page_title: Antonov An-225 Mriya
section_title: Operational history
hierarchical_section_title: Antonov An-225 Mriya / Operational history
caption_attribution_description: Antonov An-225 at Manchester Airport, UK
context_page_description: The Antonov An-225 Mriya is a strategic airlift cargo aircraft that was designed by the Antonov Design Bureau in the Ukrainian SSR within the Soviet Union during the 1980s. It is powered by six turbofan engines and is the heaviest aircraft ever built, with a maximum takeoff weight of 640 tonnes. It also has the largest wingspan of any aircraft in operational service. The single example built has the Ukrainian civil registration UR-82060. A second airframe with a slightly different configuration was partially built. Its construction was halted in 1994 because of lack of funding and interest, but revived briefly in 2009, bringing it to 60–70% completion. On 30 August 2016, Antonov agreed to complete the second airframe for Airspace Industry Corporation of China as a prelude to commencing series production.
  The Antonov An-225 was initially developed as an enlargement of the Antonov An-124 to transport Buran-class orbiters. The only An-225 airplane was completed in 1988. After successfully fulfilling its Soviet military missions, it was mothballed for eight years.
context_section_description: During the last years of the Soviet space program, the An-225 was employed as the prime method of transporting Buran-class orbiters.
caption: Antonov An-225 at Manchester Airport in 2006
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