World's Biggest Civil Airplanes: The most extraordinary aircraft in the sky are exceptionally large, like the A380 and the Antonov-124, are exceptionally luxurious, like the 787 business jet, or, like the DC-3, they initiated a new era in flying.
The origin of modern aviation technology lies only one hundred years in the past. And yet the first airplanes, built of wood and often with rectangular wings, have little in common with today’s muscle men in the sky. Some of the strongest engines ever have been developed so that more and more passengers and cargo can take off.
The A380 is the biggest and heaviest passenger aircraft in the world. Airbus developed it to outdo its competitor Boeing, in the process setting new standards for aviation: the A380 provides space for a maximum of 853 passengers over two levels. Innovative materials were used for the first time in the construction of this plane.
What the A380 is to passengers, the Antonov An-124 is to cargo. It is the biggest production cargo plane in the world. This giant’s arrival is an event at any airport around the globe. Today it flies mostly civil cargo, but it is actually a relic of the Cold War. Designed for transporting rocket launching ramps.
It was once the biggest passenger aircraft in the world. Today it is a flying observatory. We accompany SOFIA, the world’s biggest research aircraft, on one of it’s nighttime missions.
Flying was once the privilege of the rich. Today those who want to disginguish themselves from the masses charter a business jet. The most exclusive of them all is the Dreamjet, a Boeing 787. It can be had for 700,000 US dollars an hour. A glance inside is usually reserved for a few eyes only.
The DC-3 initated a new era in flying. Thanks to its robust technology and good flight characteristics, it is still being used 70 years after it stopped being produced. For a few remote areas of Colombia’s Amazon basin, it is the connection to the outside world.