“The desire to fly is an idea passed down to us by our ancestors, who, in their grueling off-road journeys in prehistoric times, looked with envy at the birds soaring freely through space, at full speed, without any obstacles on the endless road of air,” once Wilbur Wright said.
Could the Wright brothers, back in 1903, imagine what their idea of controlled flight in the air would turn into? Now you won’t surprise anyone with supersonic planes and winged colossuses capable of transporting not only people, but also heavy equipment.
Well, we may not be able to fly like birds, but if we want, we can fly on one of the largest aircraft in the world. Choose which of these giants you like best.
Role: multi-role aircraft.
Developer: KB Tupolev, USSR.
This aircraft, created at the Voronezh Aviation Plant in 1934, became the largest aircraft of its time. Its wingspan reached 63 meters, and its maximum take-off weight was 42,000 kg. The ANT-20 was served by a staff of 5 people, and the aircraft could carry 48 passengers.
When the Little Prince's "father" Antoine de Saint-Exupéry arrived in the USSR, he flew on the ANT-20. But the life of this model was short-lived. In 1935, during a demonstration flight, the aircraft took off together with the I-5 fighter, which was supposed to demonstrate the difference in size for newsreels. While performing aerobatic maneuvers, the I-5 entered the “Nesterov loop”, lost speed and crashed onto the ANT-20 from above. That, in turn, began to fall apart in the sky and fell on the holiday village of Sokol.
As a result of this accident, 49 people died. At the Novodevichy cemetery there is a memorial topped with a huge granite bas-relief of the crashed plane.
Role: transport plane.
Developer: Boeing.
An aircraft unsurpassed in terms of fuselage capacity. The volume of its transport compartment is 1840 cubic meters. It is used strictly to transport parts of the Boeing 787 aircraft, which are designed by third-party suppliers. A total of 4 Dreamlifters were put into operation.
The Boeing 747 LCF is unprepossessing in appearance and has even been compared to the Wienermobile, a bun-shaped car used to promote and advertise Oscar Mayer products in the United States. And Boeing CEO Scott Carson jokingly apologized to Joe Sutter, head of the Boeing 747 development team, for what he did to his plane.
Role: passenger airliner.
Developer: Boeing.
Boeing knows how to develop aircraft that set records. The 747-8 became the longest passenger aircraft in the world. Its length is 76.4 meters.
The Boeing 747-8 is a representative of the new generation of the Boeing 747 series (eighth on our list). It features a longer fuselage, an improved wing and greater economic efficiency.
Role: passenger airliner.
Developer: Boeing.
Once upon a time, when asked what the largest aircraft in the world is in terms of passenger capacity, the designers of the double-deck Boeing 747 proudly answered: “Ours”! Depending on the modification, the aircraft can accommodate up to 624 passengers on board. But then the Airbus A380 appeared and displaced the Boeing 747 from the pedestal of the most spacious aircraft.
If you watched Casino Royale with Daniel Craig as James Bond, you may remember the SkyFleet S570 airliner that terrorists wanted to blow up. This airliner was a Boeing 747-236B, which was built in 1980 and flew until 2002. A worthy end to a career.
One of the largest air disasters in the world is also associated with the Boeing 747. It happened in 1977 on the island of Tenerife. In fog, two Boeing 747s collided with each other on the runway, killing 583 people.
Role: transport plane.
Developer: OKB im. O.K. Antonova.
This winged machine, named Antaeus in honor of the invincible giant from ancient Greek myths, is still the world's largest turboprop aircraft.
Transportation of cargo during the war in Afghanistan and during the liquidation of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, transportation of refugees and military personnel from Eastern Europe and neighboring countries - this is not the complete “track record” of the An-22. And in one of the passenger flights organized during the air bridge between Egypt and the Soviet Union in 1972, Antey set a record, taking almost 700 people on board. This is a real hard worker, reliable and unpretentious in operation.
Role: transport plane.
Developer: OKB im. O.K. Antonova.
The top five largest aircraft in the world is opened by a Soviet design, which, until the advent of the Airbus A380 (number four on the list), was considered the largest commercially produced aircraft.
However, no one has yet taken away the title of “largest military aircraft” from the An-124, as well as the title of the world’s most load-bearing serial transport aircraft.
