On April 23, 2020, the world's largest AN-225 Mriya transport aircraft returned to Airport Kyiv-Antonov-2 with medical equipment to prevent the spread of coronavirus in Ukraine. A cargo weighing 103,880 kg with a total volume of about 1000 cubic meters, aircraft delivered from Tianjin, China.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky participated in the meeting of the legendary Ukrainian aircraft. “We are proud of changing Ukraine's position in the world. We are not asking about something only, we help other countries as well", the President said. He thanked the aircraft's crews for the high-skilled work and other specialists who take part to organize the delivery of such cargoes.
AN-225 joined humanitarian missions on transportation of medical equipment from China to various countries of the world on April 11 this year. Till present, AN-225 performed such missions to Warsaw and Paris. AN-225 become the sixth aircraft of Antonov Airlines, airlift subdivision of ANTONOV COMPANY involved in missions on transportation of vital cargoes against COVID-19. From the end of March till today, five AN-124-100 aircraft transported over 1500 t of cargoes from China to different countries of Europe, America, and the Near East. Some of these flights are operated under the SAILS (Strategic Airlift Interim Solution) in the interest of NATO. On April 24, AN-225 is scheduled to depart from Gostomel to perform missions within the SALIS program.
On April 22, 2020, AN124-100 Ruslan aircraft of Antonov Airlines began a series of transportation of medical supplies to fight the pandemic coronavirus from China to different cities of the United States, including Orlando, Houston, Washington, Los Angeles. It is planned that AN225 Mriya will join these flights in May.
Сrews of Antonov Airlines are provided with all the necessary protective medical kits: masks, gloves and overalls. At the airports the procedure of disinfection of the aircraft is carried out, the medical examination of crew members is carried out. Contacts between crews of the aircraft and airport staff were minimized.
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