Russia destroys world's largest plane 'Mriya' in Ukraine

During the Russian military operation in Ukraine, the world’s largest cargo plane, the Antonov AN-225, was destroyed on Sunday, according to Ukrainian officials, causing shock and sadness in the international aviation community.

During an attack on an aircraft parked at an airfield near Kyiv, the aircraft, named “Mriya” meaning “dream” in Ukrainian, was hit by “Russian occupants,” according to Ukrainian authorities, CNN reports.

“Russia may have destroyed our ‘Mriya’. But they will never be able to destroy our dream of a strong, free, and democratic European state. We shall prevail!” according to the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Twitter.

This was the world’s largest aircraft, AN-225 ‘Mriya’ (‘Dream’ in Ukrainian). Russia may have destroyed our ‘Mriya’. But they will never be able to destroy our dream of a strong, free and democratic European state. We shall prevail! pic.twitter.com/TdnBFlj3N8

— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) February 27, 2022

Ukroboronprom, a Ukrainian defense company, said on Sunday that the Mriya aircraft will require more than five years to be repaired and will cost over $3 billion. The company stated that it would “ensure that Russia covers the costs of the repair,” Bloomberg reports.

“Russia has hit the Mriya as a symbol of Ukraine’s aviation capabilities,” the company said.

The aircraft’s fans expressed their dismay on social media on Sunday following reports that the aircraft was destroyed. On Twitter, aviation blogger Sam Chui wrote, “Mriya – You will always be remembered!”

“The occupiers destroyed the airplane, but they won’t be able to destroy our common dream,” Ukroboronprom said. “Mriya will definitely be reborn.”