Ukroboronprom estimates that it could take more than $3 billion and five years to restore the destroyed plane, but the company has vowed that the costs will be covered by the Russian government. The Antonov company, which used the aircraft to transport heavy cargo since 2001, wrote on Twitter (opens in new tab) that it could not verify the 'technical condition' of the aircraft until it had been 'inspected by experts,' but Ukroboronprom, Ukraine's state-run defense corporation, which manages the Antonov Company, declared the AN-225 lost in a Sunday (Feb. Mriya's wingspan measures 290 feet, that's longer than five semi-truck trailers.

The Russian claims have yet to be independently verified, but if they do hold the airfield, its long runway and its location in Kyiv's northwestern suburbs could enable the invading nation to quickly reinforce its siege on the capital with additional troops and supplies. The biggest airplane in the world 221,733 views The Antonov AN-225 is the biggest airplane in the world. Chernobyl nuclear disaster 25 years later (Infographic) The Worlds largest commercial passenger jet is the Airbus 380 (A380), nicknamed the Super Jumbo which can carry a maximum of 853 passengers. Science fact or fiction? The plausibility of 10 sci-fi concepts Even today, the Antonov AN-22 airplane is the worlds largest turboprop-powered aircraft, and it has been around since 1965. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. This airplane can be used to carry almost 500,000 pounds of cargo. 254 (including three test aircraft) 2 The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. This aircraft weighs over 600 tonnes and can still fly It has been used to carry space shuttles and is NATOs most chosen aircraft for large air drop missions.

Photos: Hypersonic jet could fly 10 times the speed of sound The largest airplane in the world is the Antonov An-255 Mriya.

Biggest airplane in the world