# What is the heaviest single object ever to be lifted by aircraft? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 24, 2019, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999 "2019-04-24T16:38:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/1 "2019-04-24T16:38:11Z")
It doesn’t have to be a single aircraft, and by “aircraft” I mean any vehicle that moves above the ground. Also it can’t be the vehicle itself, so C-5 Galaxies and spacecraft are out. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/2 "2019-04-24T16:41:16Z")
Guessing without googling, maybe a space shuttle orbiter piggybacked to a 747? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/3 "2019-04-24T16:44:00Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Guessing without googling, maybe a space shuttle orbiter piggybacked to a 747? What does one of those weigh? ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/4 "2019-04-24T16:48:07Z")
68500kg dry mass, according to wikipedia. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/5 "2019-04-24T16:55:13Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#): > > 68500kg dry mass, according to wikipedia. That works out to about 151016 lbs. I just now found a claim from Guinness(which I can’t link to for some reason) that says > [@](#): > > The heaviest item airlifted is a power plant generator which weighs 187.6 tonnes (375,200 lb) and was achieved by Antonov Airlines 225 “Mriya” aircraft - the biggest aircraft in the world, at Frankfurt Hahn Airport, in Frankfurt, Germany, on 11 Aug 2009. , but I don’t know how up to date that info is. ---
**Author:** ![Reindeer\_Flotilla](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reindeer_flotilla/32/3024_2.png) [@Reindeer\_Flotilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reindeer_Flotilla)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/6 "2019-04-24T17:02:46Z")
Another interesting thing related to the shuttle weight [when hauled by the modified 747](https://www.cnn.com/2012/04/17/us/shuttle-discovery-weight/index.html): > [@](#): > > The 747 that carried Discovery weighed about 488,000 pounds. Jim Proulx, a spokesman for Boeing, says a commercial 747 airliner can weigh more than 800,000 when carrying passengers. So apparently the modified 747 was not being overly taxed hauling that single object compared to the normal passenger-related load. [This site](http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/ask/268-How-much-did-the-Space-Shuttle-weigh-) has some basic information on the weight specs of the shuttle itself: > [@](#): > > The Space Shuttle weighed 165,000 pounds empty. Its external tank weighed 78,100 pounds empty and its two solid rocket boosters weighed 185,000 pounds empty each. Each solid rocket booster held 1.1 million pounds of fuel. The external tank held 143,000 gallons of liquid oxygen (1,359,000 pounds) and 383,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen (226,000 pounds). The fuel weighed almost 20 times more than the Shuttle. The last sentence was a surprise to me, not that the fuel would be the bulk of the weight but by how much. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/7 "2019-04-24T17:04:27Z")
The maximum landing weight of the Shuttle orbiter was around 100 tons. And whenever the Shuttle landed anywhere other than KSC, I believe they transported it to KSC on the 747 without removing the payload. (Obviously if it’s a satellite launch mission, the cargo bay would be empty, but some missions involved retrieving stuff from space, or taking an experiment facility like Spacelab that remained in the cargo bay and brought back.) Still no match for the An-225 record mentioned above. ---
**Author:** ![Reindeer\_Flotilla](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reindeer_flotilla/32/3024_2.png) [@Reindeer\_Flotilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reindeer_Flotilla)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/8 "2019-04-24T17:07:43Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > The maximum landing weight of the Shuttle orbiter was around 100 tons. And whenever the Shuttle landed anywhere other than KSC, I believe they transported it on the 747 without removing the payload. > > Still no match for the An-225 record mentioned above. Indeed, beat the shuttle weight by way more than double. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/9 "2019-04-24T17:15:42Z")
> [@Reindeer\_Flotilla](#): > > So apparently the modified 747 was not being overly taxed hauling that single object compared to the normal passenger-related load. The weight was well within the capability of the 747 (the freight version of the 747 has a max payload around 124 tons), but the orbiter added a huge amount of drag. Which reduced the max altitude to 15,000 ft and range to 1200 miles. This meant it couldn’t fly non-stop from Edwards Air Force Base to Kennedy Space Center. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/10 "2019-04-24T17:35:44Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > That works out to about 151016 lbs. > I just now found a claim from Guinness(which I can’t link to for some reason) that says , but I don’t know how up to date that info is. So far as I know, the A-225 is still the largest plane in the world and it’s specifically a cargo plane. For a thread like this, that’s what I’d look at. However, just because it could carry the largest single item, doesn’t mean it has. Though I’d expect it’s likely carried the largest payload. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/11 "2019-04-24T17:56:57Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > So far as I know, the A-225 is still the largest plane in the world and it’s specifically a cargo plane. For a thread like this, that’s what I’d look at. > However, just because it could carry the largest single item, doesn’t mean it has. Though I’d expect it’s likely carried the largest payload. The [Stratolaunch,](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scaled_Composites_Stratolaunch#Specifications_(Model_351_Stratolaunch)) which recently flew for the first time, has the largest wingspan of any plane ever flown and is intended to carry launch-to-orbit rockets. Big ones. Its external payload capacity is listed at 550,000 pounds. It was designed to handle the now-cancelled Pegasus II rocket, which would have had a gross weight of 465,000 pounds. Not sure what they’ll do with it now. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/12 "2019-04-24T18:01:25Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > The [Stratolaunch,](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scaled_Composites_Stratolaunch#Specifications_(Model_351_Stratolaunch)) which recently flew for the first time, has the largest wingspan of any plane ever flown and is intended to carry launch-to-orbit rockets. Big ones. Its external payload capacity is listed at 550,000 pounds. It was designed to handle the now-cancelled Pegasus II rocket, which would have had a gross weight of 465,000 pounds. Not sure what they’ll do with it now. Wow that thing is wild looking. Two cockpits? 2-4 pilots? ---
**Author:** ![Reindeer\_Flotilla](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reindeer_flotilla/32/3024_2.png) [@Reindeer\_Flotilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reindeer_Flotilla)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/13 "2019-04-24T18:58:56Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Wow that thing is wild looking. Two cockpits? 2-4 pilots? Let’s hope they’re in communication, and in agreement! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/14 "2019-04-24T19:20:06Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Wow that thing is wild looking. Two cockpits? 2-4 pilots? There are two fuselages so the payload rocket can be slung between them under the wing, but according to Wikipedia the flight crew is together in the right cockpit, and the left cockpit unoccupied/unpressurized. They must have some interesting software to coordinate the angles of the front landing gear on each fuselage. When taxiing, they make some turns in which the inboard wheels are much closer to the center of the turn than the outboard wheels, so the two front landing gear have to turn to different angles to get around the corner without skidding. You can approximate this on a car with [Ackerman steering geometry](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steering#/media/File:Ackermann_turning.svg), but the two front landing gear steering mechanisms on that thing surely are not linked mechanically. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/15 "2019-04-24T23:05:51Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Wow that thing is wild looking. Two cockpits? 2-4 pilots? I imagine a husband and wife team. “We should turn here.” “The chart says straight on.” “I’m sure we turned at that beacon.” “No dear… I’m going to turn now…” “OOPS!” ---
**Author:** ![PoppaSan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/poppasan/32/189_2.png) [@PoppaSan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoppaSan)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/16 "2019-04-25T01:42:47Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > I imagine a husband and wife team. > > “We should turn here.” > “The chart says straight on.” > “I’m sure we turned at that beacon.” > “No dear… I’m going to turn now…” > “OOPS!” Starting at :45 [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjsTZzP8nkI)with the inevitable result after a minute. ---
**Author:** ![sweepkick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/87869e/32.png) [@sweepkick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweepkick)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/17 "2019-04-25T02:45:28Z")
> [@Reindeer\_Flotilla](#): > > Let’s hope they’re in communication, and in agreement! 🙂 [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/QhGRzKcAu10/hqdefault.jpg "Family Guy - Something Something Something Darkside - Clip 6") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhGRzKcAu10) ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/18 "2019-04-25T04:22:00Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > The [Stratolaunch,](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scaled_Composites_Stratolaunch#Specifications_(Model_351_Stratolaunch)) which recently flew for the first time, has the largest wingspan of any plane ever flown and is intended to carry launch-to-orbit rockets… It was designed to handle the now-cancelled Pegasus II rocket, not sure what they’ll do with it now. Why did they continue with the plane after the rocket was cancelled? ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/19 "2019-04-25T04:38:48Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > Why did they continue with the plane after the rocket was cancelled? Are you familiar with the Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane? They can attach removable cargo pods to it. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999/20 "2019-04-25T07:16:23Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Also it can’t be the vehicle itself, so C-5 Galaxies and spacecraft are out. The stages of a rocket are independent vehicles. I see no reason why we can’t count the upper stages and payload of a given rocket as the “object”, with the first stage as the “vehicle”. Especially since the upper stages aren’t contributing to the thrust or propellant when the first stage is active. The first stage of the Saturn V weighed 5,040,000 lb fueled, and we aren’t counting that. But it lifted the second, third, and payload as a joined object. Together, they weighed 1,093,900 + 271,000 + 107,100 = 1,472,000 lbs, or 736 short tons (668 metric tons). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-single-object-ever-to-be-lifted-by-aircraft/832999.md?page=2)