An124 'Ruslan'

Developed primarily as a strategic military freighter similar to the Lockheed C5, the first prototype An-124 flew on December 26 1982.

A second prototype made the type's first western public appearance at the Paris Airshow in June 1985, preceding the type's first commercial operations in January 1986.

The name Ruslan is after a folk hero from Russian literature.

See the pages on Charter, example Loads and Technical for further information.