No hope of restoration for destroyed Mriya plane in Ukraine
The pilot of the Mriya cargo plane, the heaviest aircraft in the world, on Saturday (April 2) said there was no hope for its restoration after it was destroyed by a Russian attack on Hostomel Airport.
Russian forces withdrew from the airport near the capital, which has been subject to fighting since the first day of the conflict, Britain's Ministry of Defence said in a regular bulletin on Saturday.
Returning to assess the damage at the airport, pilot Dmytro Antonov walked past the wreckages of several planes before reaching what remained of the Antonov-225 Mriya - which in Ukrainian means "dream".
"The sadness is so indescribable. I just realised that exactly two months ago I went on my last business trip. I flew on Mriya," he said.
Ukrainian state arms manufacturer Ukroboronprom reported in February that the Mriya, which can carry up to 250 tonnes, had been set ablaze in a Russian attack and that restoring it would cost more than $3 billion.