| World / Ukraine / Kyyivska / Hostomel, 5 km from center (Гостомель) | Coordinates: 50°35'34"N 30°12'18"E |
The Antonov An-124 Ruslan (NATO reporting name: Condor) is the largest aircraft ever mass produced, and was, until the advent of the An-225 Mryia, the largest aircraft in production. During development it was known as the An-400 and An-40 in the West, and it flew for the first time in 1982. Over forty are currently in service (but about 28 civilian models) in Russia, Ukraine, UAE, and Libya.
Physically, the An-124 is similar to the American Lockheed C-5 Galaxy, but is slightly larger. An-124s have been used to carry locomotives, yachts, aircraft fuselages, and a variety of other oversized cargoes. The An-124 is able to kneel to allow easier front loading. Up to 150 tonnes of cargo can be carried in a military An-124: it can also carry 88 passengers in an upper deck behind the cockpit. However, due to limited pressurization in the fuselage, it seldom carries paratroopers.[1]
An-124-100 is manufactured by Russian company Aviastar (ex. Ulyanovsk Aviation Industrial Complex).
Since the type was initially designed for only occasional military use, original An-124s were built with a projected service life of merely 7,500 flight hours. In response to complaints by commercial users, aircraft built after 2000 (the An-124-100) have an improved service life of 24,000 hours. There are also plans to increase the lifespan of older airframes. The state enterprise Kyiv Aviation Plant AVIANT (Kiev, Ukraine) offers upgrades to the 124-100 version.
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Category: airplane aircraft an antonov
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