Antonov An-225 - The World's Largest Aircraft | Full Documentary

the Antonov 225 is the world's largest operational aircraft when the pilot pushes the throttle the entire airplane vibrates the Antonov can transport exceptionally large loads and it has set numerous records over the years the Antonov and its crew have flown to all corners of the globe now they're transporting components for three power plants from Chile to Bolivia each weighing some 150 tons along the way the aircraft will cross over the andes mountains whose peaks tops 6,500 meters it's the biggest mission this aircraft and its crew have ever flown but the cargo aircraft is several decades old so there's always something in need of repair as the best plane must have the best tools will the crews succeed in their mission it's dream for all pilots to be in crew on this plane [Music] the Gus tamil airport in Ukraine is located about a half hour from Kiev it's not a place you'd expect to stumble across a sleeping giant but the airport is home base for Antonov Airlines and for the Antonov 225 nicknamed M RIA or dream in Ukrainian the world's largest aircraft even outclasses the Airbus 380 in size the Antonov is one-of-a-kind indeed only one was ever built and it's breathtaking 84 meters from nose to tail 88 meters from wingtip to wingtip and with a height of 18 meters it's as tall as a six story building the Antonov 225 is more than just a cargo plane it's the biggest super-heavy transporter to fly the skies it features a carrying capacity of 250 tons giving it a maximum takeoff weight of 640 tons to top it off it's also the only aircraft in the world powered by six engines you'd think an aircraft like this would be brimming with high tech but the Antonov was designed decades ago during the Soviet era the cockpit to sports something of a retro Flair [Music] the Antonov was developed with a specific purpose in mind to carry the Soviet Union's bulan Space Shuttle from its landing site back to Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on December 21st 1988 the Antonov 225 took to the skies for the first time during a test flight in 1989 the aircraft set 106 world records relating to weight distance and altitude [Music] mostly politican Eastman after the first flight we were proud of course constructed a slightly proud that our designers built an aircraft like that an official pinky scheme is the first flight was so smooth that afterwards I joked with the chief designer saying though if you keep building such good planes you soon won't need any test pilots anymore Takia so much appear to know your party mr. Chico is potentially at pro youth for the ailing Soviet Union the Antonov 225 was also a source of national pride after the Soviet Union collapsed the burren space program was canceled the mega cargo transporter was mothballed [Music] although a second Antonov was under construction work was halted and the project was abandoned [Music] in 2001 Antonov Airlines returned the an-225 to the skies not as a space shuttle transporter but as a commercial cargo freighter it's called upon when extremely large and heavy loads need to be transported the cargo compartment can handle oversized payloads with ease [Music] the an-225 was based on a smaller forerunner the an-124 this 4 engine aircraft can transport loads of up to 150 tonnes the an-225 is called in for heavier cargo the world's largest aircraft can handle an additional 100 tonnes the an-225 is being called into action again far away from its home base in Ukraine the Antonov Airlines crew have flown to South America this job is the largest ever for the cargo plane it's been tasked with transporting six Benson boilers from Chile to Bolivia the boilers are massive a single one tops 300 tons that's why each boiler is delivered in two sections the transport will require twelve round-trip flights in all on each trip they also have to plan another day for loading and unloading and they have just four weeks to complete the mission this is where the boilers will be used here in the middle of the Bolivian jungles three thermal power plants are being expanded to combined-cycle units it's an enormous undertaking that's intended to boost Bolivia's power generating capacity by 50% the components are being sent from all around the world by freighter [Music] by truck [Music] and by cargo plane [Music] left can golovanov is the Antonov Airlines project manager assigned to this mission a complex project like this takes months of preparation the crew is a well-oiled machine they're on a tight schedule the flights travelled between akika in northern Chile and Chima day in the middle of the Bolivian rainforest in between lie the Andes the flight itself takes only about 90 minutes chimo day is a small simple airport so the cargo has to be loaded and unloaded with timely precision no aircraft are permitted to take off or land after sundown any delays mean the Antonov will have to spend the night departure is at 5:00 in the morning to allow for as many daylight hours on the Bolivian side as possible the day before takeoff the enormous boiler is loaded onto the aircraft [Music] the project crew spent weeks developing a special track system everytime it's needed the crew has to assemble and dismantle the heavy sections of track by hand the enormous nose cone is opened for loading it's six and a half meters in diameter when the system is activated it rises almost silently but then things get noisy an enormous loading ramp is located behind the nose first the nose gear has to be retracted the front of the aircraft kneels down powered by a very loud motor it all happens at the touch of a few buttons and levers