And although the production of “Ruslan”, as Oleg Konstantinovich Antonov called this aircraft, has now been suspended, the existing fleet of aircraft will be modernized. This was stated by Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov in July 2018.
Role: passenger liner.
Developer: Airbus.
The largest passenger aircraft in the world (of mass-produced ones) and one of the largest aircraft on Earth. When you watch a video of one of the largest aircraft in the world, it’s hard to believe that such a colossus is capable of taking off.
The Airbus A380 is capable of carrying up to 853 passengers in economy class configuration. By comparison, the A380's main competitor, the Boeing 747 passenger airliner, carries only 624 people in full economy class configuration.
It's not just airlines that own the luxurious Airbus A380. By order of the Saudi Prince Al-Walid ibn Talal, a private jet was built, which cost the owner $488 million.
Role: passenger liner.
Developer: Airbus.
It is the largest member of the Airbus A340 family and the third longest aircraft in the world (75.36 meters). Aircraft like the Airbus A340 were produced until November 2011, but could not compete with the Boeing 777. However, they still carry out passenger transportation in various countries around the world.
It is curious that during the entire period of operation (since 1993), only five A340 aircraft were lost. However, not a single passenger or crew member died.
Role: cargo airplane.
Developer: OKB im. O.K. Antonova.
It is the largest transport aircraft ever built. Its maximum take-off weight is 640 tons and its payload capacity is 250 tons.
The An-225 is capable of transporting vehicles, construction and military equipment and other large cargo on its fuselage to different parts of the world. But this giant was intended for a different, much more ambitious purpose. It was created as part of the Buran reusable spacecraft project. It was assumed that the An-225 would transport Buran components and the launch vehicle from the place of creation and assembly to the launch site.
The first flight of the Mriya (dream in Ukrainian) took place in December 1988, carrying a Buran weighing sixty tons. However, after the collapse of the USSR, the “dream” was left without work. It began to be used again (after appropriate modernization) only in 2000, for commercial transportation.
And most recently, in September 2018, the giant aircraft set a new record by making a thirteen-hour non-stop flight from the Ukrainian Gostomel to the American Oakland Airport. He covered a distance of 9800 km.
Role: carrier aircraft.
Developer: Scaled Composites.
This huge plane will not carry regular cargo. Rather, it will serve as another way to deliver objects, namely satellites, into the stratosphere before launching them into space orbit. This type of transport will be more reliable and less expensive than traditional rockets.
Unlike the largest aircraft in the world - the Ukrainian Mriya - the American Stratolaunch does not yet fly. Its first demonstration took place in May 2017. In terms of wingspan - 117.3 meters, it is much superior to the An-225 (88.4 meters, respectively). For now Stratolaunch - the aircraft with the largest wingspan in the world.
However, the American is inferior to its Ukrainian “colleague” in terms of maximum take-off weight (589,670 kg and 640,000 kg, respectively) and length (73 meters for Stratolaunch versus 84 meters for the An-225).
The exact dates for new Stratolaunch tests are still unknown. Engineers hope the aircraft will enter service within the next 10 years.
People are always attracted by some kind of record - record-breaking aircraft always receive great attention
3rd place: Airbus A380
The Airbus A380 is a wide-body, double-deck jet passenger aircraft created by Airbus S.A.S. (formerly Airbus Industrie) is the largest production airliner in the world.
The height of the aircraft is 24.08 meters, length is 72.75 (80.65) meters, wingspan is 79.75 meters. The A380 can fly non-stop over distances of up to 15,400 km. Capacity - 525 passengers in three classes; 853 passengers in single-class configuration. There is also a cargo modification of the A380F with the ability to transport cargo up to 150 tons over a distance of up to 10,370 km.
The development of the Airbus A380 took about 10 years, the cost of the entire program was about 12 billion euros. Airbus says it needs to sell 420 planes to recoup its costs, although some analysts estimate the figure could be much higher.
According to the developers, the most difficult part in creating the A380 was the problem of reducing its weight. It was solved through the widespread use of composite materials both in structural structural elements and in auxiliary units, interiors, etc.
