I'm sure the project's big enough for a Joint Venture...
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I'm sure the project's big enough for a Joint Venture...Maybe Pioneer Aero, as Avspecs has their hands full with Mosquito projects, which we must not interrupt...
Oh I'm sure that Ukraine itself will be their number one priority without exception, but just the people hearing that Mirya will be back one day gives a sense of hope.I'd think that money would be put to better use rebuilding the homes and workplaces of Ukrainians.
Aircraft manufacturing facilities are workplaces, and how many would it employ?I'd think that money would be put to better use rebuilding the homes and workplaces of Ukrainians.
Aircraft manufacturing facilities are workplaces, and how many would it employ?
Yes, there are some missions that only the AN225 can fly - no argument there. But, are there enough to justify the cost of the rebuild?Well, there were some missions that only the An-225 could perform, even though it original purpose of hauling the Soviet Shuttle components is not longer required. Lockheed Skunk Works determined it was the only aircraft that could haul the X-33, and since they could not ensure that they could get the aircraft they came up with a ridiculous scheme of hauling the X-33 across country by roads. My recommendation to fly it from the Cape and transport it by water was ignored since the NASA program office specified that it launch from Edwards. Admittedly, any more no one is even talking about building something as stupid in concept as the Space Shuttle or its proposed single stage to orbit replacement derived from the X-33.
The AN-124 is far more limited than the An-225, but there are still some cargo missions that they can perform better than anything else. Back in the early 90's the USAF needed to haul replacement equipment and a temporary station to the satellite network ground station in the Seychelles Islands. The contractor responsible for the upgrade found it would take two C-141 flights as well as a C-5 flight and instead chose to hire an AN-124. There are some C-5's modified by the removal of the rear upper passenger area to take outsize cargo but they are not available to haul all outsize commercial cargos. The AN-124's are used to haul spacecraft for launch on space boosters.
The AN-124's are used to haul spacecraft for launch on space boosters.
Why didn't they simply take it out of country for storage elsewhere? The border buildup by Russia took months, plenty of time to see the writing on the wall.They're big fxxers, I remember getting a look around inside one once.
View attachment 670783Antonov Design Bureau
I'm referring to the airworthy one that got obliterated in the hangar.That won't exactly fit in the back of a pickup truck. I can't imagine how you would move it unless it was at a seaport and you had an aircraft carrier handy.
I believe President Zelenskyy didn't accept that Russia was going to invade until it did.Why didn't they simply take it out of country for storage elsewhere? The border buildup by Russia took months, plenty of time to see the writing on the wall.
I think initially no one thought Putin would follow through. With that said, moving an aircraft like that requires resources, especially $$$. If the owner/ operators don't have the resources to move the aircraft, well it becomes a target, as it did sadly.Why didn't they simply take it out of country for storage elsewhere? The border buildup by Russia took months, plenty of time to see the writing on the wall.
It's impossible to talk about the repair or restoration of this aircraft -- we can only talk about the construction of another Mriya, using individual components that can be salvaged from the wreckage and combining them with those that were, back in the 1980s, intended for the construction of a second aircraft.
A wee bit more info on this, the second frame is believed to be at Sviatoshyn, not Hostomel, and reports state that it is okay.
Ukraine: Russia shells Antonov factory housing second and never-completed An-225
In a new wave of Russian attacks on the outskirts of Kyiv, the Antonov factory was hit by artillery, causing massive damage and at least two dead and seven wounwww.aviacionline.com
Nevertheless, the following:
"Investigations into rebuilding the An-225 are being undertaken, including the possibilities of cannibalising the second, incomplete An-225, or salvaging the remnants of the first plane to finish the second. However, there are several obstacles to rebuilding. Many of the aircraft's Soviet-made components were from the 1980s and are no longer made. Engineers quote a price of US$350–500 million, although there is uncertainty regarding whether or not it would be commercially viable and worth the cost.[79] However, Andrii Sovenko, a former An-225 pilot and aviation author, said:[79]
From here:
Maybe a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed, both have experience with large transports (C-17 & C-5).Boeing should take the project on.
Maybe a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed, both have experience with large transports (C-17 & C-5).
I can;t think of a surer way to dispose of the assets. Those kinds of things always go so well.....Maybe a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed