THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Tuesday, April 23, 1996                TAG: 9604230340
SECTION: LOCAL                    PAGE: B11  EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: STAFF REPORT 
DATELINE: NORFOLK                            LENGTH: Short :   29 lines

HUGE RUSSIAN-BUILT PLANE - WORLD'S LARGEST - VISITS NORFOLK

The world's largest aircraft, a Russian-built Antonov An-124, landed at Norfolk Naval Air Station on Monday carrying a belly load of British military helicopters.

The helicopters are to be used in an upcoming military exercise off the Virginia and North Carolina coast in which more than 53,000 U.S. and British sailors, soldiers and Marines are participating.

The mammoth plane, more than three-fourths the length of a football field, is the world's largest production aircraft. It is 20 feet shorter than the Lockheed C-5 Galaxy but has a greater wingspan and, in a competition, carried 50 percent more payload than the American-made plane.

At least two of the An-124s are based in England and used for charter operations. A similar aircraft landed at the air station a year ago carrying a badly needed sonar dome for a British frigate.

Navy officials said the aircraft was expected to remain at the naval air station's cargo terminal until this afternoon. by CNB