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Strategic Airlift Capability – Costing Antonov's An-124-100 – April 2006
Strategic Airlifters: a Comprehensive Comparison between
the Boeing C-17 and the Antonov An-124-100 [Costing]
Herman A. Kurapov, Candidate, Master of Engineering in
Logistics, MIT
[Ed: Questions have been raised elsewhere about how, exactly, Herman Kurapov arrived at the costing of
Antonov An-124-100s used in his comparison between this large strategic airlifter and the smaller Boeing C-17.
Here, Mr. Kurapov gives an historic breakdown of An-124 acquisition with costs over the past five
years.]
Average and Median Historic Antonov An-124 Acquisition/Purchase Costs
In my analysis, an An-124-100 purchase price of $25M per unit is listed. This was a reference to the average
and median historic An-124 acquisition/purchase cost. What follows is a breakdown of all An-124 purchases made
in the last five years.
The total of newly-acquired An124-100s in last five years is eight aircraft. These airframes originated from
either the KiGAZ “Aviant” (Kiev State Aircraft Plant) factory in Ukraine, or from Russia’s
Aviastar-SP in Ulyanovsk (S.E. of Moscow).
1) The three new aircraft purchased from the Ukrainian KiGAZ “Aviant” plant.
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• 2 x An-124-100, Libyan Air Cargo, purchased and delivered in 2001/2002.
Civil registration/construction numbers: 5A-DKL, c/n 19530502761/301 and
5A-DKN, c/n 19530502792/302.
Prices: at the level of US $22-to-$25 Million per aircraft
• 1 x An-124-100, United Arab Emirates, purchased and delivered in 2004
Civil registration/construction number: UR-ZYD [1], c/n 19530502843.
Price: final price of US $38 Million
History: To purchase this aircraft, the government of the UAE essentially outbid Moscow-based
Atlant Soyuz Airlines. The An-124 was being constructed under a US $20M contract for Atlant Soyuz. The UAE
offered more than the contractual price. Aviant cancelled the original contract with Atlant Soyuz
(the formal reason given that Atlant Soyuz had had difficulty meeting the advance payment clause).
2 ) The two new aircraft purchased from the Russian Aviastar-SP plant. [2]
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• 1 x An124-100, Polet Airlines, [3] purchased and delivered in
2004.
Civil registration/contruction number: RA-82080, c/n 9773051462161.
Price: purchased at US $25-to-$30 Million.
• 1 x An-124-100M [4], Volga Dnepr Airlines purchased and delivered 2004.
Civil registration/contruction number: RA-82081, c/n 9773054459151.
Price: purchased at US $30 Million.
Additionally, Polet has acquired four ex-military An-124s from the VTA (Voenno- Transportnaya
Aviatsiya or Russian Military Transport Aviation). Of these, two were refurbished to
civilian standard by Aviastar and have entered Polet service.
• 2 x An124s, Polet Airlines, first transferred from the VTA in 1999.
Civil registration/contruction numbers: RA-82010, c/n 9773053616017 and
RA-82014, c/n 9773054732039/503.
Price: US $12 Million per aircraft (the cost of complete refurbishment).
Polet took on two other ex-military An-124s (RA-82024, c/n 19530502035 and RA- 82026, c/n 19530502127)
now being refurbished. [5] These unfinished ex-military aircraft – out of service due to calendar
resource regulations (not by hours flown, which were close to zero) – were passed to Polet Airlines by
Russian government decree in connection with the planned AirLaunch System Project (an initiative to
parachute-extract civilian rockets from An-124 cargo cabins for launch into orbit).
Plus: Polet put one more An124-100 into service, RA-82068 (formerly RA-82070, previously
operated by Ayaks Airlines and later owned by Centre Capital Group).
• 1 x An124-100, Polet Airlines, delivered December 2004.
Civil registration/contruction number: RA-82068, c/n 9773051359127.
Price: purchased at US $16 Million. [6]
RA-82070 was the infamous An-124 which sat under arrest at Maastricht for more than 3 years. [7]
Initially acquired by AirFoyle Airlines at the Maastricht auction, after a long litigation process, it
passed to Centre Capital Croup – due to alleged violations at the time of the auction. (While
in AirFoyle’s ultimately unsuccessful custody, this aircraft was featured in the
James Bond movie Die Another Day.)
Conclusion
A final expanatory note for the future estimates: it should be noted, after Polet’s two remaining
ex-military An-124s are refurbished and returned to service, there will be no more An124s on the primary
acquisition market. The secondary, used commercial aircraft market offers few chances at An-124s. A better hope
is that of the VTA/Russian government making more unused military An-124s available for commercial service
– a much-discussed and highly viable option which could, potentially, free-up an additional 5-to-10
An-124s for the commercial market.
The final option, of course, would be new-built An124-100M-150s – 10 of which are on order (to
be built both by Aviant and Aviastar-SP). The new-built ’M-150s will be significantly more expensive
– estimates vary from US $50-to-$80 Million. While access to airframes may be tight , the
basic design concept is as sound as ever. Regardless of how the Antonov airlifters are procured,
commonly-accepted estimates of An-124 design-life suggests that they have 40-to-50 years
remaining.
[1] After the late Sheikh Zayed , Emir of Abu Dhabi and President of the UAE.
[2] These were unfinished fuselages, kept in deep conservation by Aviastar from the mid 1990s. Funding
from the airlines allowed the Aviastar factory to complete their construction. The same principle was applied
by KiGAZ “Aviant” in Kiev.
[3] The name, Polet Airlines (or Polyot Rossiskaya Aviakompania), is sometimes given as
‘Polyet’. The
Polet aircraft RA-82080 has an increased payload (close to the capabilities of the fully upgraded ‘Mike’
version, An-124-100M – see below).
[4] The ‘Mike’ version of the An-124-100 is a highly upgraded and modified plane with both an
increased payload – up to 150 tonnes, from the An-124-100’s 120t – and MTOW (maxiumum
takeoff weight) – up to 420t, from the An-124-100’s 392t.
[5] Refurbishment and modifications to RA-82024 and RA-82026 began in earnest at end of 2005. Prior to that,
these two aircraft were stored (engineless) and still in Aeroflot colours at Ulyanovsk. Now one aircraft
is meant to enter service by the end of 2006, the other in 2007. The reason for delay was Polet’s
optimized tempo of introducing one airplane per year into service (two An-124s had been brought into service in
2004 affecting workload, personnel, corporate systems, and cash flow. The AirLaunch Aerospace Corporation conceived
the parachute-extraction plan. A launch vehicle would be pulled from the An-124’s cargo bay by its nose-
mounted parachute. Once vertical, the rocket motor would fire, the drogue-chute jettison, and a 3,000kg payload
would be delivered into orbit (11,000 km altitude).
[6] Acquiring the arrested aircraft and paying off related litigation/legal fees cost the Centre Capital Group
US $11M. A further US $5M was spent for the complete repair and upgrading by Aviastar in Russia, and
Airfoyle in Ukraine and the UK.
[7] Ayaks Airlines had run into financial trouble after their flight 9981 crashed on go-around from
Turin-Caselle in October 1996. The An-124 RA-82069 (owned by Aeroflot) was written off and, therafter, Ayaks
had difficulty in getting insurance.
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