LONDON – More details have emerged surrounding the new Antonov AN-225 Mriya that Ukroboronprom promised that they would build.

This new mammoth program looks to have been split up into two sections being:

• Using crowdfunding monies for the destroyed Mriya rebuild.
• The state to fund the new Mriya freighter.

The Destroyed Mriya Rebuild…

The upper half of the Mriya was destroyed in the aftermath of the invasion from Russian paratroopers back in March, which has caused condemnation within the industry.

Antonov placed a crowdfunding campaign across their social media as a result, with the company now confirming that the funds accrued from this fundraiser will be exclusively used for that Mriya.

According to aerotelegraph.com, there will be transparent reporting on how the money is being spent on the program, thus keeping donators in the loop for this incredible rebuild project.

“The destruction of the legendary, unique An-225 by the racists was a heavy blow not only to the Antonov company but to the entire world community”, the company said on Facebook.

The Second Mriya…

When the first Mriya was destroyed, Antonov promised that the second unbuilt Mriya would be completed.

This second frame has been preserved since the decision was made to stop production of the second, amid high costs at the time.

Antonov look like they are heading in the direction of making the second Mriya far more modern than the first one, which is unsurprising.

The first Mriya was using Soviet-era technology which required multiple crew members to operate the aircraft. This includes meeting advanced airworthiness standards moving forward.

On top of this, the original timeline and cost from Ukroboronprom look to be uncertain now.

Initially, the company stated that it would cost around $3bn for the redevelopment program and would take three to five years.

But with Ukraine’s economy in tatters as a result of the conflict, and with Ukroboronprom’s funding decided by the state, it’s becoming more clear that this could take longer.

That’s All We Know For Now…

Whilst it is a tiny update, it’s the most we will probably get from Antonov for a few months yet, especially as the conflict in Ukraine continues.

As soon as the conflict comes to an end, then we will of course no more in terms of what is going on with the project.

There is of course much excitement about the redevelopment of the program, as well as a second Mriya potentially entering the skies in the near future.

We hope that this will come sooner rather than later, as the Mriya was a workhorse in the cargo sector.

This is a developing story.