Spectacular loading
March 3, 2014 | Markus Lackner
The heaviest of the total of three parts with which the Antonow 124-100 was loaded weighed more than 60 tons. It seems barely conceivable that the legendary transport aircraft could still take off with such a burden. However, when you consider that this plane has a maximum load capacity of 120 tons, it becomes clear that we are talking about a highlight of aeronautical engineering: a load volume of around 1.014 cubic metres makes the aeroplane the second largest transport aircraft in the world – that corresponds to the loading capacity of a dozen curtain-side semitrailers. The height of around 21 metres and the wingspan of 73.3 metres are also impressive.
Two Terex cranes with a maximum loading capacity of 120 tons were used to load the plane. To this end, the components were lifted onto a ramp and ultimately pulled into the plane using pulleys and secured. The plant sections are destined for a fertiliser production factory in Saudi Arabia.