Some 20,000 Australians came out to
watch the world’s biggest jet, the Antonov AN-225 Mriya, land in Perth.
The thousands of excited onlookers
couldn’t help but cheer in amazement as the Soviet-designed cargo plane fought
crosswinds while preparing to touch down on Sunday morning.
The
Ukrainian Antonov An-225, also the heaviest plane in the world, measures over
275 ft (84 meters) from nose to tail and 290 ft (88 meters) from wing tip to
wing tip. It can carry twice as much as the Boeing 747 freighter.
"It's
the equivalent of a five-story plane flying through the air,"
aviation fanatic Henton Harmadi told the West Australian.
The
plane’s top speed is 528 miles per hour (850km/h) and it’s so big it can
comfortably accommodate a space shuttle on its roof. Actually, it's
what it was supposed to do according to early projects: serve as a mid-air
space launch pad to save on rocket fuel and logistics. The plans never came to
fruition, though.
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