List of large aircraft

A size comparison of four of the largest aircraft. Click to enlarge.

This is a list of notably large aircraft.

Fixed-wing

Civilian

Aircraft	First flight	Note
Antonov An-225 Mriya	19881221 !21 December 1988	Generally acknowledged as the largest airplane in the world, the Antonov An-225 is the world's heaviest aircraft ever (max. takeoff weight greater than 640 tons) and the largest aerodyne (in length and wingspan) ever entering operational service.
Airbus A340-600	20010423 !23 April 2001	World's second longest passenger aircraft at 75.36m.
Airbus A380	20050427 !27 April 2005	Largest mass-produced aircraft in the world and the highest-capacity passenger aircraft
Antonov An-124	19820000 !1982	The second largest mass-produced aircraft in the world since the Airbus A380 was produced. Remains the World's largest military aircraft.
Antonov An-22	19650227 !27 February 1965	World's largest turboprop-powered airplane
Boeing 747	19690209 !9 February 1969	Highest-capacity passenger aircraft until surpassed by Airbus A380
Boeing 747-8	20100208 !8 February 2010 (F variant)	World's longest passenger aircraft at 76.3m.
Boeing 747 LCF (Dreamlifter)	20060909 !9 September 2006	747 with enlarged fuselage for 787 parts transport (65,000 cubic feet)
Tupolev Maxsim Gorki	19340519 !19 May 1934	Physically the largest aircraft, and heaviest land-based aircraft of the 1930s era (63 meter/206.7 ft wingspan, 53 tonne MTOW), required eight 900 hp Mikulin V12 engines for flight
Dornier Do X	19290712 !12 July 1929	Largest successful flying boat and heaviest aircraft in the world from 1929 until 1942 when the even heavier Boeing B-29 Superfortress first flew.

Military

Aircraft	First flight	Note
Blohm + Voss BV 238	19440311 !11 March 1944	Largest aircraft in the world 1944 to 1946 when the even heavier Convair B-36 first flew. Very large flying boat.
Boeing B-29 Superfortress	19420921 !21 September 1942	Largest aircraft in the world from 1942 to 1943 when the even heavier Junkers Ju-390 first flew. It was one of the largest bombers used during World War II
Convair B-36 Peacemaker	19460808 !8 August 1946	Largest aircraft in the world 1946 to 1947 when the even heavier Hughes H-4 Hercules first flew. First intercontinental strategic bomber, longest wingspan for a combat aircraft
Convair XC-99	19471123 !23 November 1947	Developed from B-36, largest piston-engined land-based transport aircraft ever built
Kawanishi	19410100 !January 1941	Largest WWII aircraft produced by Japan in any quantity
Linke-Hofmann R.II	19190000 !1919	Largest aircraft ever to fly with only one propeller, used largest airplane propellor ever used.
Lockheed C-5 Galaxy	19680630 !30 June 1968	Largest USAF strategic airlifter and one of the largest military aircraft in the world
Martin JRM Mars	19410000 !1941	Largest flying boat to enter production (7 built)
Messerschmitt Me 323 "Gigant"	19410000 !1941	Biggest land-based cargo airplane during World War II
Myasishchev VM-T	19810000 !1981	Derivative of the M-4 as outsized cargo aircraft
Tupolev Tu-160	19811218 !18 December 1981	Heaviest combat aircraft ever built
Zeppelin Staaken R.VI	19170000 !Circa 1917	Largest aircraft to see regular squadron service in World War I

Experimental/proposed

Aircraft	First flight	Note
Airbus A380-900	2006 development	Announced in 2006 as a derivative of the Airbus A380-800. World's highest-capacity passenger aircraft in history
Beriev Be-2500	1980s proposal	Would be the largest aircraft ever, if built; development started in the 1980s
Boeing Pelican	1990s proposal	Concept only
Boeing 2707 SST	1960s design. A mockup was built but no prototype.	Planned as an answer to the European Concorde Supersonic Transport. At 306 feet (93 m) long it would have been one of the longest airframes ever flown. Problems with the weight of the swing-wing mechanism and air friction heating in Mach 3 flight provoked a drastic redesign, by which time airline interest in SSTs was dropping because of environmental concerns. The U.S. Congress cut government funding and airlines began canceling orders.
McDonnell Douglas MD-12	1990 proposal	Proposed passenger aircraft, Designed to compete with the A380 and the 747, canceled project
Hughes H-4 Hercules "Spruce Goose"	1947, 2 November	Largest aircraft in the world 1947 to 1952 when the even heavier Boeing B-52 Stratofortress first flew. World's largest flying boat, and largest wingspan of any aircraft. Only one was ever built and it performed only one short flight.
Junkers Ju 390	1943, 20 October	Largest aircraft in the world 1943 to 1944 when the even heavier Blohm & Voss BV 238 first flew. Selected and further developed as the Junkers firm's entry for the Amerika Bomber design contract.
Sukhoi KR-860	1990s proposal	KR-860 (Kryl'ya Rossii or Wings of Russia) early named as SKD-717 is super large transport aircraft with weights about 650 tonnes (Antonov An-225 weight is 600 tonnes), payload about 300 tonnes (An-225 payload is 250 tonnes) and 860 to 1000 passengers, a proposed Double decker wide-body Superjumbo jet by Russian aerospace company Sukhoi.
Stratolaunch Carrier Aircraft	2011, 13 December Announcement	a proposed aircraft being developed by Scaled Composites to provide air-launch capability for Stratolaunch Systems

Helicopters and rotary wing aircraft

Aeroflot Mil V-12 at Groningen Airport in May 1971.

Aircraft	First flight	Note
Mil Mi-26	1977, 14 December	Heaviest (56 tonnes), largest and most powerful helicopter in production ever.
Hughes XH-17	1952	Protoype heavy-lift helicopter with the largest rotor (129 ft) flown
V-22 Osprey	1989, 19 March	One of the largest (27 tonnes) VTOL aircraft and the first operational tiltrotor
Mil Mi-10	1960, 15 June	Heavy-lift "skycrane" developed from Mi-6, 114 ft rotor, 43 tonne MTOW
Mil V-12 or Mi-12	1968, 10 July	Largest helicopter ever built; not put into production. 2x 114 ft rotors, 105 tonnes MTOW.
Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion	1981	At 33 tonnes, largest helicopter in service with the US armed forces

Airships

Hindenburg class airship compared to largest fixed wing aircraft.

Aircraft	First flight	Note
HM Airship R100	1929, 16 December	220 m, 146,000 m3
HM Airship R101	1929, 14 October	236 m, 156,000 m3
R102	Planned	Also known as Project H, planned 240,000 m3 airship
USS Akron	1931, 8 August	239 m, 180,000 m3 US Navy airship and largest helium-filled airship.
USS Macon	1933, 23 June	Sister ship to Akron
LZ 129 Hindenburg	1936, March 4,	245 m, 200,000 m3 Largest aircraft ever flown.
LZ130 Graf Zeppelin	1938, 14 September	Sister ship to LZ 129 Hindenburg

See also

• Ekranoplan
• Widebody aircraft