[Its All Over Except ...]

“No independent confirmation”

[Secret Agent Man]

This is also a big economic impact as well.

This plane made a lot of money transporting huge specialized cargo around the world.

[ConservativeMind]

Seems plausible with the missiles attacking military facilities across Ukraine.

[nascarnation]

Some sheet aluminum, couple tons of pop rivets, it’s all good man....

[Dr. Franklin]

For a guy like Putin who wants to bask in the “glory” of the old Soviet Union, this was a strange thing to do. Well, hey, he captured Chernobyl, so he still has something to wax nostalgic about the good ‘ol days.

[know.your.why]

Looks true. If it is there'll be more pics. Caption: Burning hangar at Gostomel airport near Kyiv, where the AN-225 "Dream" plane was:

[Yo-Yo]

$3 Billion Dollars to repair the AN-225? You could build a clean sheet new design fir that amount.

[Steely Tom]

“You won’t see it around no more.”

[algore]

I should say something about Climate Trails or Global warmbibing but instead check out this cool hoovercraft

[SunkenCiv]

https://freerepublic.com/focus/news/4042123/posts?page=105#105

[PLMerite]

A good "before" picture:

[PLMerite]

Terrible thing.

I know I’ve been inside a US C-5 at air shows. I may have been inside an Antonov An-124 years ago. I don’t think I could grasp how absolutely huge the 225 is.

[bray]

Need a credible report like Mad Magazine.

[Organic Panic]

I got to see it up close and personal at ILA in Berlin. It is massive. If it will take a couple billion to make new ones, that is one of the only aircraft projects that would get me back in to old life as a flight control engineer.

[The MAGA-Deplorian]

Still waiting for the “after” picture.

[Hootowl99]

I saw the AN-225 two or three times in about the early or mid-1990s. At the time, I lived in Kingwood, TX and my commute to and from work took me through a shortcut that had me driving close in to IAH airport in Houston.

All the sightings were while the AN-225 was on final landing approach to IAH, wheels and flaps down. That plane is absolutely huge. When I was in high school, our house was in the flight pattern for Tinker AFB and B-52s were going over the house 3 miles from touchdown. The AN-225 made the B-52 look small.

The reason for the several AN-225 sightings is that at the time, the AN-225 made regular runs 1-2 times a month between Houston and Russia. In Houston it loaded up with specialty oil field equipment. I don't know what the import cargo from Russia to the USA was.

The flight route IIRC was Houston, Seattle, Anchorage then Siberia. I don't know the Russia airport destinations.

[Honest Nigerian]

In the race to have THE BIGGEST!! how long until Elon and Bezos get into a contest to see who can have the NEW BIGGEST airplane?

[Paal Gulli]

"Largest" depends on how you're measuring.