The largest plane in the world. The largest passenger and cargo aircraft in the world. Rating of the fastest planes in the world

Airbus A380- This is the largest aircraft in the world. More precisely, a passenger plane.

The height of this giant is 24 meters (~ 8th floor of a residential building), the length and wingspan are almost 80 meters. On 2 decks in a three-class cabin, 525 passengers can freely accommodate, in a single-class configuration - 853!

12 billion euros were spent on the development of the Airbus A380. He can do non-stop flights at a distance of up to 15,400 km, and the maximum take-off weight of the aircraft is amazing - 560 tons.

welcome aboard the biggest passenger plane in the world!

At the beginning of October, another dream related to aviation came true. Lufthansa invited you on a press tour to show off one of its new Airbus aircraft A380. The demonstration flight took place as part of a promotional campaign for the A380 show in European capitals.

It was possible not only to board the regular A380, but also to make a circular journey on a giant plane along the route Frankfurt - Prague - Budapest - Frankfurt, be with the pilots in the cockpit and film the work of the pilots during takeoff, flight and landing.

IN ordinary life these giants will not land at any such airport, so many were waiting for the arrival of the A380 in the capitals of the Czech Republic and Hungary. Looking ahead, I will say that I did not even expect such ceremonial meetings and such a number of spectators.

“Our” A380 had just arrived from Johannesburg and while the cleaning team was putting the cabins in order. At this time, the co-pilot walked with a flashlight and inspected the engine blades:

The sun rose, it was time for us to take off:

First floor of an A380-800 modification aircraft- these are three economy class cabins for 420 passengers. In total, this A380 carries 526 passengers. By the end of the year, Lufthansa will already have 8 of the 18 ordered. The company is investing about five billion euros in aircraft and airport infrastructure, maintenance, and crew training.

Passenger seats Lufthansa's economy class was developed by the famous German company Recaro. To be honest, I didn’t really like them - the backs are a bit thin and any movement of the passenger in front affects the comfort of the person behind.

Excellent design portholes. With their standard external size inside the aircraft, they appear large due to the enlarged internal frame. This large oval creates the impression of open space inside the cabin.

The plane is very “quiet”, the engines are almost inaudible. I was surprised by the short takeoff run - I was watching the takeoff in Budapest, I thought that we would be running along the runway for a long time, but the plane took off almost immediately.

The multimedia center with a 9″ screen is very good. In addition to the standard set with music, films and games, the monitor displays images from three external cameras and complete information about the flight. Distance between seats 79 cm, seat width 52 cm:

During the flight, the aircraft interiors were completely at our disposal - we could walk everywhere, sit, lie down, press buttons, climb into all the holes.

Standard breakfast and lunch sets were demonstrated. Special thanks, of course, to Lufthansa for the metal devices in economy class. It’s high time for Aeroflot to switch to them.

For ease of photographing, I asked the flight attendant to turn on full lighting in the cabins. It didn't get noticeably better, but still:

On the second floor- two business class cabins. They say that the company's management doesn't really like these seats and they will change them. There are 98 of them here - incredible amount for an ordinary passenger airliner. The set of options is standard for a modern business class - almost horizontal folding, individual light, socket and USB port for each:

In business class monitors size 10.6″, distance between seats from 145 to 152 cm, seat width 67 cm:

Between the business class and first class cabins there is a huge vestibule with a kitchen and seats for flight attendants:

A subject of special pride for any serious airline - first class cabin. On the Lufthansa A380 it seats eight passengers. Everything here is done practically, but without frills, such as separate cabins. Eight chairs that transform into beds, each seat has a 17″ monitor. Distance between seats 213 cm, seat width 80 cm:

Lufthansa calls these seats the best in their class:

Each first class passenger has his own wardrobe for clothes and belongings:

First class passengers have two such toilet rooms. There is no shower here; the Germans consider it unnecessary; in their experience, few people use a shower during a flight.