similar to the lift ramp of a truck to stabilize the aircraft the crew extend the support struts it all runs like clockwork but lowering the 175 ton aircraft requires intense concentration every step of the process is carefully monitored by the crew especially loadmaster Zed Gay on up chenko just a single moment of inattention could result in damage running into the millions of euros the nose gear is now in a fully retracted position and is suspended slightly in the air the Antonov 225 is now supported only by the struts the loading ramp is unfurled exposing the enormous mouth that will soon swallow the 150 ton payload the crew is working with careful deliberation [Music] more struts are needed so that the ramp will be able to support the weight of the cargo the team put them into position sometimes lying under the ramp as they work loadmaster said gay Oh nope chenko keeps a sharp eye on things each added strut helps stabilize the ramp it's precision work done under time pressure the rent is in place now the team have to assemble the track system the sections are heavy it takes four crew members to lift a single section into position then they're screwed together [Music] a forklift brings more steel sections holding them in place until the struts can be shifted into position [Music] screwing the elements together is precision work if the unit isn't assembled perfectly it could become unstable and that could spell disaster job with equipment is then potentially [Music] the heavy load will be placed on top of these orange skids cable winches will pull the load into the cargo hold the mobile cranes are approaching the crew directs them into position [Music] two mobile cranes will be needed to hoist the boiler onto the tracks a single crane would never be able to master the 150 ton load [Music] counterweights are put into position so that the cranes don't tip over once everything is finally balanced and checked the cranes are ready to go the freight carrier is 40 years old so there's always something in need of repair the team from Antonov Airlines are specialists here too they're usually able to handle small and even moderate sized repairs on their own but for that they need the proper tools project manager left angle oaf Knopf went to a store about 30 kilometres away and brought a new toolkit back with him much to the surprise of his team today there's a problem with the door normally it's pulled shut with an electric wire cable but the wire cable has snapped and the mounting at the door broke there's a replacement for the broken cable but the mounting has to be improvised teamwork is of the essence project manager lifting golovanov also pitches in [Music] two hours later the door is repaired [Music] the electric wire cable is working again in time for takeoff [Music] fix at all [Music] good job the driver now sets the low loader into motion there's not enough room to maneuver in front of the aircraft so the truck circles the Antonov in a big loop to make its approach [Music] the low loader stops right between the two cranes [Music] the crew shackled the crane ropes to the transport container [Music] the cranes begin to hoist the container it's tricky work the crane operators need to make sure that the container stays perfectly level if the load becomes unbalanced they could lose control [Music] once the freight container is safely hoisted the low loader drives off this is precision work the container ends up perfectly positioned above the tracks the 150 ton cargo container is gently lowered into position concentration is of the essence they're on a tight deadline to complete this operation possible because tomorrow with the persuader holding time [Music] the Freak containers secured onto the track system with chains and steel cables the two cranes won't release their grip on the container until it's secured [Music] the crew removed the heavy mounting brackets that the crane ropes were attached to otherwise the container would be too tall to pass through the Antonovs freight hatch the container is attached to steel ropes which are connected to two cable winches centimeter by centimeter they pull the freight into the aircraft [Music] the ropes have to wind evenly two crewmembers balance on boards to make sure the ropes are evenly distributed on the spool other crew members gently lift the steel ropes to make sure they don't catch on to the track they're almost done if this goes smoothly they'll be able to leave on schedule in the morning [Music] while the huge container slowly vanishes into the cargo hold the team outside starts to dismantle the track the boss also pitches in even though he says his job is actually to do nothing left Ken goes off enough isn't a pilot but he knows the an-225 like the back of his hand the Antonov has a flight crew of six the pilot and co-pilot two flight engineers a navigator and a communication specialist the soviet-era technology may be decades old but it's still reliable it's constantly being upgraded to meet the latest standards but much of it is still analog we would like to have under control as much as possible because a plane is unique and much more important to control everything on board and you can and not put computers behind the cockpit there's a lounge area for the flight crew even in the lounge regulations call for seatbelts but there are also ropes along the ceiling just in the case if you need immediate access to the technical department you have to use it the heart of the antonov is inside the wings the technology isn't hidden behind steel panels it needs to be accessible to the flight engineers now we'll fly together inside left ganga Lavrov opens a