To reduce the weight of the aircraft, advanced technologies and improved aluminum alloys were also used. Thus, the 11-ton center section consists of 40% of its mass from carbon fiber reinforced plastic. The fuselage top and side panels are made from Glare hybrid material. Laser welding of stringers and skin was used on the lower fuselage panels, which significantly reduced the number of fasteners.
Airbus claims that the Airbus A380 burns 17% less fuel per passenger than “the current largest aircraft” (presumably referring to the Boeing 747). The less fuel is burned, the lower the carbon dioxide emissions. For an airplane, CO2 emissions per passenger are only 75 grams per kilometer traveled. This is almost half the carbon dioxide emissions limit set by the European Union for cars produced in 2008.
The first A320 aircraft sold was delivered to the customer on October 15, 2007 after a long acceptance testing phase and entered service on October 25, 2007, making a commercial flight between Singapore and Sydney. Two months later, Singapore Airlines President Chew Chong Seng said the Airbus A380 was performing better than expected and was consuming 20% less fuel per passenger than the company's existing Boeing 747-400s.
The aircraft's upper and lower decks are connected by two staircases at the bow and tail, wide enough to accommodate two passengers shoulder to shoulder. In the 555-passenger configuration, the A380 has 33% more passenger seats than the Boeing 747–400 in its standard three-class configuration, but the cabin has 50% more space and volume, resulting in more space per passenger.
The maximum certified capacity of the aircraft is 853 passengers when configured with a single economy class. The announced configurations have a number of passenger seats from 450 (for Qantas Airways) to 644 (for Emirates Airline, with two comfort classes).
2nd place: Hughes H-4 Hercules
Hughes H-4 Hercules (eng. Hughes H-4 Hercules) is a transport wooden flying boat developed by the American company Hughes Aircraft under the leadership of Howard Hughes. This 136-ton aircraft, originally designated the NK-1 and informally nicknamed the Spruce Goose, was the largest flying boat ever built, and its wingspan remains a record to this day. - 98 meters. It was designed to transport 750 soldiers when fully equipped.
At the beginning of World War II, the US government allocated $13 million to Hughes to build a prototype of a flying ship, but the aircraft was not ready by the end of hostilities, which was explained by a shortage of aluminum, as well as Hughes’ stubbornness in creating a flawless machine.
Specifications
Crew: 3 people
Length: 66.45 m
Wingspan: 97.54 m
Height: 24.08 m
Fuselage height: 9.1 m
Wing area: 1061.88 m?
Maximum take-off weight: 180 tons
Payload weight: up to 59,000 kg
Fuel capacity: 52,996 l
Engines: 8? air cooling Pratt&Whitney R-4360-4A 3000 l. With. (2240 kW) each
Propellers: 8? four-blade Hamilton Standard, diameter 5.23 m
Flight characteristics
Top speed: 351 mph (565.11 km/h)
Cruising speed: 250 mph (407.98 km/h)
Flight range: 5634 km
Service ceiling: 7165 m.
Despite its nickname, the plane is built almost entirely from birch, or more precisely from birch plywood glued to a template.
The Hercules aircraft, piloted by Howard Hughes himself, made its first and only flight on November 2, 1947, when it rose to a height of 21 meters and covered approximately two kilometers in a straight line over Los Angeles Harbor.
After a long period of storage (Hughes maintained the aircraft in operational condition until his death in 1976, spending up to $1 million a year on this), the aircraft was sent to a museum in Long Beach, California.
The plane is visited by about 300,000 tourists annually. The biography of the aircraft's creator, Howard Hughes, and the aircraft's testing are shown in Martin Scorsese's film "The Aviator."
It is currently on display at the Evergreen International Aviation Museum in McMinnville, Oregon, where it was moved in 1993.
1st place: AN-225 What a plane! Of course, he's Russian!
This machine was designed and built in a very short time: the first drawings began to be created in 1985, and in 1988 the transport aircraft was already built. The reason for such a short deadline can be quite easily explained: the fact is that the Mriya was created on the basis of well-developed components and assemblies of the An-124 Ruslan. For example, the fuselage of the Mriya has the same transverse dimensions as the An-124, but is longer; the span and area of the wings have increased. The wing has the same structure as the Ruslan, but additional sections have been added to it. The An-225 now has two additional engines. The aircraft's landing gear is similar to that of the Ruslan, but it has seven instead of five struts. The cargo compartment has been changed quite seriously. Initially, two aircraft were laid down, but only one An-225 was completed. The second copy of the unique aircraft is approximately 70% complete and can be completed at any time, subject to proper funding. To complete its construction, an amount of 100-120 million dollars is needed.
