Antonov An-225 Mriya story: from the space race to modern day war

Seven months since the destruction of the Antonov An-225 Mriya at Hostomel Airport, Ukraine is already working on plans to rebuild the largest cargo aircraft in the world. While the road to Mriya’s fame has been long and bumpy, no one is questioning the necessity to rebuild the aircraft, which has taken on immeasurable symbolic importance for Ukraine.

So, how did one aircraft become such an important wartime symbol, and how likely is it that one day the Mriya will fly again? AeroTime answers these questions – and more – in the first of our new series, AeroTime Explains.

Also, you can check out AeroTime’s extensive coverage on the life, death, and possible rebirth of the Mriya.

The chronology of loss
AeroTime extensively covered the sad destruction of the Mriya in the early days of the war in Ukraine. You can read some of our coverage below.