The remaining five AN-124 cargo aircraft will continue to be flown by the Antonov team from Leipzig, where the company has been able to relocate
In a presentation given to the Worldwide Project Consortium (WWPC), which convened its 20th annual membership conference in May 2022 in Vienna, Antonov acknowledged the level of damage caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Heavy Lift & Project Forwarding International claimed that the AN-225, AN-74, and AN-26-100 aircraft, as well as the airline’s home base at Kyiv-Antonov airport in Hostomel, were all destroyed. At the airport, two aircraft—an AN-124 and an AN-22A—were damaged.
The remaining five AN-124-100 aircraft will continue to be flown by the Antonov team out of Leipzig, Germany, where the company has been able to relocate. The airline claimed that in order to accomplish this, it must relocate a complete base to the airport, transport spare engines, parts, and other specialized equipment from Ukraine, procure Western versions of the components when possible, and relocate technical experts, flight crew, and important office personnel to Leipzig.
The possibility of managing commercial flights exists, however, the airline currently gives priority to flights for the Ukrainian government, NATO/EU under the SALIS program, and humanitarian missions. In the following 12 months, Antonov expected to fly 385 times and land 1,270 times. As previously reported, officials from Antonov evaluated the damage to one of its An-225 Mriya (Dream) aircraft.
Early in February, the largest aircraft in the world arrived at Hostomel Airport for maintenance before being damaged during the Battle of Antonov Airport, which took place as the Russian invasion of Ukraine got underway. Entry to the airport remained impossible until Ukrainian forces reclaimed the area from Russia on April 2 when Russian troops withdrew to the country’s east, according to Simple Flying.
‘It is believed that the nose and wings of the aircraft, in particular, suffered considerable damage.’
Dmytro Antonov, the main pilot of the An-225, and Antonov’s team of investigators traveled to the scene to assess the damage and perform a preliminary study of the repair expenses. They collaborated with Ukroboronprom, a Ukrainian defense company.
Simple Flying says that ‘The full findings of the damage assessment have not yet been released, although previous statements from the Ukrainian defense company Ukroboronprom put the cost of repair at $3 billion over five years. It also declared that the aircraft would be rebuilt at Russia’s expense.
‘However, if the An-225 has been as badly damaged as some pictures suggest, repairing the aircraft may not even be possible. Many of the aircraft’s parts were constructed in the 1980s and replacements may be difficult to come across today, almost 40 years later.
‘Both Antonov and aviation enthusiasts worldwide are keen to see Mriya back in the skies, and the manufacturer recently called on public donations to support the rebuild.
‘Yet perhaps a more feasible option would be to continue construction of its second An-225, which was started but never completed.’
According to reports, this partially completed aircraft appears to be unharmed despite being kept in the same hangar at Hostomel Airport at the time of the attack.
Photo by: Md Shaifuzzaman Ayon Own Work via Wikipedia
