Rebuilding Russia-damaged An-225 Mriya Aircraft will cost €500M, 30% Parts Resuable

Ukraine’s Antonov is working on rebuilding An-225 Mriya aircraft, world’s largest cargo plane considered a symbol of the country’s aviation capabilities, damaged by Russians in the early days of the Ukraine invasion.

The project to restore the aircraft is expected to cost €500 million. It was parked at Hostomel Airport, northwest of capital Kyiv, on the day of the Russian attack. According to the director of Antonov Airlines, one of the engines was dismantled for repairs and the plane wasn’t able to take off that day, although the appropriate commands were given.

In March, Antonov CEO Sergii Bychkov acknowledged the An-225's destruction while kickstarting a campaign to revive the plane. In a Facebook post, Bychkov asked for non-refundable contributions to rebuild the An-225, saying he wanted to restore the aircraft as "a symbol of world's highest scientific and technical achievements in modern transport aircraft construction."

After inspecting what is left of the An-225, experts have estimated that €500 million will be needed to reconstruct the mega aircraft.

Antonov said in a Twitter post that it is too soon to quote precise amount of money required to rebuild the plane. The exact sum will be made public at a second stage. The company said about 30% of components can be used.

Back in May, Illia Ponomarenko, a defense correspondent for the Kyiv Independent, tweeted a video that clearly showed the degree of destruction and damage suffered by the An-225. The front part of the giant airliner can be seen collapsed to the ground, with its cockpit being almost completely separated from the rest of the plane. While the further part of the fuselage is reduced to a pile of wreckage, the rear part behind the wings is relatively intact.

An earlier statement said that it will cost over $3 billion and about 5 years to restore the plane. “Mriya will definitely be reborn. The restoration is estimated to take over $3 billion and over 5 years. Our task is to ensure that these costs are covered by the Russian Federation, which has caused intentional damage to Ukraine’s aviation and the air cargo sector,” the company said.

German newspaper Bild reported today along with some Ukrainian outlets that Antonov was secretly working on the second An-225. The company said it was inaccurate.