They fly locomotives in the worlds largest flying airplane. The Antonov 225. Amazing.
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Spruce Goose, eat your heart out.....
(Kinda sideways on the takeoff though....)
I've always been in awe of huge flying beasts like the 225. They are those type of planes you look at and just wonder, "how the heck can that thing possibly get off the ground?"
It's the Spruce Goose evolved. A giant super-plane that was ahead of its time and initially mocked but has now found acceptance and relevance in today's world.
Gives new meaning to "Intermodal".
Unbelievable.
Originally Posted by hojack:
Lots of runway, lots of thrust, and very carefully with a bit of finger-crossing. 
All kinds of technology on this aircraft.
I wonder if they have to disconnect, all the flight controls, when they open the nose.
Originally Posted by hojack:
Actually, that would be 187 tonnes. A tonne is a mass of 1000 kg while the ton is 2000 lbs. A tonne is 2,204.6 lbs.
It took off sideways due to a strong crosswind in the video.
The D-18 engines are each rated at ~50,000lbs of thrust. Thus, the total (full thrust) is roughly 300,000 lbs. Some variants of the 777 use the GE90-115B engine which has produced up to 127,000 lbs. There are two of them on the 777 giving a possibility of 254,000 lbs of thrust. There is not as much thrust as one would think.
That diesel-electric is roughly 130 tonnes which is no problem for the Antonov 225. Probably could not fly with a 210 ton ES44AC or SD70ACe, but for the vast majority of rail products the Antonov 225 would work just fine for transporting.
Years ago, the Russians had a four propeller version of this heavy lifter. Looked like a whale.
Dan
All I can say is WOW. That baby sure needs a long runway, I wonder just how long. Six engines and monstrous landing gear, what a beast.
Wow is right!
As they used to tell us in Navy Flight training, when thrust exceeds drag and lift exceeds weight of the aircraft, you will be flying!
Simply amazing!
-Greg
-Greg
I hope they chock the wheels on those loads.
Looks like it has a centipede tender sticking out of the bottom of it.
Some of those body wheels turn so the plane can turn about as tight as a 747. Don
WOW!
Peter
Originally Posted by trainroomgary:
All kinds of technology on this aircraft.
I wonder if they have to disconnect, all the flight controls, when they open the nose.
No they don't. the issue is just like the C5, if the locks don't engage when they close the nose or un kneel the landing gear it will not fly.
Below are stats on the aircraft. The closest aircraft the US Has is the USAF C5B Galaxy. I have loaded its cousin many times the AN 124. It was always interesting load planning and loading the aircraft with its Russian crews.
The Antonov An-225 Mriya (Ukrainian: Антонов Ан-225 Мрія, Russian: Антонов Ан-225 Мрия, Dream, NATO reporting name: "Cossack") is a strategic airlift cargo aircraft that was designed by the Soviet Union's Antonov Design Bureau in the 1980s. The An-225's name, Mriya (Мрiя) means "Dream" (Inspiration) in Ukrainian. It is powered by six turbofan engines and is the longest and heaviest airplane 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 was partially built; its completion was halted because of lack of funding and interest.
The Antonov An-225, originally developed specifically to transport the Buran spaceplane, was an enlargement of the successful Antonov An-124. The first An-225 was completed in 1988 and remains in commercial operation with Antonov Airlines carrying oversized payloads.[1] The airlifter holds the absolute world records for an airlifted single item payload of 189,980 kilograms (418,834 pounds),[2][3] and an airlifted total payload of 253,820 kilograms (559,577 pounds).[4][5] It has also transported a payload of 247,000 kilograms (545,000 pounds) on a commercial flight
