AIRBRIDGE CARGO. MEDIA BACKGROUNDER

Launched by Volga-Dnepr Group in 2004, AirBridge Cargo is Russia’s first international scheduled cargo airline linking Asia and Europe.

The decision to launch scheduled cargo operations was taken by the Volga-Dnepr management team in Autumn 2002 as part of the Group’s strategic development plan.

As scheduled cargo operations differed fundamentally from the air charter business, which is a core activity for Volga-Dnepr, the Group’s management decided to create a new, separate company, AirBridge Cargo.

Managing Director, Stan Wraight, heads the scheduled cargo operation. He has more than 20 years’ experience in senior air cargo sales, operations and marketing management positions with major international airlines and has extensive contacts in the worldwide air cargo industry.

AirBridge Cargo operated its inaugural scheduled flight between Asia and Europe in May 2004.

Fleet

The first two Boeing 747-200 freighters to enter the AirBridge Cargo fleet were purchased in the used aircraft market from Alitalia.

The company is currently considering different aircraft types to support the strategic development of its route network. In the future, it plans to operate a mixed fleet of Boeing 747 freighters on trunk routes and Russian-built Ilyushin-76 or Tupolev 204С freighters on regional feeder flights. Thus, in five or six years, it aims to operate a fleet comprising of six Boeing 747s and four or six Russian-built aircraft.

Flight crew

AirBridge Cargo’s Russian flight crew have been trained to operate Boeing 747 aircraft in Lufthansa’s Flight Training Centre in Germany. All pilots were selected with previous experience of Boeing aircraft operations. A check crew consisting of experienced Boeing 747 pilots are accompanying each flight during the initial months of operation.

Technical services

As a result of the tender organised by AirBridge Cargo, Lufthansa Technik, the largest MRO provider in the world, has been chosen to supply a range of overhaul, maintenance and engineering services for AirBridge Cargo’s Boeing 747 freighters.

Flight network

Russia’s advantageous geographical location for traffic between the Asia Pacific region and Europe creates a number of competitive advantages for the new airline and its customers.

Initially, cargo transportation will be operated on the three main routes between China and Europe via Russia. Luxembourg and Moscow (Domodedovo) have been chosen as the airline’s hubs in Europe and Russia respectively.

In China, AirBridge Cargo now serves Beijing and Shanghai and will shortly commence flights from Tianjin and Guangzhou.

It is planned that the flight network will develop in three key directions:

1. Global network development

At the outset, the forming and development of the airline’s global network will be realised by building partnerships and interline agreements with international cargo airlines with hubs. AirBridge Cargo has already signed a memorandum of cooperation with Cargolux in Luxembourg, covering interline opportunities and cooperation in areas including aircraft maintenance and IT.

As the fleet grows, the number of the airline’s own intercontinental flights will also increase.

2. Regional network development

A regional network in Russia and China, serviced by Russian-built cargo aircraft, will be one of AirBridge Cargo’s unique service offerings. Direct access to the fast growing Chinese and Russian markets via regional airports will play an important role in generating traffic for the company’s services and its future business development.

3. Development of cargo transportation hubs

AirBridge Cargo will develop its own hubs, where cargo ground handling and sorting services will be carried out. AirBridge Cargo has signed an agreement with one of Europe’s leading ground handling organisations to jointly develop fully functional and versatile air cargo hubs in Moscow and Novosibirsk for the provision of ground handling and logistics services.

Sales and key clients

In Russia and China, AirBridge Cargo plans to conduct sales via its own offices, while in Europe it has chosen GSA partners. The airline has offices in China, Russia and Luxembourg. It has appointed leading cargo sales and services partnership Air Cargo Trader (ACT) and Inter Aviation Services (IAS) as its representatives in Europe. With extensive sales networks across Europe, both companies have a proven track record of marketing B747 cargo capacity.

Today, the airline offers its services to multi-national freight forwarding companies, to leading regional forwarders and global network logistics companies.

Eventually, the airline is planning to develop specialist products for different types of cargo, particularly automotive, oil & gas and perishable goods that have huge market growth potential in Russia.