A flight from Frankfurt to Tokyo and back will cost a first class passenger 10,000 euros:

So, we are flying to Prague. They are already ready for the ceremonial welcome of the A380 megaliner:

Lufthansa chief pilot Werner Knorr:

The cockpit equipment resembles that installed in the A330 or A321 - in front of the pilots there is only a keyboard and a joystick on the side:

There are hundreds of people below, along the entire landing route - people are standing on the field, on the hills, on the roofs of houses:

I asked one of the Czech photographers at the airport to send me a couple of shots of our flight. Thank you, Vojtech.

The cost of one A380 is $345 million.

To the right of the entrance to the cabin is the crew rest cabin:

You can get to the second floor by two stairs - in front and behind economy class:

A380 at Budapest Airport:

In the old days, a person could only look into the heavenly expanses and dream of rising to them. Nowadays, thanks to modern technologies that have made it possible to invent airplanes, a seemingly impossible dream has become a reality. Since the invention of the first aircraft model, the human mind has been trying to create more advanced and high-tech models, which is why real air giants appear.

The largest aircraft in Russia and the world is the Airbus A380. Its design provides for the presence of two decks, and the dimensions of the liner are as follows:

The height reaches 24 m.
80 m – wingspan.
73 m is the length of the air giant.

The aircraft can accommodate 555 people, while the charter model can accommodate up to 853 passengers. Without forced landing air transport can cover approximately 15.5 thousand km, while it consumes fuel very economically, 3.5 liters per 100 km. After the creation of the Airbus A380, the Boeing 747 was removed from the podium, which for more than 30 years confidently held its leadership position as the most great view air transport.

Boeing 747

The largest passenger aircraft in Russia, which has held the championship for more than 30 years, is the Boeing 747, the services of which continue to be used by our compatriots. It is this type of air vehicle was the first to cover a huge distance without a change on the London-Sydney route. The airliner spent 20.5 hours in the sky, during which time it was able to cover a distance of 18.5 thousand km.

An-225 "Mriya"

An-225 or Mriya

The largest Russian aircraft, for transporting large loads, was created in the late 80s of the last century by Ukrainian scientists (as part of the USSR). The design of this giant provides for a turbojet six-engine high-wing aircraft, in a two-keel design. The wings of the air giant resemble the outline of an arrow.

When developing the airliner, a program called “Buran” was involved, according to which the Soviet government needed the strongest air transport capable of transporting the heaviest loads. The main cargo for transporting the new powerful aircraft was launch vehicles. They had to be transported from the Soviet cosmodrome to the places where the rockets were being assembled. To do this, engineers needed to create an aerial giant that could easily transport more than 200 tons of cargo. As a result, the An-225 was created.

Characteristics of the cargo giant:

6.6 m – width of air transport;
4.6 m – height of the airliner;
44 m is the length of the vessel.

For those who accompany cargo on board the An-225 there are 88 seats. The crew cabin is designed for 6 crew members. Each control system is equipped with quadruple redundancy.

The height of the aircraft reaches 18.5 meters, that is, equal to the height of a house of five floors.

The size of air transport is so large that for landing it needs a runway whose length will be at least 2500 meters. The chassis of the famous airliner is the largest in the world, the number of wheels is 32. This number of wheels allows it to easily withstand a significant weight of 650 tons, which is exactly how much a loaded aircraft weighs. To make braking more convenient, pilots can switch engines air vehicle into reverse thrust.

To facilitate the loading process, it is possible to press the front part of the vessel to the ground using high-power jacks. This process makes it easy to load the heaviest cargo that needs to be transported on board.

Currently, there is only one analogue of such an airliner in the world. According to the engineers' plans, in the near future, the creation of a similar model. According to some reports, the development of the “twin brother” An-25 is progressing successfully, with approximately 75% of the work already completed.

An-124 "Ruslan"

"Ruslan" or An-124

The largest aircraft, Ruslan, was created a little earlier than the An-225. Air transport was created for the purpose of transporting ballistic and intercontinental missiles. But after the transport was created, the result surprised even the creators. The roomy "Ruslan" began to be used for other purposes, for example, for transporting both combat and landing equipment. The cost of one such aircraft is equal to 300 million dollars.

