Ukraine's Antonov An-225 maker seeks public help rebuilding world's largest plane

As the Russia-Ukraine war intensifies, major damage is being reported from all across the Ukraine. One such heartbreaking news for the aviation buffs came from the Kyiv's Hostomel Airport. During the Russian attack on Ukraine, the world's only Antonov An-225 parked at the airport got damaged. Plane maker Antonov, earlier reluctant to share details of the damage, is now seeking public help to revive the plane. 

Antonov CEO Sergii Bychkov has initiated a fundraising campaign to revive the plane, acknowledging the An-225's destruction. On Antonov's Facebook page, Bychkov asked for non-refundable contributions saying they want to restore the aircraft as "a symbol of world's highest scientific and technical achievements in modern transport aircraft construction." 

"Despite the difficult times, the team of DP Antonov strongly considers it necessary to prevent the complete irreversible loss of the legendary aircraft as one of the symbols of modernity and begin work on the revival of the flagman (sic) of transport aviation, An-225 Mriya. We propose to establish the International Fund for the revival of the transport aircraft An-225," mentioned the FB post.

The Antonov An-225 Mriya is the world's largest civilian plane and the only of its kind in the world. Although Antonov was making another example of the An-225, it's far from being completed yet. The Antonov An-225 has a wingspan of 290 feet, a length of 275 feet, and a height of 59 feet. It's also the world's heaviest plane.

It's not yet confirmed how much money or time will it take for Antonov to rebuild the An-225 or how long it would take.