VOLGA-DNEPR DELIVERS THREE BERIEV-103 AMPHIBIAN PLANES TO THE US

Moscow - Russia - August 2003 - Volga Dnepr has delivered three Beriev-103 (Be-103) amphibian planes and additional equipment from Komsomolsk-na-Amure, Russia to Oshkosh, USA, where they were participating in this years EAA Airventure, Oshkosh 2003. The cargo, weighing 10 tonnes, was transported in one of Volga-Dnepr's fleet of AN-124s.

The planes, said to be worth USD 3 million dollars are from the Taganrog-based Russian aircraft plant and are the new generation Be-103 light amphibian aircraft that can be used for passenger transportation, forest patrolling, sea and land borders observation, environmental control of water areas, first aid services and minor freight deliveries.

Commented Dennis Gliznoutsa, Volga-Dnepr's Commercial Manager: "Due to the unique dimensions of the cargo, Volga-Dnepr's load planning team spent a great deal of time researching loading and unloading techniques to enable all three planes to be transported on the same flight."

Following this research, the wings of the aircraft were removed and the three aircraft were loaded on the AN-124 along with all the tooling and equipment necessary to reassemble the BE-103s. Maintenance and engineering personnel were accompanied the amphibian aircraft, which were flown a total distance of 10,000km, stopping in Anchorage, USA to refuel.

Volga-Dnepr Group is the leader in the international market for oversize and super-heavy air cargo. Volga-Dnepr's fleet consists of nine AN-124-100s, two IL-76s and five YAK-40s. The Group employs more than 1,300 people of twenty nationalities.