hatch and enters the wing the operating mechanisms in the wings are controlled from the cockpit and activated mechanically via wire cable winches any parts that wear off are regularly replaced but the load-bearing parts of the fuselage are still original dating back to 1988 left angle off Knopf opens another hatch to access the roof traces of the aircraft's history are visible here during transport The Burren Space Shuttle was attached to these two protrusions you can see on the the stabilizer design is also unusual unlike most aircraft there's no single vertical stabilizer carrying a heavy external load changes the airflow the designers opted for a swept back horizontal stabilizer the an-225 is also the only aircraft in the world equipped with six turbofan engines each one has a rated thrust of some 230 kilonewtons the wings have to withstand enormous forces they boast a total surface area of some nine hundred square meters the size of two basketball courts down in the hold the container holding the boiler is safely on board the crews secure it with heavy chains if the 150 ton container were to shift or slide during flight that could spell disaster the track system has been returned to the aircraft it will make the trip to Bolivia so that the cargo can be unloaded [Music] last but not least the Antonov is fueled to airport crew approach in a service vehicle first the grounding cable is attached the kerosene is stored in underground tanks the opening is marked with a flag the tanker vehicle then pumps fuel into the aircraft the Antonov has a total fuel capacity of 330 tons but only thirty will be needed for the flight from Chile to Bolivia pumping the fuel takes just 15 minutes [Music] the loading ramp is retracted and one of the onboard mechanics closes the enormous nose cone [Music] [Music] the Antonov is loaded time for the crew to get some rest they have an early start the next morning at 4 a.m. the Antonov crew are back at the airport final preparations are underway in the cockpit the flight engineers roused the aircraft from slumber outside on the tarmac a tow truck is moving into position it will push the aircraft out of its parking spot to the runway a tow bar is attached to the two nose gear units it takes a bit of jogging back and forth before it's in position [Music] then the bar is secured with bolts the antonov team brought the tow truck with them from Kiev the ones here at the local airport aren't powerful enough to handle the world's largest aircraft in the cargo hold project manager lifts can galuf Tov attaches a sensor to the container imaginating forces the container looks robust but the boiler inside is equipped with complex technology that's why the forces exerted on it will be documented on this laptop the pilots are here by coincidence chief pilot Damita Antonov shares the name with the aircraft he captains only six Antonov airline pilots are licensed for this aircraft two pilots are always on board so that they can take turns before every flight the pilots conduct a visual inspection of the most important components they use a flashlight to examine the engines wings landing gear undercarriage and tail assembly on an aircraft of this size it takes a bit longer once around the Antonov is a loop of about 250 metres everything looks in top shape [Music] a mechanic does a final check to make sure the 150 ton cargo is securely fastened project manager left Gann golovanov inspects the freight documents they're also in order the takeoff routine is underway in the cockpit copilot victor Goncharov will be at the helm on the flight to Bolivia out on the tarmac the crew removed the wheel chocks and pull the protective covering off the sensors then the 448 horsepower tow truck will haul the behemoth out of its parking spot according to airport regulations the engines can only be powered up once the aircraft is on the runway the tow truck moves the an-225 into position the crew accompanies the aircraft the entire way making sure there's nothing on the tarmac that could damage the tires from their perch in the cockpit the pilots wouldn't be able to see debris on the tarmac especially in the dark [Music] [Music] the Antonov slowly vanishes to the darkness [Music] the pilots startup the six engines each one supplies 230 kilonewtons of thrust it takes four minutes for the engines to fire up now the pilots open the throttle the Antonov 225 and it's valuable 150 tons of cargo lifts off headed for Bolivia [Music] [Music] [Music] it's daybreak in Bolivia the Chi Modi Airport is in the middle of the jungle normally it's only small aircraft that land here [Music] Airport staff are preparing for a special event the arrival of the world's largest aircraft everything is ready the crane to unload the aircraft is in position [Music] the airport firefighting unit is also in place just in case [Music] the giant aircraft makes its approach copilot victor Goncharov maneuvers the Antonov safely above the treetops in the warm humid air the antonov leaves behind thick condensation trails [Music] the landing strip at this remote airport is just 4,000 meters long just long enough to accommodate the Antonov at the end of the strip Viktor Goncharov makes a turn and rolls to the parking area [Music] the Antonov 225 has arrived in the middle of the Bolivian jungle [Music] speed is now of the essence first the crew secured the aircraft with the heavy wheel chocks the Antonov is scheduled to liftoff again in less than eight hours from now if everything goes smoothly it will get dark here by late afternoon and no aircraft are permitted to start or land at this airport outside of daylight hours a mechanic walks around the