AN-225 in Charlotte - what a Monster!

N5571Q

N5571Q

Pre-Flight
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Charlotte, NC
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Theo
I drove to KCLT today to mail something and saw this beast on the ramp. Hope I can watch it take off.

6f51a3843048721f50e979a6a40b2e69.JPG
 
In 2001 at Fresno, a -225 flew in to drop off six 98,000 lbs turbines for a hydroelectric plant. It took 16 hours to refuel. I finagled a line guy to drive me over to the ramp in the shuttle van.

IIRC, the main gear tires came up to above shoulder height. There are 30 of them. When the plane departed it was still quite a bit undergross yet it required every bit of the 9,000 rwy. In fact, it looked like the mains almost clipped the perimeter fence. Those outboard engines were hanging over the dirt.

Make every effort to watch the takeoff.
 

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I got to see that beast back in 1996 (October if I remeber correct) at Tazar Air Base in Kaposvar, Hungary.

My, non-avaition buddies couldn't figure out why I was freaking out like I had just seen a Rock Star landing on the runway... :rolleyes2:
 
KSCessnaDriver said:
I think he meant there are 30 tires, not 30 produced.
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That makes more sense. But there are not 30 tires by my count either. The AN225 has that really unusual nose gear configuration

The nose wheels of which there are two, each hold two tires. That totals to 32 tires.

Unless I am counting wrong
 
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Why does everyone have to be so literal? It's big, it has a lot of tires, geeeeeez! What color is this place anyway?

I've seen it in Memphis and I can say for sure that it is indeed big and it has a lot of tires. :D
 
Richard said:
In 2001 at Fresno, a -225 flew in to drop off six 98,000 lbs turbines for a hydroelectric plant. It took 16 hours to refuel. I finagled a line guy to drive me over to the ramp in the shuttle van.

IIRC, the main gear tires came up to above shoulder height. There are 30 of them. When the plane departed it was still quite a bit undergross yet it required every bit of the 9,000 rwy. In fact, it looked like the mains almost clipped the perimeter fence. Those outboard engines were hanging over the dirt.

Make every effort to watch the takeoff.
Click to expand...

9000 runway....guess we won't see it at Oshkosh then.
 
It was in Peoria, two autumns ago, to take three large Caterpillar Mining Trucks to Siberia. 10,000 and he used it all, Nonstop to Kamchatka.

I couldn't hear a thing for about five minutes......I remember the aircraft getting smaller but I can't remember the little sliver of light between it and the ground to have gotten any larger as it departed.
 
I was told it is AOG with a hydraulic problem. I guess that is why it is in the back 40 with some honorable but also non-airworthy company.

748b957e3048721f503262d96c6bfa22.JPG
 
I've watched the An-124 swallow a Sikorsky SkyCrane. I thought that was a huge mothertruckin' plane, but that 225 is a beast.

16hrs to refuel? That's just crazy.
 
ScottM said:
You're kinda of short then. ;)
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I did precede my sentence with "IIRC" so if I'm kinda short it would be my memory.

The pics you provided show 7 tires but there are four rows, that would be 28 tires in the math I use. 28 is close enough to 30...sue me.:rolleyes2:


Also, it seems my memory has betrayed me again. It seems the -225 cannot carry six 98,000 lbs turbines. Because I did see 6 massive turbines roll off the plane, I guess they weighed considerably less. Maybe it was 98,000 lbs of fuel.
 
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Richard said:
I did precede my sentence with "IIRC" so if I'm kinda short it would be my memory.

The pics you provided show 7 tires but there are four rows, that would be 28 tires in the math I use. 28 is close enough to 30...sue me.:rolleyes2:


Also, it seems my memory has betrayed me again. It seems the -225 cannot carry six 98,000 lbs turbines. Because I did see 6 massive turbines roll off the plane, I guess they weighed considerably less. Maybe it was 98,000 lbs of fuel.
Click to expand...

No matter how you slice it, that is one big honkin' airplane!
 
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