessarily concern the transportation of large and/or heavy items. Indeed, the Mriya also saw unlikely use in the cultural sphere, as Antonov Airlines explains:

“In 2012 the AN-225 broke another Guinness World Record for the highest altitude art exhibition, at 10,150 m above sea level. The airborne exhibition included 500 works of art created by 120 artists.”

Towards the end of its highly decorated operational career, the Antonov An-225 continued to break records, even during the era of the pandemic. In 2020, it carried 1,000 cubic meters of boxes containing PPE, the biggest cargo volume in history. Antonov Airlines noted that, in order to load such a large amount safely, the loadmasters had to disassemble the pallets and load up each box individually.

Unable to break any more records

Had circumstances panned out differently, the An-225 may have broken even more world records. Sadly, the Russian invasion of Ukraine put an end to its aerial exploits, with the six-engine jet being a victim of Russian forces' assault on Kyiv's Hostomel Airport. With an estimated €500 million ($539 million) required to rebuild the jet, its only flights in the near future, if at all, will take place on simulators.

While the legendary aircraft is sadly still no closer to taking to the skies once again, there have still been certain key developments to its story in recent times. Most notably, earlier this month, Antonov's former CEO and the head of the aviation security unit were charged with obstructing military activities concerning the plane's security before its destruction, and could face up to 15 years in prison as a result.

Did you know that the Antonov An-225 'Mriya' was such a record-breaker? Perhaps you even got to see it in person back in the day? Let us know your thoughts and experiences in the comments!