AirBridge Cargo decides to base IL-76 aircraft in Krasnoyarsk

AirBridge Cargo (ABC) is to base an IL-76 freighter aircraft in Krasnoyarsk to meet growing demand for the airline’s services to the Russian Far East and provide extra capacity for the oil and gas industry based on Sakhalin Island. The aircraft will be provided by ABC’s parent, Volga-Dnepr Group.

ABC was launched in 2004 by Volga-Dnepr Group to operate scheduled cargo flights between Europe and Asia, via Russia.

AirBridge Cargo is currently the market leader in scheduled flight operations to Sakhalin and adding IL-76 capacity to its existing 747F services via Krasnoyarsk will provide customers with distinct advantages. The airline says the decision will be especially welcomed by customers with urgent cargo for Khabarovsk, Irkutsk and other Russian Far East and Siberian cities.

Specific cargo such as oil and gas equipment for the ‘Sakhalin-1’ and ‘Sakhalin-2’ projects will be delivered to Krasnoyarsk by ABC’s Boeing 747 aircraft and then will be transported to Sakhalin using the IL-76. This approach supports the ‘air cargo supermarket’ range of services offered by the Volga-Dnepr Group. The Krasnoyarsk base for the IL-76 will provide customers with the most efficient routes for cargo transportation between Europe, Asia, the USA and all major Russian Far East destinations as well as Sakhalin Island. The flexibility of the aircraft for heavy and outsize cargo makes the ABC option unique in being able to provide a one-stop shop for customers looking for speed and security to these destinations.

Since March 2005, AirBridge Cargo has operated weekly flights from Frankfurt and Amsterdam to Sakhalin. In 2006, connections from China, Hong Kong and Japan were also introduced. AirBridge Cargo has recently increased the frequency of its IL-76 flights to Sakhalin to twice weekly and has opened a sales and customer service office on the Island, reporting to ABC’s regional headquarters in Krasnoyarsk.