On February 1, 1989, the aircraft was shown to the general public, and in May of the same year, the An-225 made a non-stop flight from Baikonur to Kyiv, carrying a Buran weighing sixty tons on its back. That same month, the An-225 delivered the Buran spacecraft to the Paris Air Show and created a real sensation there. In total, the aircraft holds 240 world records, including the transportation of the heaviest cargo (253 tons), the heaviest monolithic cargo (188 tons) and the longest cargo.
The An-225 Mriya aircraft was originally created for the needs of the Soviet space industry. In those years, the Soviet Union was building Buran, its first reusable spacecraft, an analogue of the American shuttle. To implement this project, a transport system was needed that could be used to transport large loads. It was for these purposes that “Mriya” was conceived. In addition to the components and assemblies of the spacecraft itself, it was necessary to deliver parts of the Energia rocket, which were also colossal in size. All this was delivered from the production site to the final assembly points. The units and components of Energia and Buran were manufactured in the central regions of the USSR, and final assembly took place in Kazakhstan, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. In addition, the An-225 was initially designed so that in the future it could transport the finished Buran spacecraft. The An-225 could also transport large cargo for the needs of the national economy, for example, equipment for the mining, oil and gas industries.
In addition to participating in the Soviet space program, the aircraft was to be used to transport oversized cargo over long distances. The An-225 Mriya will carry out this work today.
The general functions and tasks of the machine can be described as follows:
transportation of general purpose cargo (large, heavy) with a total weight of up to 250 tons;
intracontinental non-stop transportation of cargo weighing 180–200 tons;
intercontinental transportation of goods weighing up to 150 tons;
transportation of heavy bulky cargo on an external sling with a total weight of up to 200 tons;
use of aircraft for air launch of spacecraft.
The unique aircraft was given other, even more ambitious tasks, and they were also related to space. The An-225 Mriya aircraft was supposed to become a kind of flying cosmodrome, a platform from which spaceships and rockets would be launched into orbit. "Mriya", according to the designers, was supposed to be the first stage for the launch of reusable spacecraft of the "Buran" type. Therefore, initially the designers were faced with the task of making an aircraft with a payload capacity of at least 250 tons.
The Soviet shuttle was supposed to launch from the “back” of the plane. This method of launching vehicles into low-Earth orbit has many serious advantages. Firstly, there is no need to build very expensive ground-based launch complexes, and secondly, launching a rocket or ship from an airplane seriously saves fuel and allows you to increase the payload of the spacecraft. In some cases, this may make it possible to completely abandon the first stage of the rocket.
Various air launch options are currently being developed. They are working especially actively in this direction in the United States, and there are also Russian developments.
Alas, with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the “air launch” project with the participation of the An-225 was practically buried. This aircraft was an active participant in the Energia-Buran program. The An-225 carried out fourteen flights with Buran on the top of the fuselage, and hundreds of tons of various cargo were transported as part of this program.
After 1991, funding for the Energia-Buran program ceased, and the An-225 was left without work. Only in 2000 did the modernization of the machine begin for use for commercial purposes. The An-225 Mriya aircraft has unique technical characteristics, enormous payload capacity and can transport large cargo on its fuselage - all this makes the aircraft very popular for commercial transportation.
Since that time, the An-225 has performed many flights and transported hundreds of tons of various cargo. Some transport operations can be safely called unique and have no analogues in the history of aviation. The aircraft took part in humanitarian operations several times. After the devastating tsunami, he delivered power generators to Samoa, transported construction equipment to earthquake-ravaged Haiti, and helped eliminate the consequences of the earthquake in Japan.
In 2009, the An-225 aircraft was modernized and its service life was extended.
The An-225 Mriya aircraft is designed according to the classical design, with high-raised, slightly swept wings. The cabin is located in the front of the aircraft, the cargo hatch is also located in the nose of the vehicle. The aircraft is made according to a two-fin design. This decision is related to the need to transport cargo on the fuselage of the aircraft. The An-225 airframe has very high aerodynamic properties; the lift-to-drag ratio of this aircraft is 19, which is an excellent indicator not only for transport aircraft, but also for passenger aircraft. This, in turn, significantly improved the aircraft's performance and reduced fuel consumption.