Antonov visually inspecting for any damage the cockpit crew disembark captain Dmitri Antonov and his team have a few hours off which they'll spend at a nearby hotel [Music] a crew member opens the nose flap and the antonov moves into a kneeling position [Music] the ramp is extended [Music] a forklift unloads the first sections of the track system the crew are working on a tight schedule project manager left angle on/off wants to speed things up he gets behind the wheel of the forklift meanwhile in the cargo bay other crew members are removing the heavy chains from the transport container they are an experienced crew everyone is working at full throttle and full concentration they know they can't afford any mistakes during unloading [Music] after one and a half hours the track system is ready to go [Music] Everage time we have building Ram system after lady least two hours team and web system is two mobile cranes are brought into position [Music] a low loader approaches later it will transport the freight container to the construction site but now it's loaded with the counterweights for the mobile cranes the crew gives the green light for unloading a centimeter at a time the 150 ton container glides down the tracks [Music] in the meantime the cranes carefully extend their booms toward the aircraft [Music] the container is now at the end of the tracks the crane ropes are attached to the freight container soon 150 tons will be suspended on two hooks it's a tricky maneuver liftand golovanov doesn't want to take any chances he gives some final instructions to the crane operator one small mistake could spell serious damage to the aircraft and the freight as project manager he's responsible for safe loading and unloading the container is suspended in midair now left angle of Nerf's part of the mission is done the client will now assume responsibility for the shipment [Music] [Music] like any parcel delivery firm Antonov Airlines gets a signature verifying the handover the client is pleased the antonov crew has delivered the freight safe and sound [Music] [Music] in the meantime the crane hauls the freight onto the low loader the container is now safely on the trailer the curves still have to hurry they start dismantling the track system and returning it to the hold [Music] the Sun will go down in just a few hours nighttime flights from the airport in the middle of the Bolivian jungle are banned project manager left can golovanov again pitches in behind the wheel of the forklift for local people the colossal Antonov 225 is a sensation entire families flocked to the airport to catch a glimpse even a dog makes the trip though they're on a tight schedule the crew always take the time to pose for a few pictures everything safely stowed back on board the ramp is retracted and the nose cone is closed everything seems well on schedule [Music] but left Candela fluff is worried the an-225 is ready for takeoff but the cockpit crew and chief pilot Dimitra Antonov aren't here yet and they can't be reached cell coverage is spotty in the jungle finally they arrived the hotel shuttle was delayed in the meantime a Bolivian drug squad with a sniffer dog have been searching the aircraft everything is checked even the cockpit crews baggage narcotics smuggling is a major problem in South America not even the world's biggest aircraft is exempt from inspection [Music] everything is in order the pilots and the flight engineers are free to board time for final flight preparations in the cockpit all systems are fired up and ready for takeoff left angle often off is the last to board the mechanics take their seats at the rear of the aircraft [Music] the antonov leaves its parking spot and heads to the runway the six engines kick up a huge amount of dust on the way captain de métro Antonov let's the engines warm up their powerful Rumble vibrates the entire aircraft there is no taxiway at this airport the Antonov will have to turn on the runway [Music] the an-225 is cleared for takeoff captain de métro Antonov pushes the throttle for all six engines [Music] [Music] the giant aircraft takes off heading back to Chile [Music] [Music] the crew in the back takes advantage of the short flight to rest they've been working since 3:00 in the morning [Music] by now the Antonov is crossing above the 6500 meter high peaks of the Andes the mountain range extends along the border between bolivia and chile less than 90 minutes after takeoff captain Dmitri Antonov approaches the airport at he Quique on one side of the small airport lies the Pacific Ocean on the other the Atacama Desert [Music] it's basic [Music] it's a routine landing but since some of the soviet-era technology is decades old it always takes a bit of muscle power [Music] the giant aircraft is back where it started that morning project manager left angle of north goes to the cargo hold armed with spray cans the spray is intended to kill any jungle stowaways such as bugs and spiders [Music] now left angle often off may open the door [Music] once again the crew has fulfilled its mission this long time to prepare for the slide but now we are working we can with job with everybody cabbage there will be more flights between Chile and Bolivia the crew will make 12 round trips in all [Music] the Antonov 225 is a masterpiece of engineering it's the world's largest aircraft and it's one-of-a-kind [Music] it can haul up to 225 tons of freight more than any other aircraft loads this large are fairly uncommon so that giant transporter doesn't fly all that many missions but the crew of Antonov Airlines is always filled with fresh pride whenever the EM Rhea the dream takes to the skies [Music] [Music]

