Ukrainian Planemaker Shuts Down, To Be 'Liquidated' By Government

The Ministry of Economic Development and Trade in Ukraine has announced that the Antonov Aviation Concern (AAC) will be shut down following the transfer last year of its three subsidiaries to the state-owned UkrOboronProm.

The transfers left AAC as a company without a product, and shutting it down was the next logical step.

Antonov was the builder of the world's two largest transport aircraft; the An-225 Mriya, of which only one was built, and the An-124 Ruslan. The An-225 was still flying for Antonov Airlines when the transfer to UkrOboronProm occurred, and likely went with the company with the rest of its assets, according to a report from The Motley Fool.

The last new Ruslan was built in 1995, according to the report.

The demise of Antonov leaves Lockheed Martin as the manufacturer of the world's largest transport aircraft ... unless UkrOboronProm decides to resume manufacturing of the An-124. Such a plan had been considered by Ukraine in 2014, but Russia's invasion of that country killed the plan before it could be realized.

LMC produced 21 C-130s and nine upgraded C-5 Galaxies for multiple buyers last year, according to its latest earnings report, and The C-130 remains the world's most popular military transport. The demise of the Antonov Aviation Concern could mean good news for Lockheed in that segment of the market, the Motley Fool said.

(An-124 pictured in file photo)

FMI: www.lockheedmartin.com