Huge aircraft from Kiev: Antonov-An-124 lands in Leipzig after years!

Huge aircraft from Kiev: Antonov-An-124 lands in Leipzig after years!

On July 11, 2023, an Antonov An-124 landed unexpectedly at Leipzig Airport, marking a remarkable event in Ukraine's aviation history. This landing was carried out by Antonov Airlines, a leading Ukrainian aviation company, and may represent the first flight of an An-124 since the start of the Russian war of aggression. The An-124, registration UR-82073, was grounded for over two years as Ukrainian airspace was closed to civil aviation during the conflict, apart from military and humanitarian flights, such as [thueringen24.de](https://www.thueringen24.de/umland/article300535333/flughafen-leipzig-antonov-an-124-flug-kiews-krieg-ukraine-flightradar24- Flugzeug.html) reported.

The Antonov's home base, Hostomel Airport in Kiev, was heavily damaged in the early days of the war. The An-124 had previously been stored and maintained at the Antonov Sviatoshyn factory airport. The machine last flew on March 13, 2021 before it was withdrawn to the hangar. The landing in Leipzig was celebrated with an impressive water salute, which underlined the symbolic nature of the moment.

Modernization and challenges

The An-124 was flown after a major modernization that began in 2021. This work was significantly delayed by political tensions between Ukraine and Russia. The modernization included replacing Russian components with Western and Ukrainian components. This measure became necessary as cooperation between the aviation sectors of the two countries was disrupted. According to flightglobal.com, the modernization was successfully completed at the end of June 2023.

The An-124 has already completed over 21,000 flight hours in more than 5,500 cycles since its completion in 1994. The aircraft, which has a height of around 20 meters and a wingspan of 73 meters, can carry up to 120 tonnes of cargo. Before the war, a total of 55 An-124s had been built, of which 26 civilian models are in service, including five stationed at Leipzig Airport - now possibly as many as six.

Importance for Ukraine

The landing of the An-124 in Leipzig symbolizes not only the successful completion of modernization work, but also the efforts of the Ukrainian aviation industry to remain stable despite the difficult conditions of the war. Antonov Airlines specializes in the transport of heavy-duty and special cargo and will operate the An-124 on international routes for Ukraine in the future.

Overall, this incident demonstrates the tireless efforts of the Antonov team, which was able to continue work on the aircraft under these challenging circumstances. According to thueringen24.de, the flight to Leipzig could also indicate that the An-124 will become part of the active fleet again.