The largest plane in the world -- Ukraine's Antonov-225 cargo plane -- was destroyed by Russian strikes outside Kyiv on the fourth day of Moscow's invasion, Ukraine's state-owned Ukroboronprom group said Sunday.
"The biggest plane in the world "Mriya" (The Dream) was destroyed by Russian occupants on an airfield near Kyiv. We will rebuild the plane. We will fulfill our dream of a strong, free, and democratic Ukraine," tweeted Ukraine from their official Twitter handle, mourning the destruction of the aircraft.
Along with the tweet, Ukraine's handle posted a picture of the plane with a caption that read: "They burned the biggest plane but our Mriya will never perish."
Weapons manufacturer Ukroboronprom estimated that restoring the "Mriya" would cost over $3 billion (2.7 billion euros) and could take over five years, news agency AFP reported.
"This was the world's largest aircraft, AN-225 'Mriya'" Ukraine' Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted Sunday.
"Russia may have destroyed our 'Mriya'. But they will never be able to destroy our dream of a strong, free and democratic European state. We shall prevail!", he added.
World's largest aircraft, AN-225 'Mriya'
The aircraft was unique to the world, at 84 meters long (276 feet) it could transport up to 250 tonnes (551,000 pounds) of cargo at a speed of up to 850 kilometres per hour (528 mph). It had been named "Mriya", which means "dream" in Ukrainian.
Initially built as part of the Soviet aeronautical program, the An-225 made its first flight in 1988.
After years of not flying after the fall of the Soviet Union, the only existing copy made a test flight in 2001 in Gostomel, about 20 kilometres from Kyiv.
It has been operated by Ukraine's Antonov Airlines for cargo flights and was in high demand during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
