Soviet era , mass-produced Soviet utility aeroplane. in Czech markings
Foundation and relocation The company was established in 1946 at the
Novosibirsk Aircraft Production Association as the top-secret Soviet
Research and Design Bureau No. 153 (
OKB-153). It was headed by
Oleg Antonov and specialised in
turboprop military transport aircraft. The task was to create an
agricultural aircraft CX-1 (An-2), the first flight of which occurred on 31 August 1947. The
An-2 biplane was a major achievement of this period, with hundreds of these aircraft still operating as of 2013. The end of the
Cold War and
perestroika allowed the Antonov company's first step to commercialisation and foreign expansion. In 1989, the
Antonov Airlines subsidiary was created for its own aircraft maintenance and
cargo projects.
Independent Ukraine Antonov Design Bureau remained a state-owned company after Ukraine achieved its independence in 1991 and is since regarded as a strategic national asset. Since independence, Antonov has certified and marketed both Soviet-era and newly developed models for sale in new markets outside of the former soviet sphere of influence. New models introduced to serial production and delivered to customers include the
Antonov An-140,
Antonov An-148 and
Antonov An-158 regional airliners. Among several modernisation projects, Antonov received orders for upgrading "hundreds" of its
An-2 utility planes still in operation in
Azerbaijan,
Cuba and Russia to the An-2-100 upgrade version. In 2014, following the
annexation of the Crimea by Russia, Ukraine cancelled contracts with Russia, leading to a significant income reduction in Ukraine's defense and aviation industries. However Ukraine has been slowly recovering the deficit from breaking ties with Russia by entering new markets such as the
Persian Gulf region and expanding its presence in old ones such as India. In July 2018, Antonov was able to secure a deal with Boeing to procure airplane parts which were no longer available due to breakdown of relations with Russia.
Production facilities' consolidation During the
Soviet period, not all Antonov-designed
aircraft were manufactured by the company itself. This was a result of Soviet industrial strategy that split military production between different regions of the
Soviet Union to minimise potential war loss risks. As a result, Antonov aeroplanes were often assembled by the specialist
contract manufacturers. In 2009, the once-independent "
Aviant" aeroplane-assembling plant in
Kyiv became part of Antonov, facilitating a full serial manufacturing cycle of the company. However, the old tradition of co-manufacturing with contractors is continued, both with Soviet-time partners and with new licensees like
Iran's
Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company. In 2014, Antonov produced and delivered only two
An-158 airplanes. This trend continued into 2015, producing one
An-148 and one
An-158. Aircraft production came to an effective standstill following the deterioration of relations with Russia, as all aircraft in production were heavily reliant on Russian suppliers and expertise. roll out ceremony in Kyiv, 20 December 2016 In June 2016, Ukraine's major state-owned arms manufacturer
Ukroboronprom announced the creation of the
Ukrainian Aircraft Corporation within its structure, thereby combining all aircraft manufacturing enterprises, including the assets of Antonov into a single cluster, according to Ukroboronprom's press service. On 19 July 2017, the Ukrainian government approved the liquidation of Antonov's assets. The State Concern "Antonov" (a business group, created in 2005 from the merger of several legally independent companies into a single economic entity under unified management) will be liquidated as a residual corporate entity. Antonov State Company, Kharkiv State Aviation Manufacturing Enterprise and Plant No.410 of Civil Aviation were transferred under the management of another state-owned concern Ukroboronprom in 2015. Antonov State Company continues to function as an enterprise. On 31 March 2017, the first prototype of a new multifunctional cargo plane
An-132 – a demonstration plane An-132D – took to the air from the runway of Sviatoshyn airfield. The An-132 development program had been implemented in the framework of a contract with a customer from Saudi Arabia. On 24 February 2022, at the beginning of
Russia's full-scale invasion in Ukraine, the first attacks were launched at
Kyiv-Antonov-2 airfield, the site of Antonov's test flights and home base of the planes of
Antonov Airlines. The
Аn-225 Mriya,
An-26,
An-74 and administrative premises were destroyed. Other aircraft – Аn-12, Аn-22, Аn-28, Аn-132D and Аn-124-100-150 – along with hangars and other infrastructure were severely damaged.
The Security Service of Ukraine established that the former director general of Antonov Company Serhiy Bychkov had not provided access to the site for the National Guard in January and February 2022 and thus obstructed preparations for defence. The investigators considered that Bychkov's negligence is the direct cause of the loss of
Mriya, because the plane could have been sent to Germany long before February 24. In March 2023, Serhiy Bychkov was arrested, in April he faced formal suspicion in connection with the loss of An-225
Mriya and damages to Antonov amounting to
₴8.4 million. An An-124 that had been undergoing modernization at Hostomel Airport during the initial Russian invasion was flown out in July 2025. ==Composition==