Almost the entire internal space of the fuselage is occupied by the cargo compartment. Compared to the An-124, it has become 10% larger (by seven meters). At the same time, the wingspan increased by only 20%, two more engines were added, and the aircraft’s carrying capacity increased by one and a half times. During the construction of the An-225, drawings, components and assemblies of the An-124 were actively used, thanks to which the aircraft was able to be created in such a short time. Here are the main differences between the An-225 and the An-124 “Ruslan”:
New center section;
fuselage length increased;
the single-fin tail was replaced with a double-fin;
lack of a tail cargo hatch;
the number of main landing gear struts has been increased from five to seven;
external cargo fastening and pressurization system;
two additional D-18T engines were installed.
Unlike the Ruslan, the Mriya has only one cargo hatch, which is located in the bow of the aircraft. Like its predecessor, Mriya can change the ground clearance and angle of the fuselage, which is extremely convenient during loading and unloading operations. The chassis has three supports: a front two-post and two main ones, each of which consists of seven posts. Moreover, all racks are independent of each other and are produced separately.
To take off without cargo, the plane needs a runway 2400 meters long, with cargo - 3500 meters.
The An-225 has six D-18T engines suspended under the wings, as well as two auxiliary power units located inside the fuselage.
The cargo compartment is sealed and equipped with all the necessary equipment for loading operations. Inside the fuselage, the An-225 can transport up to sixteen standard aviation containers (each weighing ten tons), fifty passenger cars, or any cargo weighing up to two hundred tons (turbines, especially large cargo vehicles, generators). On top of the fuselage there are special fastenings for transporting large cargo.D
Technical characteristics of An-225 "Mriya"
Wingspan, m 88.4
Length, m 84.0
Height, m 18.2
Weight, kg
Empty 250000
Maximum takeoff 600000
Fuel weight 300000
Engine 6*TRDD D-18T
Specific fuel consumption, kg/kgf·h 0.57-0.63
Cruising speed, km/h 850
Practical range, km 15600
Range, km 4500
Practical ceiling, m 11000
Crew of six people
Payload, kg 250000-450000.
An-225 is a Soviet transport jet aircraft with an ultra-high payload developed by the Design Bureau named after. O.K. Antonov, is the largest aircraft in the world.
Modern man cannot imagine his existence without airplanes. To date, more than two thousand aircraft have been designed, which have their own characteristics and purpose. They differ in size, functionality and support. The difference is amazing. If you compare a small plane designed for one pilot and a passenger airliner, the first will seem like just a speck of dust against the background of the second. Today there is the largest Boeing in the world - the Boeing 747.
The Boeing 747 is the first large passenger aircraft to become popular around the world. Pilots and passengers even come up with various nicknames for it; for almost 40 years, the Boeing 747 has held the record for passenger transportation. To date, there is only one record left behind him - this is the maximum length for an aircraft. The Boeing 747 first saw the light of day in 1969, and its history began from then on. Specialists and designers are still designing and improving this model to this day.
Background to the Boeing 747
In the early 1960s, the world began to actively develop in terms of trade, large, large-scale air transportation was needed. The predecessor of the Boeing 747, the Boeing 707, could no longer cope with the volume of traffic. The flow of people wishing to fly quickly and comfortably increased every day, Boeing designers began to develop an analogue.
Joe Sutter in 1965 was the main developer who explored the consumer market as much as possible. After his research, he was the senior designer in charge of the Boeing 747. In those years, there was no bet on passenger transportation; inventors dreamed of sonic airplanes. Therefore, from the very beginning, the Boeing 747 was a cargo aircraft and only then a cargo-passenger aircraft. The designers designed all the aircraft as cargo planes, and this is precisely what they focused on. They freed up space as much as possible, and even moved the cockpits to accommodate more cargo.
In 1966, Boeing designers first showed a mock-up of a new aircraft labeled 747. In its original form, the aircraft had two decks, but many problems arose with this design. Soon an option was proposed: to make it in the form of a capsule, enlarging the sides. After the final version was presented, an order was received for the production of the Boeing 747 from PanAm in the amount of 25 units.
