'World's Largest' Plane to Carry Wind Turbine Blades

Increasing the amount of energy we get from wind could be a big help in fighting
climate change.

And for wind energy — and specifically, wind turbines — bigger is better. There's
usually more wind the higher you go, while larger blades allow the turbines to
catch more wind and produce more electricity.

So it's no surprise that wind turbines have been growing in size. In the US, 10
years ago there wasn't a single turbine with blades over 115 meters in diameter
— but now the average is over 130 meters.

That size creates problems for transportation, however, because the blades are
getting too big for trucks to carry.

Enter WindRunner, a huge aircraft designed to carry wind turbine parts.

At 108 meters long — 35 meters longer than an Airbus A380 — the nose of the
aircraft will lift up so wind turbine blades as long as 105 meters can be loaded
directly inside.

Being developed by a Colorado-based company called Radia, the plane is

designed to have a range of 2,000 kilometers, with the ability to land on airstrips
shorter than any other large commercial aircraft can manage.

This will allow wind turbines to be built in places where it was previously
impossible — or too expensive — to do so.

Radia says the WindRunner will be "the world's largest aircraft." And while it
won't be able to carry as much weight as the Antonov AN-225 — which could
carry up to 250 metric tons, compared to the WindRunner's expected 72 metric
tons — the WindRunner will be able to carry almost eight times the Antonov's
volume.

However, there's still a question of when this big plane might be ready.

While some reports say the aircraft could start commercial operation as soon as
2027, that could be wishful thinking. In March 2024, Radia said only:
"WindRunner is more than halfway through the time required to design, build
and certify an aircraft."