Antonov An-124 Heavy Transport

The Soviet Union unveiled the giant Antonov An-124 strategic airlifter in 1982. One of the largest aircraft ever built, the four-engine An-124 was designed to carry oversized military and industrial cargo over long distances, giving the Soviet military a heavy-lift capability comparable to, and in some respects exceeding, the American Lockheed C-5 Galaxy.

The An-124 demonstrated its enormous capacity on July 26, 1985, when it took off carrying a payload of 377,473 pounds, setting a record that surpassed the previous mark held by the C-5A by about 53 percent. Its capacious cargo hold, nose and tail loading doors, and rugged landing gear allowed it to swallow tanks, large vehicles, and bulky machinery that few other aircraft could accommodate.

After the Cold War, the An-124 found a thriving second life in the civilian world. Operated by specialized cargo carriers, it became a mainstay of the global outsized-freight market, hauling everything from satellites and locomotives to relief supplies and other aircraft. Its unmatched combination of size and range kept it in demand long after its military origins, making it one of the most recognizable heavy-lift aircraft in the world.