Antonov An 990 ❲TRUSTED ✔❳

An American startup, Radia, is building the Windrunner — a cargo aircraft designed to carry 72+ tonnes of wind turbine blades. While smaller than an An-225, its wingspan (80 meters) rivals the Mriya. This is the closest real aircraft to the mythical An-990 in terms of "oversized logistics."

The Antonov An-990 is a beautiful lie—a testament to our collective desire to see humanity push the boundaries of flight. It represents the "what if" of Soviet engineering: What if the USSR had not collapsed? What if the Buran space program had continued? What if weight and drag were merely suggestions?

The reality is that Antonov built exactly one An-225, the greatest aircraft to ever fly. It did so not with ten engines, but with six. It did so not with a 130-meter wingspan, but with 88.4 meters of pure Ukrainian titanium genius.

For now, the An-990 remains a phantom on Wikipedia edit histories and a dream in flight simulator mods. The next time you see a clickbait article claiming "Russia revives the An-990 Super-Cossack," remember: The biggest bird that ever roared is gone. And no ghost in the numbering system can replace it.

Rest in peace, Mriya (An-225). And rest in peace, the fictional An-990—born of keyword algorithms, not of Antonov.

Further Reading:

Correction Note: Some sources confuse the "An-990" with the An-70-900 proposal (a stretched military transport with 8 propfans). That project was real but never left the CAD stage. However, the "An-70-900" is frequently misread as "An-990" in poor photocopies of Russian industry magazines from 1998. This is likely the true origin of the myth.

Antonov An-990 , often nicknamed the "Juggernaut" "Graphene,"

is a fictional ultra-heavy transport aircraft created for the

flight simulation community. It is not a real-world production aircraft from the Antonov Company

but rather a digital creation designed to push the boundaries of what is possible in a flight simulator. Key Specifications & Capabilities

Developed by the user "hangglider," the An-990 is celebrated as one of the largest aircraft ever modeled for Massive Scale : It features a wingspan of (265.2 meters), which is roughly three times that of the Antonov An-225 Mriya : At a maximum takeoff weight of 6,000 tonnes

(13.2 million lbs), it is approximately 120 times heavier than a standard Boeing 737-100 Powerplant antonov an 990

: It is powered by six custom GE-990-480 turbofan engines, each producing roughly 480,000 lbf of thrust. Water Operations

: Despite its size, all versions are capable of taking off and landing on water. Variants of the "Juggernaut" Series

The aircraft is typically available in four specialized versions designed for different simulation missions: Air-Launcher : Designed to carry and launch other aircraft, such as a Boeing 747-400 , while in flight. Buran-Launcher : Equipped to launch the Buran Space Shuttle like a missile. Fire-Retardant Bomber : A firefighting variant capable of carrying 600,000 gallons of retardant to combat massive wildfires. Water Bomber

: Features a "water-scooping" facility to refill its tanks during low-level flight over water bodies. Flight Simulation Visuals

The following images showcase the colossal scale of the An-990 within flight simulators, often compared against other famous aircraft for size reference.

The Antonov An-990 is not a real-world aircraft; it is a fictional, colossal "super-plane" created as a mod for the flight simulator

Designed by a community creator often known as "hangglider," it is depicted as a "Graphene" air tanker and "Buran-Launcher" with physics-defying specifications intended to push the limits of the simulation. X-Plane.Org Forum Fictional Specifications & Features

In the simulation, the An-990 is presented as the largest aircraft ever "built," dwarfing the real-world Antonov An-225 Mriya

6,000 tonnes (13.2 million lbs), which is roughly 120 times the weight of a Boeing 737-100.

870 feet (265.2 meters)—roughly three times the wingspan of the real An-225.

Primarily a "Juggernaut" water bomber designed to fight massive wildfires, capable of carrying 600,000 gallons of fire retardant. Capabilities:

It features a "BURAN-Launcher" version to launch the Buran space shuttle as a missile and includes water-scooping features for firefighting. X-Plane.Org Forum Flight Simulation Context The An-990 is a popular custom design in the X-Plane forum An American startup, Radia, is building the Windrunner

for users who enjoy flying experimental or "impossible" aircraft. X-Plane.Org Forum Performance:

Despite its size, it is designed to operate out of regular 10,000-foot runways like KBFI (Boeing Field), though it requires massive side clearances of 500 feet. VR Support: Recent versions of the mod include FMOD sound and VR compatibility download links for this mod, or would you like to know more about the real-world Antonov aircraft it was inspired by?