The air giant first saw the sky at the end of 1982, and was put into operation by the end of 1987.

Airliner characteristics:

69.5 m – its length;
21.5 m – height of the vessel;
73.5 m – span of one wing;
174 tons – weight of unloaded transport;
866 km/h – speed;
The flight lasts 14,500 km.

The design of the airliner is made as a high-wing aircraft, the wings of the aircraft are swept, with a single-fin tail. The aircraft design has 2 decks. The first has a main and interchangeable cabin for crew members, and a cabin for those accompanying the cargo, designed for 21 people. The cargo is transported on the second deck, the volume of which is 1060 cubic meters. m.

To make the loading or loading process easier and more convenient, the aircraft has a special system that helps tilt the cabin in the desired direction. The presence of 24 wheels allows the air giant to land on a dirt road, if necessary.

On the Ruslan, engineers installed 4 turbojet engines, the thrust of each is equal to 23,450 kg/cm. Such power allows you to lift cargo weighing up to 155 tons into the sky.

IN aircraft available:

automatic EDSU system;
automated helm control;
four-channel hydraulic complex;
a reliable system for life support for crew members and power supply.

35 modern computer systems are used to control the air giant. The largest Russian aircraft, the Ruslan, was able to regain the USSR's leading position in the creation of heavy air transport. It set 21 world records in 1985 for transporting heavy loads over long distances.

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It’s one thing when an ordinary plane, even one designed for a couple of hundred passengers, takes off into the air, and quite another when a creation of the human mind tens of meters long, capable of transporting hundreds of tons of cargo over thousands of kilometers, appears in the sky.

IN different time honorary title big plane Different winged cars were worn around the world. For example, in the 1930s, among them was the unique 8-engine propaganda aircraft ANT-20 “Maxim Gorky”. Today there are other leaders in this field, although the records they set many decades ago still hold. Around the World invites you to meet some of these record-breakers.

The very best: AN-225 “Mriya”

This is the aircraft with the world's largest payload capacity (can carry cargo with a total weight of 250 tons) and the largest take-off weight (more than 640 tons), as well as the largest in length and wing span that entered service. First, let’s look at the dimensions: the length of “Mriya” (in Ukrainian “Dream”) is 84 meters, and its wingspan is 88.4 meters. As an example, we point out here that a football field that complies with FIFA recommendations has dimensions of 105x68 meters, and Red Square in Moscow has dimensions of 330x75 meters.

The cargo compartment of the Mriya is a sealed space 43 meters long, 6.4 meters wide and 4.4 meters high (that is, approximately the size of a two-story house); for example, 50 cars can fit into it. The aircraft was invented and built in 1984–1988 at the Kiev Mechanical Plant to transport parts of the Buran spacecraft and launch vehicle from the production site to the launch site, as well as, if necessary, the entire Buran - it was supposed to be placed on the “back” of the “ Mriya."

AN-225 at the Swedish airport Stockholm-Arlanda

However, this giant did not perform its main duties for long: by 1990, all work within the framework of the Energia-Buran program was curtailed, and the AN-225 stood half-disassembled from 1994 to 2001. It was restored by 2001 and has since been regularly used to transport heavy loads, including record-breaking transport operations.

"Mriya" has already made flights with the longest (42.1-meter wind turbine blades) and the heaviest monocargo (a generator weighing 174 tons), as well as with cargo with the largest total weight - 253.8 tons. In total, Mriya has more than 200 world records of this kind. The plane exists in a single copy, it is operated by a Ukrainian airline Antonov Airlines, however, it is possible that in a year or two, with the help of the Kyiv Antonov Design Bureau and the Chinese company AICC a second one will be completed.

Giant flying boat: Hughes H-4 Hercules

In the previous part, we mentioned that the AN-225 Mriya is an aircraft with the largest wingspan among all those that entered service. This reservation is not accidental: in the history of aviation there was an even larger aircraft, but it made only one test flight at an altitude of 21 meters and a length of about 1.5 km. It's about Hughes H-4 Hercules, a giant flying boat built by 1947 by the brilliant (and crazy) American aviator and businessman Howard Hughes.

