The world's largest cargo plane, the Ukrainian-made Antonov An-225 Mriya, was destroyed in a Russian attack on Hostomel Airport near Kyiv, according to Ukrainian state arms manufacturer Ukroboronprom.
"The Russian occupiers destroyed the flagship of Ukrainian aviation – the legendary An-225 Mriya," Ukroboronprom said on its Facebook page.
"It happened at the Antonov airfield in Hostomel near Kyiv," it added.
It also said that the plane restoration would cost more than $3 billion and take a long time.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba confirmed that the plane had been destroyed.
"Russia may have destroyed our Mriya. But they will never destroy our dream of a strong, free and democratic European country," Kuleba tweeted.
Ukrainian media also reported that the plane was destroyed in Russian shelling.
The plane had been parked at the embattled Hostomel airfield northwest of the Ukrainian capital, Radio Svoboda (Radio Liberty) reported on Sunday, citing a former and a current employee of the aircraft manufacturer Antonov.
