The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has revealed new information about the criminal activity of the former general director of the state-owned company Antonov , which led to the destruction of the AN-225 Mriya aircraft.
It's Being Learned that Ukraine’s SBU security service said that in January 2022, the National Guard of Ukraine tried to negotiate with the administration of the airfield, but Antonov’s leadership didn’t allow them to enter the premises without documents that would indicate the number of personnel, units, weapons, and deployment plans for air defense systems.
The An-255, also known as Mriya (Dream) , was the world’s largest and most powerful transport aircraft, built by the Kyiv-based Antonov Design Bureau in the late 1980s. The one-of-a-kind aircraft was destroyed by Russian forces on Feb. 27, 2022, during the battle for Hostomel.
On April 5, former general director of the Antonov state-owned enterprise, Serhiy Bychkov, was charged with criminal negligence.
According to the SBU, the An-225 Mriya transport aircraft was supposed to be transported to Leipzig, Germany, but Bychkov hesitated with giving corresponding orders, which led to An-225’s ultimate destruction.
The Security Service of Ukraine established that the officials of the Antonov state enterprise, despite the warnings of the state authorities, did not protect the An-225 "Mriya"
In March this year, the Ukrainian authorities detained the former CEO of the Antonov State Enterprise, his deputy and the head of the aviation security unit ; since according to the investigative materials, on the eve of a large-scale invasion, officials did not allow the servicemen of the National Guard of Ukraine to enter the territory of the Hostómel airport in order to prepare for its defense.
Blame goes to the leadeship for such criminal actions, the SBU claims, led to the temporary seizure of a strategically important airfield, surrounding settlements and the destruction of the AN-225 Mriya aircraft.
The documents of National Guard of Ukraine were handed over to Antonov on Feb. 3, but for a month “the leadership didn’t give permission for various reasons,” and the National Guard was able to get to the airfield only a day before the invasion, which clearly didn’t give enough time to establish adequate defenses. As a result, advancing Russian were able to seize the strategically important airfield and nearby settlements, and destroy An-225 Mriya.
The result of the investigation opened against the defendants revealed more evidence pointing to the responsibility of the defendants in the accident. At the beginning of 2022, the director was to have organized a timely evacuation of the aircraft from Hostómel airfield to Leipzig airport, in Germany.
Sources say , engineers and related technicians are searching for wreckage at Antonov International Airport and are working to remove potentially usable parts.
As per Antonov's design engineer Valeriy Kostyuk , one wing that was left unburnt could be removed and a rebuild attempted. The engine will be replaced with a new model, and the electronics will be modernized.
The aircraft was in a condition to fly and be transported , but it was the director who did not give the evacuation order, preventing its safeguarding. The criminal actions of the official led to the destruction of the Ukrainian transport plane, causing losses to the state in the amount of 8.4 billion UAH (more than 200 million euros).
In addition, the former official failed to ensure the timely extension of the aircraft's insurance contract , causing the state-owned company Antonov to lose more than 42 million UAH (more than one million euros) in insurance payments.
At the moment, the SBU is investigating the procedure jointly with the National Police under the supervision of the Specialized Defense Prosecutor's Office of the General Prosecutor's Office.
However, some good news is - three of the six engines of Mriya have already been recovered, along with flaps, some hydraulics, gears (landing gear), part of the fuel pump, and the tail.
Worth mentioning , AN-225 also shares parts with the Ukrainian cargo plane Antonov An-124 Ruslan. In addition, although it is not exactly the same, it is said that custom-made parts based on the parts of the aircraft are adopted.
For some of the missing parts, it seems that procurement from maintenance parts for Ruslan will be considered.
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