The Antonov An-990 is a legendary, massive aircraft that holds the title of the largest plane ever created within flight simulation history. While the real-world Antonov company is famous for engineering colossal real-world cargo lifters like the Antonov An-225 Mriya and the Antonov An-124 Ruslan, the An-990 "Juggernaut" is a strictly fictional, community-created behemoth designed for the X-Plane flight simulator platform. ✈️ What is the Antonov An-990?

The Antonov An-990 is a freeware mod created by a flight simulation developer known as hangglider on the X-Plane.org Forums. It was built to test the extreme boundaries of physics, weight, and scale within a flight simulator.

The developer envisioned this fictional aircraft as a futuristic, graphene-constructed monster designed primarily for extreme aerial firefighting and heavy payload drops across global wildfire sites. 📊 Mind-Boggling Specifications

The digital physics and scale of the Antonov An-990 dwarf any aircraft that has ever actually flown in the real world. To comprehend just how large this simulation aircraft is, it helps to look at the raw numbers provided on its X-Plane.org download page:

Maximum Takeoff Weight (MTOW): 6,000 tonnes (13.2 million lbs), which is roughly 120 times heavier than a classic Boeing 737-100.

Wingspan: 870 feet (265.2 meters). This is three times the wingspan of the real-world Antonov An-225 Mriya.

Powerplants: Six custom GE-990-480 turbofan engines, each generating a massive 480,000 pounds of thrust.

Onboard Capacity: Can carry up to 600,000 gallons of water or fire retardant. 🛠️ The Four Variants of the An-990

The creator of the mod developed four distinct variations of the An-990 "Juggernaut" to give flight simulator pilots different heavy-lift challenges:

The "Air-Launcher": Designed to carry an entire Boeing 747-400 on its back, launch it mid-flight, and follow it. Further Reading:

The "Buran-Launcher": Pays homage to real Antonov history by carrying a Soviet Buran Space Shuttle and launching it like a massive missile.

The "Fire-Retardant Bomber": Outfitted with massive retardant tanks to combat simulated forest fires.

The "Water Bomber": Features functional water-scooping physics allowing the pilot to refill the massive 600,000-gallon tank by skimming across a body of water. 🕹️ Flying the Beast in X-Plane

Because the plane pushes simulator engines to their absolute limit, flying the An-990 is an exercise in extreme patience and planning. Creators and simulator pilots frequently post massive takeoff and landing videos of the aircraft on platforms like YouTube.

Navigating the plane requires several unique considerations:

Runway Clearances: Pilots must find massive runways with over 500 feet of side clearance to account for the immense wingspan.

Cockpit Height: The flight deck sits so high off the ground that pilots frequently misjudge their altitude and land short of the runway.

Hardware Demand: The sheer physical size and complex model of the plane are known to cause extreme frame rate (FPS) drops on average computers.

While you will never see this aircraft gracing the skies at a real-world airshow, the Antonov An-990 stands as a fascinating testament to the creativity of the flight simulation community.

Let us answer the burning question immediately: No operational, mass-produced, or even fully designed prototype of the Antonov An-990 exists.

The Antonov designation system is logical but often secretive. Design numbers generally follow a chronological order of projects, whether they fly or not. The An-70 (medium transport) flew in the 1990s. The An-74 (polar transport) flew in the 1980s. The An-132 (light transport) emerged in the 2010s.

The "900" series, however, is a gray zone. The highest confirmed Antonov number for a production aircraft is the An-225 (originally designated An-224 for the Soviet space program, later revised to An-225). After the collapse of the USSR, Antonov explored numbers for conceptual projects: The An-318 (a regional jet), the An-325 (an air-launch system), and the An-700 (a helicopter concept).

So, where does "990" come from? It appears to be a typographical legend born from three sources:

Verdict: The Antonov An-990 is a ghost designation. It exists in the digital ether of forums, clickbait articles, and simulator hangars, but never on the official blueprints of the Antonov Serial Production Plant (ANPK).