Plane Facts: Biggest
The biggest things in all of aviation, from jumbo jets to very tall pilots.
We care a lot about the size of things in general, and for most people in most situations, the old adage, "Bigger is better," seems to be true. With airplanes, this is only sometimes the case. Because designers strive to keep airframe weight down to allow bigger payloads and smaller, more fuel-efficient engines, the saying gets turned on its head. Still, big is impressive, and in certain cases, as in the creation of jumbo jets and huge turbofans, big is no doubt beautiful. Here, we look at some of the biggest things in all of aviation. Some of them might surprise you.
Tallest height allowable for USAF pilots: 6'7"
Heaviest powered paraglider pilot: 440 pounds
Highest max takeoff weight: Antonov AN-225, 1.3 million pounds
Greatest payload: AN-225, approximately 560,000 pounds
Max takeoff weight, Boeing 787: about 502,000 pounds (no, it won't fit inside the AN-225)
Largest piston engine: Lycoming XR-7755, 36 cylinders, 7,750 cubic inches, dry weight, 6,050 pounds
Weight of Beech Baron B-58, for comparison: 5,400 pounds
Biggest helicopter: Mil Mi-26
Mi-26 max takeoff weight: 123,459 pounds
Max payload Mi-26: Approximately 44,000 pounds
Biggest parachute: NASA's, 150 feet in diameter (half a football field)
Purpose: Return moon booster rockets to earth
Largest gyroplane: Fairey Rotodyne, 40 passengers (never entered production)
Fattest logbook ever: Ed Long, power-line patrol pilot, 65,000 hours
65,000 hours in calendar time: 7.4 years aloft
Fattest woman's logbook: Evelyn Johnson, more than 57,000 hours
Most gargantuan ground effect craft: KM Caspian Sea Monster (1964), 10 28,000-pound thrust turbojet engines
Max "takeoff" weight: 544,000 pounds
Max speed: 311 mph
Assigned to: Soviet Navy
Operated by: Soviet Air Force pilots
World's largest flying boat (still): Hughes H-4 Hercules (Spruce Goose)
H-4 wingspan: 312 feet
Max takeoff weight: 400,000 pounds
Number of flights: One (disputed whether it remained in ground effect or truly flew)
Biggest production flying boat: Martin Mars (longer wingspan than Boeing 747)
Largest current production flying boat: China's AVIC AG600, 118,000-pound max takeoff weight
Largest business jet: Airbus A380 conversion
Biggest wad of cash for private plane: Aforementioned A380, $300 million
Biggest glider ever: Space Shuttle, 230,000-pound max landing weight
Biggest non-orbital glider ever: Chase XCG-20, 70,000-pound max takeoff weight
Fate of XCG-20: Converted into powered C-123 provider transport plane, 307 built
Most passengers ever aboard an aircraft: 1,088 on a Boeing 747
Reason for the massive passenger load: Israel's evacuation of Ethiopian Jews from Addis Ababa
Number of passengers who boarded: 1,086 (two babies were born inflight)
Longest range on production aircraft: Boeing 777-200LR, 17,395 miles
Biggest current aircraft of any kind: Hybrid Air Vehicles Airlander, 302 feet in length
Biggest aircraft of any kind, ever: Two Hindenburg-class airships, 803 feet in length
Biggest model airplane: Andrew Herzfeld's 1/12th-scale Boeing 747
Dimensions: 18.4 feet long with a 17-foot wingspan and 230 pounds
Largest island created for an airport: Kansai International Airport, Japan, 2,639 acres
Want more crazy, fun, or frightening facts about all things aviation? Check out our Plane Facts Archive.
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