This company made some changes to the design of the aircraft, thanks to it the length of the wings and the design of the landing gear were changed, and it was also decided to increase the weight to 308,443 kilograms.
Main characteristics
The Boeing 747 has four jet engines, an interesting body and large dimensions. The main advanced characteristics set Boeing apart from other aircraft, and, undoubtedly, today it is the leader in transportation and the most sought-after aircraft in the world. It is worth highlighting some perfections:
- Aerodynamics have been improved.
- New solutions make it possible to reduce inductive resistance.
- The interior design has been changed, a comfortable cabin for the crew and a comfortable cabin for passengers.
One of the noticeable improvements to this aircraft are the wings, which have changed in size and become more functional. After a number of changes, the wings became 6 feet high, the airfoil was slightly turned up and protruded outward. After all the innovations, flight duration has increased and fuel consumption has decreased. Due to these savings, Boeing has reduced fuel consumption by up to 4%. If you calculate the total amount for all time, it turns out to be a huge amount. The Boeing 747 is the fastest passenger aircraft, whose speed can reach 940 km/h.
Specifications
The Boeing 747 is much more spacious than its counterparts due to the modified deck. These innovations make it possible to accommodate 1,075 passengers, with high levels of comfort in both business and economy class. Today, the cockpit has also been completely changed: all instruments have been replaced with new digital elements, due to which the number of pilots has been reduced to two people, and the control of the aircraft has become simplified. All important information was displayed on the LCD screen.
On board the aircraft, for ease of movement, straight staircases were designed rather than spiral ones, which made movement as easy as possible.
The interior of the aircraft has also changed. Now passengers had more free space, which made flights more comfortable. Shelves for luggage and personal items have been increased in volume. In addition, special broadcasting systems for watching films and videos were installed on board the aircraft.
Due to the fact that the upper deck was lengthened, several additional exits were installed on it. The parts of the new Boeing are updated engines from well-known manufacturers, characterized by good quality and endurance. Thanks to this, they received a Boeing with a maximum speed of 940 km/h and a weight of 350 tons.
Boeing 747 technical data:
- The total length of the aircraft is 70.7 meters.
- The height of the aircraft is 19.5 meters.
- The wingspan is 120 meters.
- The width of the cabin for passengers is 6 meters.
- Wing area – 1022 sq.m.
- Speed – 940 km/h.
- Flight range – 12500 km.
- Weight without passengers - 175,000 kg.
- The height inside the aircraft is 13755 m.
Economy class has 580 seats. The aircraft crew included two pilots and one engineer. Due to the popularity of the model, Boeing was invented for cargo transportation and Boeing passenger, but with a shorter flight duration.
The purpose of the Boeing 747
Since the start of Boeing production, carrier companies have been distrustful of the airliner. At the same time, some organizations began to develop smaller aircraft with three engines. Many believed that they would be able to displace the Boeing, because the large dimensions of the Boeing called into question its efficiency on long-haul routes. Also, due to its large dimensions, the infrastructure of some airports could not match the record holder. Of course, passenger transportation companies were concerned about the high fuel consumption that the Boeing required to fly. Some airlines immediately refused to purchase the aircraft, fearing that ticket prices would rise due to high fuel consumption.
Boeing 747 – king in the sky
Companies' concerns about this were justified, because in 1970, during the fuel crisis, fuel prices jumped sharply. Due to this, passenger traffic has been reduced to the maximum extent possible. The Boeing 747 went on flights half empty. Some airlines resorted to a trick: they decided to remove several rows of passenger seats and install bars and musical instruments in these places in the hope of attracting as many passengers as possible in this way. But, as practice has shown, this turned out to be not enough. Many of the airlines converted the planes into cargo planes or resold them to other owners.
In populated countries today, the Boeing 747 is used on short-haul flights or to destinations that are in high demand. Of course, the Boeing 747 is still used for long flights. The national company of Japan had the largest number of Boeings, namely 73 units. At the moment, all equipment has been written off, and the last flight of the Boeing took place in March 2011.
In Russia, the Boeing 747 was operated by the largest private airline, Transaero, which ceased operations in 2015, and by the largest cargo carrier, AirBridgeCargo.
