MAKS 2009: Russia to resume production of giant An-124 Ruslan freighter
21 Aug 2009
Zhukovsky, Moscow Region: The Russian defence ministry has announced that it will resume production of one of the world's largest cargo planes, the An-124 Ruslan (NATO: Condor). According to Col Gen Alexander Zelin, the Russian Air Force chief, the aircraft would be used both for commercial domestic flights and for ferrying NATO troops to Iraq.
The announcement comes more than a year after Russia and Ukraine reached a preliminary agreement to resume production of the An-124 in April 2008.
The An-124 was designed by the Kiev-based Antonov Design Bureau in 1982, and was produced in Kiev, Ukraine and Ulyanovsk until 1995.
The Antonov bureau had earlier announced, on 18 August, that talks aimed at resuming production of an upgraded version of the heavy transport An-124-100 Ruslan, the An-124-100M-150 version, were scheduled to be held during the show. Thursday's announcement would be a result of these discussions.
The Antonov bureau also said that services of its aircraft were in great demand around the world. In the first half of 2009, it pointed out, Ruslans of Russian and Ukrainian airlines ferried over 52,500 tonnes of cargo of varying nature around the world.
The plane has a maximum payload of 150 metric tons with a flight range of around 3,000 kilometers (1,864 miles).
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