The world's largest plane has been destroyed during fighting in Ukraine.
After days of speculation that the Antonov An-225 Mriya had been damaged in fighting at an airport near Kyiv, footage has now appeared online showing the wreck of the aircraft.
The Antonov An-225 Mriya was based at Hostomel airport about an hour's drive from the Ukranian capital.
The engineering marvel - the only one of its kind in the world - was stranded at the airbase when the fighting began, and was parked in a hanger when the airport came under attack on the first day of the war.
READ MORE: Reports world's largest plane destroyed at Hostomel airport
A report from the airport which surfaced this morning shows the wreckage of the aircraft clearly visible in the background - and follows similar footage which surfaced yesterday showing it on fire.
⚡️An-225 Nakliye Uçağının yakın plan görüntüleri: pic.twitter.com/V3gG8fJbZr
— SavunmaSanayiST.com (@SavunmaSanayiST) March 4, 2022
The plane's distinctive white, blue and yellow cockpit is seen in the foreground surrounded by burned and wrecked fusilage.
The An-225 during a visit to the UK
Fighting for the airport reportedly continues, with the reporter frequently ducking as the sound of explosions or gunfire is heard nearby.
The airport was struck by missiles prior to the attack and has reportedly been shelled by Ukrainian forces in the days since.
This is #gostomel right now. Where my aunt is. The situation is dire. You can see the destroyed “Mriya” airplane in the background. It used to be one the biggest aircrafts in Ukraine.
— Rita Armstrong🇺🇦 (@saint_rebel) March 3, 2022
.#ukraine #UkraineRussiaWar #UkraineRussianWar #StandWithUkraine️ pic.twitter.com/bJMRe1RqxV
The six-engine Anotov An-225 weighed 314 tonnes and has a wingspan of 88 meters.
READ MORE: New footage appears to show wreckage of world's largest plane
The aircraft was used to transfer the Soviet Buran spacecraft and has been invaluable in tranporting large amounts of humanitarian aid around the world at short notice during emergencies.
On 11 June 2010, the An-225 carried the world's longest piece of air cargo, two 42.1 m (138 ft) test wind turbine blades from Tianjin, China, to Skrydstrup, Denmark.
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