The future is already here
The largest passenger aircraft in the world, Airbus A380 (Airbus A380), has been operating on carrier routes since October 2007. The first operator of the airliner was Singapore, which supplied the A380 to service the Singapore-Sydney line. Soon, the giant Airbus A380 aircraft joined the intercontinental routes of other international airlines and began flying between the largest airports in Europe, Asia, North America and Australia. The largest customers of the aircraft are, and.
Extraordinary comfort
The brainchild of the European aircraft manufacturer Airbus, the Airbus A380 aircraft is capable of transporting 555 passengers over a distance of 15,000 km in a standard three-class layout (first, business, economy) and up to 700 people in a single-class (economy class only). The aircraft's double-deck passenger cabin provides the highest level of in-flight comfort, featuring first-class sleeping cabins, business class chair-beds and tech-packed economy class seats. The huge dimensions of the aircraft allow them to accommodate special walking seating areas, bar counters and spiral staircases.
Huge size
The Airbus A380 is the largest passenger aircraft in the world in terms of both size and weight. The length of the aircraft is 73 meters, height - 24 m, wingspan - 80 m. The wing area of the Airbus A380 is 845 sq.m, take-off weight - 560 tons. The giant is lifted into the air by four powerful Rolls-Royce Trent 970 engines with a diameter of 3 meters (the American Engine Alliance GP7200 will also be installed on subsequent aircraft).
Photos The airline's first Airbus A380 aircraft belongs to the famous aviation photographer Andrew Hunt.
Photo of the world's largest passenger aircraft Airbus A380
The first production aircraft Airbus A380 in the livery of the Airbus aircraft manufacturer
An Airbus A380 made its first scheduled flight from Singapore to Sydney on October 25, 2007.
The first production aircraft Airbus A380 operates on the airline's routes
Airbus A380 first class cabin
Economy class cabin of the Airbus A380
Innovative cockpit of the Airbus A380
Since man was able to invent the airplane and take to the air, this industry has developed incredibly quickly. Now the largest passenger Boeing can accommodate almost a thousand people, which seemed simply impossible just a few decades ago.
Dimensions and capacity of the largest passenger Boeing
The largest passenger Boeing is the Boeing 747. This aircraft has held its honorary title for several decades. The American aircraft began to operate in 1970, and since then it has been considered the largest and largest aircraft for transporting passengers.
The Boeing 747 lost its honorary title only in 2005, when the Airbus A380 aircraft was put into operation.
The capacity of the largest Boeing aircraft is about seven hundred people, depending on the modification of the aircraft. Due to the enormous popularity of this aircraft, Boeing hastened to release as many models as possible, distributing them throughout the world. In total, about 1,500 of these giants were produced, each of which was in operation for several years.
Despite its enormous size, the Boeing 747 is an example of the highest quality aircraft and complete thoughtful design. The length of the aircraft itself was initially 70.6 meters, and the wingspan was 59.6 meters. Now the length of the aircraft has increased to 76 meters. Such a giant could reach speeds of up to 955 kilometers per hour, which in 1970 seemed unthinkable.
Because Boeing is constantly modifying its most famous model, the maximum speed of the modern Boeing 747 is 988 kilometers per hour.
Other large passenger aircraft of the world
Currently, the largest passenger aircraft is the Airbus A380. The aircraft received its honorary status only in 2005, displacing the previous leader, the Boeing 747.
The Airobus A380 has a capacity of 852 passengers, which seems like an incredible number. The passengers themselves are located on two decks in the highest class salons. Great Britain, Italy and France took part in the production of this aircraft. Another large aircraft from Airbus is the A340-600. This airliner can accommodate a little less than 700 passengers, but is capable of flying more than 14 thousand kilometers without additional refueling.
Boeing is also proud of the 777-300 ER. This model can accommodate up to 550 passengers. At the same time, the aircraft is an absolute record holder in terms of flight duration without additional refueling. The plane can fly 21 thousand kilometers non-stop, which is unattainable for any other air transport model.
The impressive dimensions of the largest aircraft in the world speak only of the ambition of modern aircraft designers. Most likely, humanity will not stop there, and many more huge Boeings will appear in the world, striking not only with the quality of their equipment, but also with their incredible, hitherto incomprehensible dimensions.