Channel: WELT Documentary

Views: 5,646,040

Rating: 4.7544656 out of 5

Keywords: full documentary, full documentaries, hd documentary, hd documentaries, free documentary, welt documentary, welt documentaries, full length documentaries, documentary film, top documentaries, reports, factual film, exceptional engineering documentary, exceptional engineering, antonov, antonov 225, antonov 225 cockpit, antonov 225 documentary, world's largest aircraft, airplane, antonov airlines, antonov an-225

Id: 6sggQqdvqHs

Length: 49min 10sec (2950 seconds)

Published: Sun Feb 09 2020

Reddit Comments

[u/10cmTsunami]

My father has worked a high clearance aircraft sector job for my whole life. He’s not a pilot but has access to all airports and planes for inspections and safety.

About 15 years ago when I was in high school he took me to check out an Antinov that was loading machine parts to fly somewhere. While standing in the loading bay in the rear I noticed that there was a can of Coke but it was in Russian. I really wanted it for my collection of things from around the world. When I asked the nearest Russian guy if I could have a coke, I’ll never forget his response. “No”

I still think about that coke can.

[u/Skoparov]

Man, when they mentioned the consequences of the cargo shifting mid air, I immediately though of this video. Imagine something like that happening with this beast.

[u/cribbageSTARSHIP]

They took a piece of the fence with them when they left an airbase in Canada.

[u/Silvea]

It’s absolutely massive, Is it commercially viable? Kinda? Like it’s probably not very economically viable for most. The amount of cargo it can move at what dollar cost it’s probably fairly low compared to others. Howeverrrr for the loads that planes can’t carry normally if this can? You can charge WAY more than normal because there isn’t really an alternative, then it becomes economically viable.

[u/scurry_]

makes me wonder what makes that type of airplane still useable till this day when converting a380 to a cargo plane is a money loss.

[u/mars0150]

Hey I’ve flown in that plane! It was carrying a 62 Tonne tank inside at the time and took 2 days to get to destination. Had a few social drinks with the Russian crew members during the stop over on board because we couldn’t leave the aircraft. An interesting few days to say the least

[u/sgtsnacks64]

I remember being at Download Festival around 2013(?) and this thing flying over us at 10AM from East Midlands Airport.

[u/JohniBGood]

Used often in defense\military related projects. The combination of size and modularity make it effective for that.

[u/preruntumbler]

Just watched this finally. A bit heavy on the dramatics. The largest load ever ever ever (maybe it was?), had to work fast to get back before nighttime (but they clearly got back with hours of daylight to spare not to mention the 90minute flight), etc. good view inside how it all works tho