One Ukrainian war casualty: The world’s largest airplane

The day war broke out, one of Ukraine’s most decorated pilots stepped onto the balcony of his three-story home to watch a battle raging at a nearby airport. From where he was standing, the pilot, Oleksandr Halunenko, could see the explosions and feel the shudders. The Russians were invading his country and he was worried about something close to his heart. Mriya. The plane. In a hangar a few miles away rested the world’s largest airplane, so special that only one was ever built. Its name is Mriya, pronounced Mer-EE-ah, which in Ukrainian means The Dream. With its six jet engines, twin tail fins and a wingspan nearly as long as a football field, Mriya hauled gargantuan amounts of cargo across the world, mesmerizing crowds wherever it landed. It was an airplane celebrity, aviation enthusiasts say, and widely beloved. It was also a cherished symbol of Ukraine. Halunenko was Mriya’s first pilot and loved it like a child. He has turned his home into a Mriya shrine — pictures and paintings and models of the aircraft hang in every room.<br/>But that morning, he had a terrible feeling. “I saw so many bombs and so much smoke,” he said. “I knew Mriya could not survive.” The war in Ukraine, not even two months old, has already destroyed so much: thousands of lives, entire families, happiness and security for countless people. But it has also destroyed material things that mean a lot — homes burned to the ground; supermarkets that fed communities smashed by shelling; toys and prized possessions scorched beyond recognition. Story has more.<br/>