Created by Hughes, the 8-engine monster, 66.6 meters long with a wingspan of 97.5 meters, was conceived as a means of transporting cargo, military equipment (with a total weight of about 70 tons) and up to 750 soldiers across the Atlantic from the United States to Europe. The project started in 1942 with money from the American government, but its implementation dragged on for five long years. Now the Second World War is over, but the mega-boat still hasn’t taken off.

In the end, this alerted the American government and Congress, under whose pressure Howard Hughes nevertheless made a test flight on November 2, 1947, near the Californian city of San Pedro. First and last flight. Until Hughes' death in 1976, the Hercules was maintained in flying condition, and then passed from hand to hand until it finally ended up in the aviation museum in McMinnville, Oregon, where it remains to this day - you'll be in Oregon , be sure to check it out.

Hughes H-4 Hercules during testing

The most remarkable thing about this plane is not even the largest wingspan of any aircraft ever flown, but the fact that the machine was built from birch, or rather, from birch plywood: the shortage of aluminum during the war had an impact. Despite this, the plane received the nickname "spruce goose" (Spruce Goose)- it has become synonymous with the expression “ White elephant" Let us also add that Hughes H-4 Hercules- also the largest seaplane in the history of aviation.

Largest passenger: Airbus A380

First place in this category Airbus A380 in modification 800. This is generally the largest production airliner in the world: height - 24.1 meters, length - 72.8 meters, wingspan - 79.8 meters, on its two decks it can carry a total of up to 853 people (in a one-class configuration ) over a distance of 15,700 km.

It is on this aircraft that the second and third longest commercial flights are operated today - from Auckland, New Zealand to Dubai (about 17 hours) and from Dallas, Texas, to Sydney, Australia (about 16 hours). During this time, aircraft cover approximately a third of the length of the equator (first place in the length of a commercial flight since February 2017). Qatar Airways from Oakland to Doha by Boeing 777-200LR).

A380 towed to the runway

In the plans Airbus creating larger versions of this airliner - even more spacious A380-900 for 900 passengers (all in economy class), as well as a cargo version A380F, which will be second after Mriya in terms of carrying capacity. And both of them, presumably, will be even greater in length and wingspan. So far, however, not a single such aircraft has been built: there are no required number of orders for them.

Longest passenger: Boeing 747-8

Interestingly, the gigantic size and record capacity Airbus A380- not the longest passenger aircraft in the world. This title is held by the former number one among airliners. Boeing 747 in version 8. Boeing 747-8 is the third generation of the double-deck 747, which made its first flight back in 1969 and entered commercial service about a year later.

This aircraft holds a record for size, weight and capacity among passenger airliners lasted 36 years - just before the appearance Airbus A380. At the same time, some of his records have not yet been broken. Yes, exactly Boeing 747-400 in 1989, made the longest non-stop flight for a commercial airliner, covering a distance of more than 18,000 km from London to Sydney in 20 hours 9 minutes. There was no cargo or passengers on board.

Boeing 747-8I German airline Lufthansa

Boeing 747-8 It is produced in two versions - passenger (747-8I) and cargo (747 -8F). And in the near future, another highly specialized one will probably appear: the US Air Force is eyeing the 747-8 as the future “Air Force One” - for the President of the United States. Now this role is played by the 747-200, which was heavily redesigned in comparison with the production version, and was put into operation in the late 1980s. It is noteworthy that a Russian trace appears here: they are going to convert it into a presidential aircraft. Boeing 747-8I, ordered by a broke Russian company"Transaero" and is now in storage in the Mojave Desert in the USA (thanks to climatic conditions aircraft stored there at a special training ground are practically not subject to corrosion).

The most voluminous: Boeing 747 Dreamlifter

Surprisingly, the giant Mriya was not omnipotent. When companies Boeing it was necessary to establish supply chains for parts for the latest Boeing 787 Dreamliner, its capabilities were not enough to transport parts of the Dreamliner's wings and fuselage from Japan and Europe to a plant in Washington state. Moreover, none of the then existing aircraft (the Soviet AN-124 and Boeing's own 747 -400F) were suitable for the company, and transporting components by sea would have taken too long. Then the engineers Boeing developed (note, not without the participation of the company’s Moscow bureau) a modified version Boeing 747 by calling her Dreamlifter.

Boeing Dreamlifter V International airport Chubu (Japan)

The difference between this one is honestly quite ugly plane(President of the commercial division Boeing Scott Carson even had to jokingly apologize to the creator of the 747, Joe Sutter, “for what [they] did to his plane”) visible to the naked eye: the 747 is noticeably swollen - the diameter of the plane’s body has been significantly increased, and it opens for loading sideways tail section.

As a result, engineers managed to achieve a record volume inside of 1840 cubic meters. notice, that Dreamlifter not unique. Previously, the American Aero Spacelines Super Guppy(parts were and are being transported on it spacecraft) and European Airbus Beluga, which delivers aircraft parts to the Toulouse plant. Both of them, however, have a smaller usable volume.

Potential Champion: Scaled Composites Model 351

May 31, 2017 in the Mojave Desert from a hangar with a crowd of public and journalists Scaled Composites Model 351- double-fuselage, 6-engine aircraft, element of the aerospace air launch system Stratolaunch, designed to lift rockets to a height of 11 kilometers Pegasus XL, from where they will be able to launch into space, spending significantly less fuel and, therefore, having more payload on board.

This launch scheme is not new - for the first time, launching aircraft from other aircraft was invented back in the first half of the last century: in the 1930s, two airships were built in the USA, from which they were supposed to launch not large planes. And after World War II, first in the 1970s in the USA (project Convoy Virtus), and then in the 1990s in our country (project “Molniya-1000”, also known as “Hercules”), projects were developed for launching spacecraft from superplanes. So far, however, none of them, including the one described Startolaunch, didn't take off.

But a much smaller one took off White Knight Two, a similar design twin-fuselage carrier aircraft built by the same Scaled Composites for the air launch of a tourist spaceplane SpaceShipTwo billionaire Richard Branson. In 2010 SpaceShipTwo made its first flight, separating from the carrier in the air White Knight.

SpaceShipTwo(center) and carrier aircraft White Knight Two, analog Scaled Composites Model 351

If the flight Scaled Composites Model 351 will happen someday aircraft will break the record Hughes H-4 Hercules by wingspan of any aircraft ever flown: with a length of 71 meters, the wing length Startolaunch(and technically it has one solid wing connecting both fuselages) is 117 meters.

Photo: Larske / commons.wikimedia.org, commons.wikimedia.org, Monty Rakusen / Getty Images, Kiefer / commons.wikimedia.org, Muroi 8210 / commons.wikimedia.org, Virgin Galactic / Mark Greenberg / commons.wikimedia.org

The largest aircraft in the world is the An-225. They built the plane in Ukraine and use it to transport huge amounts of cargo. The An-225 is also called a military transport aircraft. The height of this aircraft is 24.1 meters, the length is also amazing - 73 meters. The wingspan is 88.4 meters. The weight of the aircraft is 250 thousand kg, and it can take off with a total weight of 600,000 kg. It was built back in 1988. The plane is equipped with six engines. There is only one An-225 in the whole world, which belongs to Antonov Airlines. Construction of the second An-225 is also underway, but it is not completely finished.

The Hughes H-4 Hercules, or as it is also called the NK-1 Goose, is the second largest aircraft. This wooden plane was built back in 1947, the project was developed by Hughes Aircraft, from America. As conceived, the aircraft was designed to transport 750 soldiers, plus their equipment. To this day, the aircraft's wingspan is the largest in the world - 98 meters. The length of the aircraft is 66.45 meters, height - 24 meters, maximum take-off weight is 180,000 kg. The maximum speed of the aircraft is 351 miles per hour, and the distance that the aircraft could cover is 5634 kilometers. About $13 million was allocated for its production. Nowadays, the plane is located in an exhibit museum in the state of Oregon, which is located in the northwestern United States.

The Airbus A380 is a passenger aircraft capable of carrying up to 525 people. It was created by the company "Airbus S.A.S", the height of this aircraft is 24 meters, length - 73 meters, wingspan - 79.75 meters. The maximum flight range without refueling is 15,400 km. The maximum take-off weight is 560,000 kg, and the weight of the aircraft itself is 280,000 kg. This aircraft is currently the largest passenger airliner in the world. It is also the most economical in terms of fuel combustion, for 1 passenger - 3 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers. The entire development of the A380 construction program cost about 12 billion euros.

The An-124 or Ruslan is one of the largest cargo-lifting aircraft in the world. Its main and initial purpose when created was: transportation of intercontinental ballistic missile launchers, transportation of paratroopers, and heavy military equipment. The An-124 was used in military operations in Afghanistan in 1987, a total of 56 aircraft were involved. A film was also made about this plane called “Ruslan, who united the world.” The An-124 is currently in service with the Russian Air Force and is also used for NATO military transport in areas Central Asia, Afghanistan, Persian Gulf. The length of the aircraft is 69.1 meters, the wingspan is 73.3 meters, the height is 21.1 meters, the weight is 173,000 kg.

We continue to look at the largest aircraft in the world. Fifth on the list is an aircraft called the Lockheed C-5 Galaxy. It is one of the American heavy-duty military transport aircraft. Until 1982, it was the largest production cargo aircraft in the world. Capable of carrying up to 270 soldiers on board, 118,300 kg of additional weight. Maximum take-off weight - 348,300 kg, maximum speed - 920 km/h, flight range - 5,600 km, maximum climbed altitude - 10,100 meters.

The Boeing 777-300ER is a large passenger aircraft that can fly a record distance of 21,601 km without refueling. Used for long-haul airlines. It was developed in 1990, had a test flight in 1994, and began operating in 1995. Can accommodate from 305 to 550 passengers. It is also the world's largest twin-engine jet by passenger plane. The engines that are installed on it are also record holders; they are the largest and most powerful in the history of aviation.

The Airbus A340 is a four-engine passenger aircraft developed by Airbus S.A.S. To date, about 389 of these aircraft have been ordered. The development program began back in 1987. The A340 is a new four-engine aircraft designed for intercontinental flights. Previously, all aircraft below the A340 class had two engines, and were forced to remain at a minimum distance from the emergency airfield in case of breakdown. They had to spend more fuel, and it was inconvenient. In 1991, a significant error was noticed, the wing of the A330 and A340 was no different, and this was a problem, since the A330 used only two engines, while the A340 used four. The length of the aircraft is 75.3 meters, height - 17.3 meters, wingspan - 63.5 meters, maximum flight with passengers without refueling is 14,600 km.

At the time of its creation, the Boeing 747 was the largest, heaviest and most spacious passenger aircraft in the world, and it held the record for 37 years until the A380 appeared. The plane has two decks where passengers are seated - upper and lower. The top one is much smaller than the bottom one. The record set by one of the Boeings is a flight from London to Sydney, which is 18,000 kilometers and took 20 hours and 9 minutes from takeoff and landing. Also, the Boeing 747 is one of the most common aircraft in the world. From the inception of the aircraft until September 2010, 1,527 units were ordered. Its length is 70.6 meters, wingspan is 64.4 meters, maximum take-off weight is 412,770 kg, height is 19.4 meters.

It is the ninth largest of all aircraft in the world. Boeing 777-200ER is nothing more than a modification of the Boeing 777. Compared to the Boeing 777, the Boeing 777 200ER class has increased its take-off weight and fuel capacity. Designed for international transport, it holds the record for an emergency flight on one engine - 177 minutes, with 255 passengers on board. The first purchase was made by British Airways in 1997. As of September 2010, 415 of these aircraft were sold.

Lasts the list of the most large aircraft in the world - Airbus A330-300. It was designed to replace the A300 aircraft. This aircraft can carry up to 295 passengers. The maximum flight distance is 10,800 km. The plane can also be used as a cargo carrier; its volume is equal to that of a Boeing 747. The plane has two engines, so it is forced to fly close to emergency airfields, spending a lot of fuel.